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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Meme Misconstrues Efficacy of Face Masks in Spread of COVID-19

Meme Misconstrues Efficacy of Face Masks in Spread of COVID-19

A meme suggesting that face masks are useless against COVID-19 has been circulating online. But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends wearing a face covering in public since the virus is transmitted mostly through droplets produced when people cough, sneeze and talk.

Fake AOC Tweet Politicizes COVID-19 Business Restrictions

Fake AOC Tweet Politicizes COVID-19 Business Restrictions

A fabricated tweet attributed to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez advocates extending COVID-19 restrictions on businesses “until after the November Elections.” There is no evidence Ocasio-Cortez sent the bogus tweet, which was shared — and later deleted — by a Florida congressional candidate and a Fox News host.

Viral Photo Misidentified as Trump Tulsa Crowd

Viral Photo Misidentified as Trump Tulsa Crowd

Social media accounts supportive of President Donald Trump have been sharing a photo of a large outdoor crowd with the false claim that it shows the scene outside of Trump’s Tulsa rally. It actually shows the Rolling Thunder event near Washington, D.C. in 2019.

Trump Campaign Didn’t Advertise for ‘MINORITY Actors’ in Tulsa

Trump Campaign Didn’t Advertise for ‘MINORITY Actors’ in Tulsa

Posts on social media cite an anonymous Craigslist ad to support the false claim that President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign is seeking “MINORITY Actors” to hold signs at his June 20 rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The Trump campaign says it didn’t post the ad, and Craigslist has removed it.

Meme Spreads Wrong Photo, Details in Floyd Criminal Case

Meme Spreads Wrong Photo, Details in Floyd Criminal Case

A meme misrepresents a 2007 criminal case in Houston involving George Floyd. The meme distorts the details of Floyd’s case and includes a photo of a woman who was badly injured in an unrelated attack in Spain in 2018.

Bogus Claims of ‘Crisis Actors’ in Death of George Floyd

Bogus Claims of ‘Crisis Actors’ in Death of George Floyd

False claims that nearly everyone involved in George Floyd’s death — including Floyd — are “crisis actors” have spread widely online. But the pictures that supposedly prove this theory actually show unrelated people.

Trump Tweets Baseless Claims About Injured Buffalo Protester

Trump Tweets Baseless Claims About Injured Buffalo Protester

With no evidence, President Donald Trump promoted a conspiracy theory that Martin Gugino, the 75-year-old man who was hospitalized after being pushed by police during a June 4 protest in Buffalo, New York, was an “ANTIFA provocateur” who was trying to “black out” police equipment.

Video of Trump’s ‘Choke’ Quote Refers to Political Rivals

Video of Trump’s ‘Choke’ Quote Refers to Political Rivals

Video clips of President Donald Trump pretending to choke while saying “I can’t breathe” have been circulating with the misleading suggestion that he was mocking George Floyd. The videos pre-date Floyd’s death and show the president mocking his political rivals — not Floyd.

Nuremberg Code Addresses Experimentation, Not Vaccines

Nuremberg Code Addresses Experimentation, Not Vaccines

A bogus claim that “[v]accines are in direct violation of The Nuremberg Code” has been circulating on social media. Actually, the Nuremberg Code addresses the treatment of human subjects in medical experiments and says nothing about the use of tested and approved vaccines on patients.