FactCheck.org Managing Editor Lori Robertson spoke with WHYY radio in Philadelphia about fact-checking the White House’s daily coronavirus task force briefings.
The White House Coronavirus Briefings
Issues: COVID-19
FactChecking Trump’s Attack on the WHO
In announcing that his administration would halt funding for the World Health Organization, President Donald Trump made a series of false, misleading and unsubstantiated claims about the WHO.
Reports Didn’t Misrepresent One Man’s Death as Two
A bogus meme on Facebook suggests that the news media has tried to pass off one man’s death, attributed to complications from COVID-19, as two separate cases. But the headlines cited simply focused on different parts of his biography.
Constitutional Experts: Trump Lacks Power to ‘Open Up the States’
Constitutional experts say President Donald Trump is wrong that he, not governors, has the power to “open up the states.”
Democratic Ad Twists Trump’s ‘Hoax’ Comment
The Democratic super PAC Priorities USA Action has been running an ad falsely suggesting President Donald Trump called the coronavirus outbreak a “hoax.”
Trump Falsely Distorts New York Times COVID-19 Science Story
In a weekend tweet, President Donald Trump erroneously described a New York Times article, falsely stating that it said the coronavirus originated in Europe and suggesting that it had no named sources.
TV News Report Prompts Unfounded Attacks on Michigan Governor
A TV station’s report on a Michigan fine for those violating the state’s social distancing orders showed Gov. Gretchen Whitmer at a signing ceremony with an intimate crowd of people — prompting accusations of hypocrisy on social media. But the footage used was from January 2019.
Trump Campaign’s Misleading Ad Attacking Biden on China
The Trump campaign has launched a misleading attack ad on presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and his past statements on China.
Trump’s Snowballing China Travel Claim
President Trump said that restrictions he placed on travel from China “saved a lot of lives,” a claim that grew to “probably tens of thousands” and “hundreds of thousands.” But we found no support for such figures.
False Claim of Deadly Coronavirus Vaccine Trial in Africa
Posts across social media are falsely claiming that a vaccine trial for the novel coronavirus in Senegal resulted in the death of seven children. The video behind those claims does not show that. And there is no clinical trial for a potential vaccine currently taking place in Senegal.