Pregnancy tests contain a desiccant tablet to absorb moisture and keep the test dry before use. But posts on social media falsely claim the tablet is a “hidden plan B” pill. Companies that produce pregnancy tests include a warning on their websites not to consume the desiccant tablets inside.
Biden’s address to Congress included claims that didn’t tell the full story.
Research suggests COVID-19 vaccination can cause changes in a person’s menstrual cycle. But the changes are small and short-lived — and studies have shown there’s no effect on fertility. Yet people on social media are suggesting the cycle changes are evidence of harm.
In an email to a Twitter lawyer in February 2021, an unidentified Twitter employee wrote that the company had received over $3.4 million from the FBI since October 2019 as reimbursement for Twitter’s processing of legal requests for user information. That is not evidence that the FBI paid Twitter to “censor” or “suppress” content.
Starbucks has a long history of supporting LGBTQ rights and same-sex marriage. But a post on social media twists a 2013 statement from its CEO at the time to falsely claim he said don’t buy Starbucks coffee “if you support traditional marriage.”
Discussing the fallout from the death of Tyre Nichols, Fox News’ Sean Hannity said two academic studies found police officers are as or less likely to shoot Black suspects, showing, “There is no systemic racism in policing. It doesn’t exist.” But that’s not what the studies say.
The U.S. spent more than $849 billion in the 20-year war in Afghanistan and has spent about $113 billion to support Ukraine since Russia invaded in 2022. But a video on social media falsely claims that the aid for Ukraine is “double the U.S. expenditure for its own war in Afghanistan.”
The relentless storms that hit California from Dec. 27 to Jan. 16 caused extreme flooding and extensive damage, killing at least 22 people. Climate scientists told us it’s too soon to know whether climate change had a role in this particular event, and if so, to what degree.
Few Republican lawmakers have publicly supported the FairTax Act, but that hasn’t stopped Democratic leaders from suggesting that the bill has wide support among congressional Republicans.
Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest Jan. 2 on the football field after being hit in the chest during a tackle. Hamlin was discharged from the hospital on Jan. 11 and has made several public appearances since then. But posts on social media falsely claim Hamlin died.