Facts Check

Quick Take A picture of a reporter in protective medical gear has fueled claims on social media accounts dedicated to American politics that the media “hypes” the COVID-19 pandemic. The photo actually shows a team in Lebanon reporting on a local factory that makes protective suits. Full Story A picture […]

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in an April 14 interview that the Paycheck Protection Program was “very important,” and with a second round of funding, she wanted to “open this up to many more people,” specifically the “underbanked.” But that context is missing from a Trump campaign video. The video, […]

Q: Are hospitals inflating the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths so they can be paid more? A: Recent legislation pays hospitals higher Medicare rates for COVID-19 patients and treatment, but there is no evidence of fraudulent reporting. FULL QUESTION Are hospitals getting 13,000 per patient if they write that […]

In this video, we look at some of the claims that President Donald Trump made when he announced his administration would halt funding for the World Health Organization. The video reviews these statements that the president made in his April 14 announcement: Trump repeated his unsubstantiated claim that if he […]

Available data on confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths contradicts President Donald Trump’s recent claim that “the United States has achieved a significant lower mortality rate than almost all other countries.” As of April 16, there were at least 90 countries with a lower case fatality rate than the U.S., according […]

Quick Take Social media posts falsely claim that federal payments from the COVID-19 stimulus package could reduce taxpayers’ future refunds. The Internal Revenue Service says the payment “will not reduce your refund or increase the amount you owe when you file your 2020 tax return next year.” Full Story The […]

President Donald Trump is making false and exaggerated claims about House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s Feb. 24 trip to San Francisco’s Chinatown. Pelosi urged people to shop and eat there at a time when tourism was suffering because of the novel coronavirus, which originated in China late last year. Trump falsely […]

FactCheck.org Managing Editor Lori Robertson spoke with WHYY radio in Philadelphia about fact-checking the White House’s daily coronavirus task force briefings. She was a guest on WHYY’s “Radio Times” on April 15 for a discussion on fact-checking and the challenge  for the media in covering these briefings live, along with […]

Quick Take A viral news article falsely reports that “Jeopardy!” host Alex Trebek died on April 14, leaving his estate to President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign. Trebek, who has been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer, is alive — and there is no evidence he is “a fervent Trump supporter.” […]

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: Trump inaccurately said the WHO stated that the novel coronavirus “was not communicable.” The agency never went that far. In mid-January, the […]