Political leanings: Democratic 2020 total spending: $150.8 million Future Forward USA PAC, legally known as FF PAC, is a liberal political action committee created in 2018 to support the presidential election of Joe Biden. The group is what’s known as a hybrid PAC or “Carey committee.” That means it “has the ability […]
Facts Check
National Victory Action Fund
Political leanings: Republican 2020 total spending: $4.8 million The National Victory Action Fund was established in 2020 by several Republican political strategists. The group is what’s known as a hybrid PAC or “Carey committee,” meaning it “has the ability to operate both as a traditional PAC, contributing funds to a candidate’s committee, and as […]
Post Misconstrues Public Health Awareness Campaigns About Blood Clots
SciCheck Digest The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Pfizer tweeted in February about the dangers of blood clots in veins, which are relatively common and affect as many as 900,000 Americans each year. A story shared on social media, however, misleadingly linked those public health reminders to the […]
Hunter Biden Left Ukrainian Company in 2019, Contrary to Ted Nugent Post
Quick Take Hunter Biden served on the board of the Ukrainian oil and gas company Burisma Holdings from 2014 to 2019. But Ted Nugent posted a Facebook meme falsely insinuating that Hunter’s payments from the company ended with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Full Story In May 2014, Hunter Biden […]
COVID-19 Vaccines Have Prevented Deaths, Contrary to Misleading Graphic on Social Media
SciCheck Digest Studies have shown that COVID-19 vaccines have prevented severe disease and deaths. But bogus claims that they don’t work continue to circulate online. One claim relies on a misleading graph showing cumulative deaths in the U.S., but omits information about the number of deaths among the vaccinated versus […]
Social Media Posts Misrepresent U.S.-Ukraine Threat Reduction Program
Quick Take The U.S. Department of Defense’s Biological Threat Reduction Program has provided technical support to improve and protect Ukraine’s public health laboratories. Social media posts, however, falsely claim the program created “bioweapons labs” that are being targeted by Russian forces as part of the invasion of Ukraine. Full Story […]
FactChecking Biden’s State of the Union Address
Summary In his first State of the Union address, President Joe Biden focused on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, before turning to his accomplishments and agenda for the coming year. Some of his statements didn’t square with the facts. Biden said the planned release of 60 million barrels of global oil […]
Benefits of COVID-19 Vaccination Outweigh the Rare Risk of Myocarditis, Even in Young Males
SciCheck Digest Rare cases of myocarditis have been reported following the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, particularly among young males after a second dose. Most cases resolve quickly without the need for advanced therapies, although research on any potential long-term effects is ongoing. Nonetheless, the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks in […]
Bogus Tweet Spreads False Account of ‘First American Casualty’ in Ukraine
Quick Take “Bernie Gores” was not killed in Afghanistan in August, and he wasn’t the “first American casualty of the Ukraine crisis.” He doesn’t exist. But Facebook users were faked out by fabricated tweets that purport to show CNN announcing the death of the same man twice in six months. […]
More than 100 Protesters Arrested in Ottawa, Despite Claims in Facebook Video
Quick Take More than 100 people were arrested during the Freedom Convoy protests in Ottawa. But a video on social media falsely claimed protesters were released “in the middle of nowhere” because the arrests were “illegal.” An associate professor of law who observed the protests said that “police had the […]