Did researchers associated with Harvard University create a 3D model of Mansa Musa, the 14th-century ruler of the Mali Empire? No, that's not true: This image does not show a forensic and digital reconstruction of Mansa Musa. It is a rendering of Kanye West. This joke is a variation of an online theme that has circulated for years, presenting the…

Did Proud Boys founder Enrique Tarrio say he works for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement? No, that's not true. Tarrio sarcastically replied to a tweet claiming his name appeared on a leaked list of ICE employees, but later clarified that he does not work for the agency. The claim originated from a January 13, 2026, post by Tarrio on his…

Did the U.S. Department of Homeland Security release an image of Jonathan Ross's arm with an IV tube as evidence that the ICE agent suffered internal bleeding from Renee Good's car? No, that's not true: The photo was taken by a college student in 2016 and used in an attempt to convince his professor that he was hospitalized and should…

Were 20 percent of Oregon voters revealed to be "fake" after the secretary of state announced they were going to clean 800,000 names from voter rolls? No, that's not true: The removal of 800,000 inactive registered voters is part of routine voter roll maintenance required by state law. The 800,000 are not part of the 3 million active registered voters…

Are Tom Brady and Erika Kirk reportedly dating? No, that's not true: For them to be "reportedly dating," there would need to be reports. The only report that the two are dating is a post from the Hoops Crave account, which has a parody disclaimer. The fake gossip appeared in a post (archived here) published on X by @hoopscrave on…

Does real bodycam video show a local policeman demanding that a Brinks truck driver open the cargo hold of a truck that was "a federal asset"? No, that's not true: The video is watermarked "A.I. BodyCam VIDEOS" by the page that posted it, which says in its page bio that it creates "fictional...Dramatic, scripted bodycam vids." The font of the…

Does a real photo show Elon Musk and Ted Cruz posing together while two furries are passing in the background? No, that's not true: A real photo that was posted on Instagram by Ted Cruz has been digitally altered. The changes to the photo are subtle, but unflattering. The faces of the two men have been changed to take away…

Did a video document U.S. Marshals confiscating a Somali daycare owner's Lamborghini? No, that's not true: This video is AI-generated. A Sora watermark appears in different positions on the frame throughout the video. One copy of the video (archived here) was published on X by @its_The_Dr on Jan. 13, 2026. It is captioned: How funny is this? Somalian daycare owner…

Did Bruce Springsteen, Cher, Joni Mitchell and dozens of other celebrities each buy the small diner where they ate for free while struggling and now feed free meals to 120 homeless people every day? No, that's not true: 54 virtually identical stories mentioning those and other names were published by a network of foreign websites and Facebook pages. There were…

Did the phrase "One of ours all of yours" originate in Nazi Germany after all the residents in a Czech village were killed in retribution for the killing of an SS officer? No, that's not true: The phrase, which was displayed on a lectern at a DHS press conference, is not present in historical records of Nazi slogans, nor is…