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26215 | Facebook post Says Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine released 4,300 prisoners and is now warning residents of a possible crime wave. | Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has not released 4,300 prisoners due to COVID-19 and there’s no evidence that he warned residents of a possible crime wave. Ohio has released 129 inmates early due to COVID-19, according to DeWine’s staff. | false | Ohio, Facebook Fact-checks, Coronavirus, Facebook posts, | "A social media post is targeting Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine over prison releases amid COVID-19. The May 16 Facebook post claims that DeWine ""released 4,300 prisoners today! Now he is warning residents of possible crime wave! Seriously you can't fix STUPID!!"" This is inaccurate. The post was flagged as part of ... |
33758 | Mysterious white powdery substance on a football field is revealed to be the goal line. | The joke reappears every football season. | false | Humor, Jes’ Plain Jokes | The above-quoted joke reappears every fall, each time aimed at football teams regarded as underperforming (e.g., it was told of the Dallas Cowboys on the 1 November 2001 edition of Rush Limbaugh’s radio show). Example: [Collected on the Internet, 2005] Green Bay, WI Monday, October 31, 2005 – Anthrax Scare At Lambeau ... |
37304 | Prompted by Senator Hillary Clinton’s health care proposals, the writer of the eRumor says all is not well in Canada where a universal health care plan has been in effect for a long time. | Discussion of Canadian Health Care | true | Crime / Police, Politics | This is a complex story and some of it, such as whether Senator Hillary Clinton’s health care proposals have merit, is a matter of political, social, and economic opinion. We don’t have a name for the writer of this eRumor or whether it was really written from Canada or not, but we can look into so... |
11063 | Regular Pap smear is as effective as ThinPrep | "In less than 350 words, this story did a fine job of summarizing a study that one ob-gyn noted ""should serve as a cautionary tale that just because something is new doesn’t mean it’s better."" One criticism: the story did not cite anything from an editorial accompanying the study in JAMA – an editorial that gave go... | true | "We’ll give the story a satisfactory score on this criterion because it acknowledged that the ThinPrep is ""more expensive."" But we wish it had provided the actual cost comparison. The story delivered the key line from one ob-gyn observer, that the study ""should serve as a cautionary tale that just because something ... | |
8173 | Diamond Princess critic says Tokyo Olympics should be halted. | The Japanese doctor who created a media firestorm with videos criticizing the quarantine of a coronavirus-stricken cruise ship said he now believes the Tokyo 2020 Olympics should not go on. | true | Health News | Kentaro Iwata, a professor of infectious disease at Kobe University, said on his blog on Thursday that it’s not clear that the outbreak in Japan will have subsided by the planned start of the Games in July. Also, the flood of foreign visitors could exacerbate the spread of the disease, known as COVID-19. Japanese gover... |
36218 | "A teenager leaving for college in Colorado became severely ill due to ""vaping,"" or the standard use of an e-cigarette." | Did a Teen in Colorado Fall Gravely Ill From Vaping? | unproven | Fact Checks, Viral Content | "On August 30 2019, a Facebook user shared a lengthy post (archived here) about her daughter Piper’s purported illness, in a screed blaming “vaping” for the girl’s condition.In the post, Johnson claimed that two weeks previously, her daughter became ill during a journey to college in Colorado and reported difficulty br... |
27431 | A photograph shows vintage box of fake snow decor made of the carcinogen asbestos. | Compounding these issues, asbestos continues to be imported into our country, primarily due to the alarming fact that asbestos has not yet been completely banned. Further, asbestos has been repeatedly found in a wide variety of new consumer products as reported by recent independent studies. Some of these asbestos-cont... | true | Uncategorized, asbestos, christmas, pure white fire proof snow | As Christmas 2017 approached, social media users began circulating an image of a vintage-looking box labeled “Asbestos: Pure White Fire Proof Snow.” Some asked if the box really contained artificial snow made out of what is now a widely-recognized carcinogen: In the early half of the 20th Century, asbestos was widely ... |
16189 | "Ted Cruz Says Obama's net neutrality proposal ""puts the government in charge of determining Internet pricing, terms of service and what types of products and services can be delivered." | "Cruz said, Obama’s net neutrality proposal ""puts the government in charge of determining Internet pricing, terms of service and what types of products and services can be delivered."" While theoretically possible, Obama said specifically that he does not want the FCC to regulate Internet prices, and the FCC typically... | mixture | National, Government Regulation, Technology, Ted Cruz, | "Net neutrality is the ""biggest regulatory threat to the Internet,"" according to Sen. Ted Cruz. Cruz took to social media to denounce a policy from President Barack Obama on Nov. 10 that was seen as a big step in favor of net neutrality. Obama said he wanted ""the strongest possible rules to protect net neutrality.""... |
8699 | China city offers $1,400 reward for virus patients who report to authorities. | A city in China’s Hubei province, the epicenter of the global coronavirus epidemic, will pay residents as much as 10,000 yuan ($1,425.96) if they proactively report symptoms of the illness and it is confirmed after testing. | true | Health News | Qianjiang, a city of around one million people located about 150 km (90 miles) from the stricken provincial capital of Wuhan, has reported a total of 197 cases so far and is stepping up efforts to ensure its infected people are confined and treated. It is the latest of a number of regions to offer cash rewards to encou... |
4011 | Data show more immunization rates dropped below guidelines. | New data released Monday by Connecticut health officials shows immunization rates for measles, mumps and rubella among kindergarten students has continued to decline in more schools, a development that’s being linked to more families seeking religious exemptions from required vaccinations. | true | Rubella, Immunizations, Health, Measles, General News, Connecticut, Mumps, Public health | During the 2018-19 school year, the vaccination rate fell below the federally mandated guideline of 95% in 134 schools with more than 30 kindergarten students, according to figures compiled by the state Department of Public Health. That’s compared to 102 such schools during the 2017-2018 school year. The statewide rate... |
1899 | Want a pet cat? Think again, researchers say. | Tempted by the playful antics of that adorable kitten in the pet shop? If you’ve never had a cat before you may want to think again, especially if you have other allergies, researchers warn. | true | Health News | "A Maine Coon cat stares at a camera during an international cat exhibition held in Rishon Lezion, near Tel Aviv December 17, 2011. REUTERS/Amir Cohen And if you do acquire a feline, keep it out of your bedroom. While having a cat as a child may protect against future allergies, getting one in adulthood nearly doubles ... |
31998 | A new analysis of the residue on common American foods showed high levels of the herbicide glyphosate and Monsanto, the EPA, and the FDA are in cahoots to silence word of the chemical’s harmful effects and its high concentration in foods. | NOTE: This story has been updated based on discussions with a number of scientists in the field. It was originally listed as a MIXTURE, but we have now reclassified it as FALSE in response to concerns that our original narrative might have led viewers into taking the results of an activist group’s lab analyses as a sci... | false | Medical, food babe, glyphosate, monsanto | Note: On 10 August 2018, a jury assembled in California Superior Court in San Francisco found Monsanto (which is now part of the pharmaceutical company Bayer) liable for a 46-year-old groundskeeper’s development of Non-Hodgkin lymphoma. For more information on that ruling, and how it relates to glyphosate residue in fo... |
28602 | President Bill Clinton firing of FBI Director William Sessions was linked to Deputy White House Counsel Vince Foster's death a day later. | What's true: President Clinton fired FBI Director William Sessions on 19 July 1993, one day before Deputy White House Counsel Vince Foster, a longtime associate of the Clintons, was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. What's false: There is nothing inherently suspicious about the coincidental timing of Sessio... | mixture | History, bill clinton, fbi director, vince foster | On 11 May 2017, two days into a firestorm ignited by President Trump’s dismissal of FBI Director James Comey, who was investigating possible links between Trump’s presidential campaign and Russian efforts to disrupt the 2016 election, supporters of the administration took to social media to deflect attention elsewhere.... |
14876 | The Libyan people have voted twice in free and fair elections for the kind of leadership they want. | "Clinton said that ""the Libyan people have voted twice in free and fair elections for the kind of leadership they want."" Even acknowledging that Clinton mentioned some of the problems with Libya’s democratization in the rest of her comments, she is spinning the facts of recent Libyan elections in the most favorable w... | mixture | National, Elections, Foreign Policy, Hillary Clinton, | "During the presidential race, any discussions about Hillary Clinton and Libya have typically focused on the deadly attack on a U.S. outpost in Benghazi on Sept. 11, 2012. But after a recent foreign policy speech, Clinton was asked about the success -- or lack thereof -- of democratization in Libya, a country ruled for... |
9378 | Amgen's Aimovig halved migraine days in 30 percent of trial patients | Getty Images This story about an experimental migraine drug delivered a superficial and imbalanced account of new study results. Leaning heavily on an Amgen news release, the story explains, rather confusingly, that the drug, Aimovig, “reduced episodic migraines by at least half in 30 percent of patients who had failed... | false | Aimovig,Amgen,migraine | The story did not discuss costs except to mention a $4 billion sales estimate. This doesn’t help consumers. According to some estimates, pricing for the drug will start around $8,500/year. That’s not chump change. The story says the drug “reduced episodic migraines by at least half in 30 percent of patients who had fai... |
11611 | Clip, coil or wait it out? Doctors debate aneurysms | This article presented some treatment options available to people who find that they have a bulging blood vessel (aneurysm) in their brain. It highlighted the experience of a single patient who decided with her neurosurgeon that a surgical intervention to reduce the chance that this aneurysm would break open or rupture... | false | There was no cost information for either invasive procedure; there was also no cost information for the imaging studies that can be used to detect and follow such aneurysms. The article, however, did mention that insurance covers both coils and clips. The article mentioned a study currently underway at the Mayo Clinic ... | |
29252 | A pedophile who was part of a gang that drugged and raped babies was found dead in his prison cell with his penis chopped off. | None of this misreporting was surprising, as Neon Nettle is a fake news site particularly known for publishing fabricated and exaggerated clickbait stories about pedophiles. | false | Junk News, neon nettle, your news wire | On 8 November 2017, the Neon Nettle web site published an article reporting the gruesome prison murder of a man convicted of having raped an infant: A pedophile who was part of a sick gang that drugged and raped babies has been found dead in his prison cell with his penis chopped off. James King, 31, who changed his n... |
10218 | New heart valve replacement procedure hailed | But benefits and harms seen in the trial weren’t adequately quantified to our liking, making it difficult for readers to judge the true scope of each as seen in the study. Instead, a lot of space was given to exuberant quotes about “game changer…one of biggest steps in cardiovascular medicine in our lifetime” and predi... | true | heart disease,Los Angeles Times | The story indicated that the device costs around $30,000; and that combined with the costs of surgery, it works out to around $50,200 per year for the two additional years of life that might be obtained. While not essential, it might be reasonable to raise the question of how these costs will likely be covered – i.e. o... |
6851 | Wyoming ozone levels puzzle officials. | Joel Bousman wasn’t sure if ozone would be a problem Friday, despite a warning from the state. The snow covered the sage brush and the wind was less than 10 miles per hour — both bad signs. On the other hand, it had been overcast most of the day at the Sublette County commissioner’s ranch near Boulder — a small communi... | true | Wyoming, Pinedale, Environment, Oil and gas industry, Casper | You need the right mix of factors to create ground-level ozone: sunlight, snow cover, little to no wind and, of course, emissions from the oil and gas industry — which arrived in force more than a decade ago in the Jonah and Pinedale gas field. And this year the factors have been right more often than usual. Friday was... |
10212 | Study: Ginger capsules ease chemotherapy nausea | This news story reports on results from a recent randomized trial, which found that specially formulated ginger capsules administered to cancer patients before and after chemotherapy treatments significantly reduced nausea. While this story meets many of our criteria, it would have been beneficial for the readers to kn... | true | "Quoting the study lead, the cost of ginger dietary supplements ranges from $6 to $30 for 50 to 100 capsules; however, as noted by the researchers, it is not apparent if dietary supplements would be as effective as the formulation developed specifically for the study. The study lead is quoted as saying the use of ginge... | |
11613 | Daily aspirin use may decrease prostate risks | The article describes a recent observational study which suggests aspirin may be associated with lower risk for urinary symptoms of an enlarged prostate, or benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). The article describes the evidence–namely that it was based on an observational study and not a randomized controlled trial–but... | false | The article does not mention any costs of these medications if taken on a daily basis or per dose. The story describes benefits in relative terms vs. absolute rates (which is the gold standard). It also does not tell readers that the most benefit was seen in older men. The article does not mention any harms of using da... | |
16143 | "The conviction rate is almost exactly the same"" for whites and blacks who commit murder." | "Giuliani said, ""the conviction rate is almost exactly the same"" for whites and blacks who commit murder. We couldn't find any statistical evidence to support Giuliani’s claim, and experts said they weren't aware of any, either. We found some related data, but that data only serves to highlight some of the racial dis... | false | Civil Rights, Criminal Justice, Crime, PunditFact, Rudy Giuliani, | "In the run-up to a grand jury’s decision not to indict Ferguson, Mo., police officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of African-American teenager Michael Brown, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani stirred controversy with a number of comments about race, crime and law enforcement. Following his appearance on ... |
35010 | "The Simpsons"" TV show predicted the 2020 new coronavirus outbreak in a 1993 episode. " | The fourth panel in this graphic (bottom right) is doctored and actually comes from a different episode of “The Simpsons.” That panel, featuring Springfield reporter Kent Brockman, comes from the episode “The Fool Monty” (Season 22, Episode 6). The words “Corona Virus” were added on top of this image, which originally ... | false | Entertainment | In January 2020, a rumor started circulating on social media that the long-running sitcom “The Simpsons” had “predicted” the outbreak of the new coronavirus: The first three panels of this image going counter clock-wise (i.e., all but the bottom-right panel) are unaltered and originate with a 1993 episode (Season 4, E... |
34234 | A Malaysian teenager was electrocuted by earphones he was using. | We reached out to the National Electrical Contractors Association for further information from the electrical engineering aspect of the story, but they told us that not enough details about the incident were publicly available for them to be able to weigh in on the subject. | unproven | Medical | In early December 2018, the Malaysian newspaper Sinar Harian reported that a 16-year-old in Rembau, a town south of the capital of Kuala Lumpur, had been found dead by his mother. The teenager, Mohd Aidi Azzhar Zahrin had blood coming from his left ear and had been listening to music through earphones plugged into his ... |
29077 | Patients should request the use of thyroid guards during x-ray procedures.to head off thyroid cancer. | In general, the soundest advice for those concerned about exposure during x-ray procedures is to discuss their concerns with their health care providers prior to such procedures and determine what level of protection the situation merits. | mixture | Medical, Toxin Du Jour | Precautions re Mammograms and Dental XRays / A Useful Warning On Wednesday, Dr. Oz had a show on the fastest growing cancer in women, thyroid cancer. It was a very interesting program and he mentioned that the increase could possibly be related to the use of dental x-rays and mammograms. He demonstrated that on the apr... |
8448 | In Singapore, migrant coronavirus cases highlight containment weak link. | As Singapore wins global plaudits for its handling of the coronavirus, the disease has spread rapidly within its large migrant worker community, highlighting what rights groups say is a weak link in the city state’s containment efforts. | true | Health News | Singapore has managed to mitigate the spread of the disease among its citizens by rigorous contact tracing and surveillance, earning praise from the World Health Organization. Infections within the migrant community, however, are mounting. As of April 14, out of 3,252 cases recorded in Singapore, 1,625 were linked to o... |
26509 | “The CDC issued its first warning on Jan 8. Trump held campaign rallies on Jan 9, Jan 14, Jan 28, Jan 30, Feb 10, Feb 19, Feb 20, Feb 21, & Feb 28. He golfed on Jan 18, Jan 19, Feb 1, Feb 15, Mar 7, Mar 8. The first time he admitted the coronavirus might be a problem was Mar 13.” | Those golf and rally dates are correct The CDC’s Jan. 8 coronavirus “warning” says the threat to Americans was low and didn’t establish person-to-person transmission Trump took action against the spread of COVID-19 before March 13 | mixture | Facebook Fact-checks, Coronavirus, Facebook posts, | "President Donald Trump has received plenty of criticism for the timeline of his administration’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Now a Facebook post making the rounds seeks to scrutinize Trump’s actions in comparison to health officials’ warnings about the virus. The post says that the Centers for Disease Contro... |
7076 | USC agrees to pay $215M to settle doctor sex abuse claims. | The University of Southern California said Friday that it would pay $215 million to settle claims of sexual abuse and harassment by a school gynecologist, but lawyers for hundreds of the accusers say it’s not enough money and the university has yet to fully disclose what it knew about the doctor’s behavior. | true | AP Top News, Health, Lawsuits, University of Southern California, North America, Los Angeles, California, U.S. News, Sexual abuse | The tentative settlement, which needs a judge’s approval, will provide compensation ranging from $2,500 up to $250,000 to women who say Dr. George Tyndall abused them between 1988 and 2016, USC Interim President Wanda Austin said in a statement . About 500 current and former students have now made accusations against T... |
3926 | Medication lockers help Miami’s homeless living with HIV. | Ivette Naida says keeping tabs on her HIV medication can be a daunting task. | true | Medication, Health, General News, Miami, AP Top News, U.S. News | Naida lives underneath a Miami highway overpass with several other homeless men and women. She has no safe place to keep her belongings. HIV-positive people who live on the streets are less likely to be successful in suppressing the virus with medication, according to a 2017 National Institute of Health study and the U... |
10700 | Warning sounded on heart scan law | The story does a nice job of highlighting the public policy implications of medical research findings. It reports not only the conclusions of a study calculating potential harms of a screening test for heart disease; it uses the new estimate of elevated cancer risk from CT screening to examine a Texas law that requires... | true | The story not only mentions the cost of a scan to individuals ($100 to $500), it also notes that about $50 million dollars was spent on this type of scanning nationwide in 2008. A longer story could have also reported on the costs of additional testing and treatments triggered by screening apparently healthy individual... | |
10403 | Stomach pacemaker could help obese lose weight | Strong points: avoids the cliches and disease-mongering that often accompany weight loss stories; provides cost information, which puts it in a distinct minority of stories we review; and it taps some solid independent experts to put the device into perspective. We wish it had spent more time with the actual evidence ... | mixture | Associated Press | We saw the sky part and heard angels singing when we saw the cost information provided in clear, comprehensive terms. “In Britain, the pacemaker costs about 15,000 pounds ($24,040), including the keyhole surgery used to implant it.” We do wish, though, that the story had not relied on the device maker’s president for a... |
3814 | New deals for drugs: No heart attack or your money back. | Warranties and money-back guarantees, long used to entice buyers of products like hand tools and kitchen gadgets, are now being used to sell something more crucial: pricey new-generation drugs for diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and cancer. | true | Cancer, Health, Prescription drug costs, Business, Heart attack, Prescription drugs | Deals being negotiated between drugmakers and the insurers who buy medicines now sometimes include extra rebates — or even full refunds — if drugs don’t help patients as expected. It’s part of an effort driven by insurers and government health programs to align the cost of care with the quality of care, and slow the re... |
10033 | ‘Revolutionary’ use for aspirin? May help colon cancer patients | (PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS AN AMENDED VERSION OF THE REVIEW THAT WE FIRST POSTED HOURS AGO. THE REPORTER HAS POINTED OUT THAT SOME OF THE INFORMATION WE FELT WAS LACKING ACTUALLY APPEARED IN A SIDEBAR TO THE STORY – A SIDEBAR THAT WE MISSED. SO WE HAVE AMENDED THIS REVIEW AND UPGRADED ITS SCORE. WE NOTE THAT THE REPORTER D... | true | The story noted that aspirin is sold for pennies a pill. The printer version of the story reports only relative risk reductions, ignoring the important point that most colorectal cancer patients in this study survived for many years whether or not they took aspirin after their diagnosis; thus it exaggerates the potenti... | |
33245 | Dearborn, Michigan, has become the first U.S. city to implement Sharia law. | National Report is a news and political satire web publication, which may or may not use real names, often in semi-real or mostly fictitious ways. All news articles contained within National Report are fiction, and presumably fake news. Any resemblance to the truth is purely coincidental. | false | Junk News, islam, national report, shariah law | On 28 October 2013, the National Report published an article reporting that Dearborn, Michigan (a city with a historically large Muslim population), had become the first U.S. city to implement Sharia law: In a surprise weekend vote, the city council of Dearborn, Michigan voted 4-3 to became the first US city to officia... |
23023 | Georgia and other states with weak gun laws have more crime. | Bloomberg gun claim takes aim at Georgia | true | Georgia, Guns, Michael Bloomberg, | "New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg recently took aim at the Peach State. Bloomberg was on CNN several weeks ago to discuss a report that named Georgia among the states with the weakest gun laws. ""Do the states where they have weaker laws have more crime?"" asked CNN's Kiran Chetry. ""There's no argument about that... |
34032 | M&Ms passed up the chance to be the candy used to lure the shy little alien from his hiding place in the 1982 blockbuster E.T., thereby letting one of the most successful instances of movie product placement fall into the hands of a competitor who benefited mightily from it. | Bonehead tales. We love them, true or not. | true | Entertainment, wall street | Business by its very nature is cut-throat; competitors rarely aid one another because one company’s success almost invariably comes at the expense of the other’s vitality. When such leg-ups occur, they are often inadvertent — the result of one firm’s having failed to take advantage of an opportunity that its competitor... |
4346 | North Korea running low on TB meds, experts fear epidemic. | The withdrawal of a major international aid organization threatens to leave tens of thousands of tuberculosis patients in North Korea without the medication they need and could spiral into a severe crisis if it is not addressed soon, according to health experts familiar with the situation in the North. | true | Medication, Seoul, Health, South Korea, North Korea, Epidemics, Tuberculosis, Asia Pacific | The dwindling stockpile of crucial medications follows the abrupt departure of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, an international aid organization whose grants to North Korea supported the treatment of 120,000 TB patients last year. Its support officially ended in June despite an outcry among hea... |
22340 | A third of all the young people in America are not in America today because of abortion, because one in three pregnancies end in abortion. | Rick Santorum says one of every three pregnancies ends in an abortion | false | Abortion, National, Health Care, Social Security, Rick Santorum, | "In a March 29, 2011, interview with WEZS Radio in Laconia, N.H., former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa. -- a possible 2012 presidential candidate -- discussed a possible link between the financial predicament of Social Security and abortion. Santorum, a strong opponent of abortion during his time in the Senate, argued ... |
7353 | UN health agency chief unbowed amid attacks, Trump criticism. | The World Health Organization’s director-general has faced many challenges during the coronavirus pandemic: racial slurs, death threats, social media caricatures — he was once depicted as a ventriloquist’s dummy in the hands of Chinese President Xi Jinping — and U.S. funding cuts. | true | AP Top News, Race and ethnicity, Geneva, International News, Media, General News, Social media, Africa, Health, Pandemics, United Nations, Xi Jinping, Virus Outbreak, Europe | Through it all, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has endeavored to rise above the troubles with a focus on one main task: Building international “solidarity” against an outbreak whose confirmed death toll is nearly 300,000 and that quelled economic activity in countries rich and poor. Many health policy experts have praised ... |
13986 | "The ammunition used in the Orlando shooting ""is banned by Geneva Convention. It enters the body, spins & explodes." | Moore tweeted that the Geneva Convention prohibits the type of ammunition used in the Orlando shooting. However, the Geneva Convention does not deal with ammunition. Other international conventions do prohibit certain ammunition, but only during wartime, not domestically. Even if they were binding domestically, experts... | false | PunditFact, Guns, Michael Moore, | "Filmmaker and liberal commentator Michael Moore made a provocative claim about the ammunition used in the June 12 Orlando shooting — that it is prohibited by the Geneva Conventions. ""Ammo used in AR-15/M-16 is banned by Geneva Convention,"" Moore tweeted June 14. ""It enters the body, spins & explodes. Show the crime... |
35872 | In February 2020, U.S. President Donald Trump enforced a complete ban on travel from mainland China, a signature policy move that helped save many lives from the spread of COVID-19 in the U.S. | What's true: A restriction on foreigners traveling from mainland China took effect on Feb. 2, 2020, but thousands of Chinese and foreign nationals from Hong Kong and Macau entered the U.S. in the three months following. Thousands of Americans and foreigners still arrived in the U.S. on direct flights from China after t... | mixture | Politics, 2020 election, COVID-19 | U.S. President Donald Trump’s so-called ban on travel from China was a major talking point he frequently raised as evidence of his quick response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Announced on Jan. 31, 2020, and enforced on Feb. 2, 2020, the Trump administration stated that the ban would prevent the entry of aliens, or non-U.S... |
33476 | Drinking four glasses of water at the beginning of each day will prevent heart attacks and cure various diseases. | Drinking four glasses of water at the beginning of each day will not prevent heart attacks and cure all sorts of diseases. | false | Medical, cancer, Medical Myths | A missive touting a regimen that calls for the ingestion of four glasses of water first thing in the morning followed by the restriction of drinking after meals began circulating on the Internet in August 2004. While it now arrives primarily labeled “Heart Attacks and Water,” its earliest appearances were titled “Drin... |
3390 | Multiple health code violations found at school cafeterias. | Public health officials have found hundreds of health code violations in cafeterias at schools across Rhode Island. | true | Health, Providence, General News, Public health, Rhode Island | WPRI-TV reports that a review of state Department of Health records found at least 450 health violations. The number is likely larger because 56 schools were marked for re-inspection, and some have been inspected multiple times. “Schools are really important because we have a lot of little kids,” said Cathy Feeney, chi... |
9045 | Weight-loss surgery associated with lower rate of death | Getty Images The observational study referenced in this news release suggests that people who have bariatric surgery may have a lower rate of death than those who try to lose weight using nonsurgical alternatives. Although the study is larger than many similar ones, it suffers from some of the same limitations; mainly ... | mixture | JAMA,Weight-loss surgery | Three types of bariatric surgery (laparoscopic banding, Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy) are the primary interventions evaluated in this study. The costs for these common weight loss procedures are not mentioned in the news release. Some information — even broad cost ranges of bariatric surger... |
34009 | One of the women in the James Bond film For Your Eyes Only is transgender. | Rumors about the real transgender Bond girl have morphed over time, with later versions asserting the woman in question had been one of the primary love interests in For Your Eyes Only. That role was filled by French actress Carole Bouquet, appearing as the vengeful daughter of the scientist the villain had done away w... | true | Entertainment, Films, Movies | The 1981 film For Your Eyes Only was the twelfth in the James Bond series and marked the fifth appearance of Roger Moore as secret agent 007. Like all Bond offerings, the non-stop action was sprinkled with bodacious babes, about one of whom questions subsequently surfaced. Caroline Cossey, one of the “Bond girls” appea... |
27807 | Xylitol, a sugar substitute used in sugar-free gum and other products, can be harmful to dogs. | Xylitol, a sugar substitute used in sugar-free gum and other products, can be harmful to dogs. | true | Critter Country, Crusader Habit, dogs, xylitol | In April 2015 news reports carried an account of a Wisconsin family whose 2-year-old golden retriever had died of severe liver damage after consuming gum containing the sweetener Xylitol: Luna, a 2-year-old golden retriever, was put down by her owners after she ingesting Xylitol-laden gum. Luna had suffered severe liv... |
35711 | "U.S. President Donald Trump said he ""tested very positively"" for COVID-19, meaning his test results came back negative, and he did not have the coronavirus disease." | THE PRESIDENT: Yeah. I tested positively toward negative, right? So, no, I tested perfectly this morning, meaning — meaning I tested negative. | true | Politics, COVID-19 | In late May 2020, readers searched the Snopes.com website questioning the veracity of a statement attributed to U.S. President Donald Trump, as quoted in a widely shared tweet posted by Washington Post journalist Felicia Sommez: Sommez’s tweet accurately captures Trump’s statement regarding his diagnostic test result ... |
25622 | This video shows Trump looking “lost and disoriented.” | The clip, which is from 2019, was edited to make it look like Trump is disoriented. | false | Facebook Fact-checks, Instagram posts, | "An edited video of President Trump appearing disoriented on the White House lawn has been shared widely on social media with users ly claiming that it shows him experiencing dementia. One description of the video, which was re-shared on Instagram, says, ""Trump is lost and disoriented here. His mind goes blank and he ... |
34138 | "A viral video shows a cake bar that is sold in the U.S. with two ""paralysis tablets"" added to it by its Turkish manufacturers." | Finally, the production processes, safety certifications, and contamination safeguards in place at factories that manufacture the Luppo bars mean it is effectively impossible for any object such as the “tablets” shown in the video to be added to bar at source. | false | Food | In November 2019, we received multiple inquiries from readers about the authenticity of a video that went viral in late October and early November, and that appeared to show “paralysis” pills hidden inside a Turkish-made snack bar. One widely shared iteration of the video was accompanied by the following caption: “ALER... |
11488 | A man’s eye-opening surgery | This live TV report on a vision correction surgery using the Visian ICL (implantable) lens ignores several essential elements of journalistic practice. Its use of a dramatic stunt–a surgery done in real time with interviews before and after the procedure–implies the surgery is fast, uncomplicated and complete in a sing... | false | "The segment states that the cost is usually $3,000 to $3,500 per eye, and that it is not covered by insurance. However, the fact that prices are given ""per eye"" when both must be treated–and that the first price mentioned is ""a few hundred dollars per month""–contributes to the implication that the surgery is affor... | |
11310 | Quick shot replacing nip, tuck | This story about the rise in the use of injectable products spent most of its space on the product called laViv. The story does not even name the company – or tell readers where they might get the product. The experts quoted are debating whether laViv is “as good as other injectables” but nobody is asking – what is the... | false | Chicago Tribune | The story does not give an actual cost for the therapy but suggests the regimen will be more expensive than available approaches. We are left unsure of any detail for the reader to understand how much they will pay for a typical treatment with laViv. The story does not give readers enough description of potential benef... |
26491 | “Church services can’t resume until we’re all vaccinated, says Bill Gates.” | Asked what it would look like when communities start opening up again, Bill Gates said: “Which activities have, like schools, have such benefit and can be done in a way that the risk of transmission is very low? And which activities like mass gatherings may be, in a certain sense, more optional. And so until you’re wid... | false | Religion, Facebook Fact-checks, Coronavirus, Bloggers, | "Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, whose charitable foundation has long focused on public-health initiatives, has emerged as a prominent voice in public discussions about how to combat the new coronavirus. But a recent blog post misrepresents his statements about recovering from the current crisis. The headline of an Ap... |
10795 | Researchers one step closer to potential autism test | Both stories relied on journalism tropes. In the Reuters story, researchers were “closing in on an accurate test for autism.” Here they are “finding more pieces of the autism puzzle of with the help of MRI scans”. The latter is more accurate. If you now have three pieces of a 500-piece puzzle, you still have more piece... | mixture | Autism,CNN | Just as Reuters did, CNN ignored costs. MRI scans are a major driver of healthcare costs and the use of this technology as a routine screening instrument could have a significant direct financial impact. The cost of a routine MRI could have been provided. This story and the Reuters story use the 94 percent accuracy fig... |
3371 | Massachusetts looks to open new drug-monitoring centers. | Public health officials in Massachusetts are seeking organizations to set up centers where people can be monitored after using illicit drugs. | true | Health, General News, Public health, Massachusetts | These planned “medical observation and monitoring services” would be staffed by nurses and other clinicians, who would monitor the clients’ vital signs, administer oxygen, intravenous fluids, and the overdose-reversing drug naloxone if necessary, the Boston Globe reported Wednesday. The clients will be able to remain a... |
1916 | Fake Mars mission to open hatch on 520 days isolation. | The crew of an isolation experiment to simulate a 520-day mission to Mars are in the final countdown before the opening on Friday of the hatch on the windowless cells in which they have been locked away since June last year. | true | Science News | In this file photo, participants of the Mars500 experiment, which simulates a 520-day flight to Mars, pose for a picture before entering a confinement module to start their mission in Moscow June 3, 2010. The crew comprises of (L-R): Alexey Sitev, Wang Yue, Romain Charles, Sukhrob Kamolov, Diego Urbina and Alexander Sm... |
10548 | Coffee, Tea May Stall Diabetes | "The headline of the story – ""Coffee, Tea May Stall Diabetes"" – gets the story off on the wrong track. The active verb ""stall"" – even with the qualifying ""may"" still implies a causal link. If you can stall it, you must have proven the link, right? Wrong. Observational studies can only point to an association, not... | false | "Costs weren’t discussed, but most people know what coffee and tea costs. The story provided several data points about potential benefits, but never discussed the limitations of drawing conclusions from observational studies. There was no discussion of the potential harms of drinking large quantities of coffee or tea. ... | |
8614 | China sees rise in asymptomatic coronavirus cases, to tighten controls at land borders. | Mainland China reported 39 new coronavirus cases as of Sunday, up from 30 a day earlier, and the number of asymptomatic cases also surged as the government vowed tighter controls at land borders. | true | Health News | The National Health Commission said on Monday that 78 new asymptomatic cases had been identified as of the end of Sunday, compared with 47 the day before. Imported cases and asymptomatic patients, who show no symptoms but can still pass the virus on, have become China’s chief concern after draconian containment measure... |
6796 | Records: Tyco knew of contamination 4 years before reporting. | A Wisconsin company that makes firefighting foam knew its toxic products were contaminating groundwater at least four years before notifying residents, according to state records. | true | Health, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Marinette | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources records show that Tyco Fire Products discovered soil and well contamination on the Marinette manufacturer’s fire training property in 2013, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported. The contamination involves a class of chemicals known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or ... |
8017 | Tokyo coronavirus cases jump in record daily rise: NHK. | Tokyo has confirmed 68 new coronavirus cases, a record daily increase, public broadcaster NHK reported on Sunday, as the Japanese capital scrambles to prevent a wider outbreak, while a cluster of infections increased near the city. | true | Health News | Japan has so far been spared a major spreading of the coronavirus that has hit Europe and North America, but authorities fear a rise in cases with no known source of infection could signal a bigger new wave. Authorities confirmed 28 new coronavirus cases from a cluster related to a home for the disabled in Chiba prefec... |
33649 | The remains of a smoldering JATO-equipped Chevrolet Impala were found embedded in the side of a cliff in the Arizona desert. | Little Rock: August House, 1999. ISBN 0-87483-525-9 (p. 22). | false | Automobiles, cars, Dream Machines | Of all the crazy Internet stories, this has to be the one fellas love the most. There’s something about cars and solid rocket fuel engines that draws them to this tale like happy moths to an unforgiving flame: Example: [Collected on the Internet, 1995] The Arizona Highway Patrol were mystified when they came upon a p... |
35089 | McDonald's is giving free lunches to school-age children during the COVID-19 pandemic. | What's true: A few McDonald's locations in North Carolina announced in March 2020 that they will provide free lunches to school-age children as families deal with the spread of COVID-19. What's false: This is not a nationwide program, and not every McDonald's location is participating in it. | mixture | Food | In March 2020, a rumor started to circulate on social media that McDonald’s was giving free lunches to school-age children during the COVID-19 coronavirus disease pandemic: Social media memes that claim a “free giveaway” often turn out to be false. But in this case, a bit of truth exists: A few restaurant locations in... |
26253 | “Italian Parliament Calls For The Arrest of Bill Gates” | A single member of the Italian Parliament suggested Bill Gates should be arrested. There is no evidence that calls to arrest Bill Gates are endorsed or supported by the entire Italian Parliament. | false | Fake news, Facebook Fact-checks, Coronavirus, Bloggers, | "Philanthropist Bill Gates has been making headlines for months due to his foundation’s efforts to create a coronavirus vaccine, but not all the claims you see online can be trusted. A recent blog post from an organization called Live News 24 suggests the entire Italian government is at odds with Gates. The post was fl... |
5505 | Will new royal baby’s name honor Princess Diana? Stay tuned. | Britons love to lay down their bets — and with the birth of a healthy baby boy for Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, and Prince Harry, it’s time to focus on boys’ names. | true | Prince Harry, AP Top News, International News, Entertainment, Lifestyle, Health, Princess Diana, Celebrities, Europe | Britain’s legal bookmakers reported high interest Tuesday in the names Alexander, James and Arthur. They also noted speculation about the name Spencer, the maiden name of Harry’s late mother, Princess Diana. Royal babies usually have a string of names, opening the way for endless betting possibilities. “Following a flu... |
18164 | "Miami-Dade has ""the nation’s highest-rated tap water." | "A Miami-Dade County budget document claimed that the county has ""the nation’s highest-rated tap water."" A county spokeswoman said that statement was an error. The water department more typically talks about the ""high quality"" of the water without making a national comparison. An article in Forbes concluded the Mia... | false | Environment, County Budget, Water, Florida, Miami-Dade County, | "Miami-Dade has plenty to brag about: stellar beaches, celebrities who live in multimillion dollar mansions, four-star restaurants, the world famous tennis tournament on Key Biscayne and the national basketball champions the Miami Heat. But a county document boasted about something far more ordinary when Mayor Carlos G... |
9429 | Gene therapy makes a big advance treating hemophilia B blood disorder | iStock / Getty Images Plus A small, early-stage study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that a single intravenous infusion of a novel bioengineered gene therapy treatment helped spare nine of 10 hemophilia B sufferers from repeated injections of blood-clotting factor to prevent debilitating bleedin... | true | drug costs,gene therapy | Although this therapy is not yet available for patient use, the story makes a point of noting that the cost may well be “stratospheric,” should it make it to market. If approved, such treatments are expected to command stratospheric prices. For example, a separate Spark gene therapy for a rare type of childhood blindne... |
13981 | "Donald Trump Says Hillary Clinton ""has even deleted this record of total support (for the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement) from her book." | "Trump said Hillary Clinton ""has even deleted this record of total support (for the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement) from her book."" The paperback removed a small reference to the TPP but the two pages that talked about it and why the agreement was important weren't deleted. The paperback edition continues ... | false | National, Candidate Biography, Economy, History, Foreign Policy, Trade, Donald Trump, | "Donald Trump accused Hillary Clinton of trying to delete part of her personal history during a June 22, 2016, speech that focused in part on the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal. Clinton tried to promote the deal as President Barack Obama’s secretary of state, but she withdrew her support for the 12-nation pact in... |
2947 | Some current, former smokers should get annual lung scans: US panel. | Heavy smokers and former heavy smokers should get annual lung cancer screening tests, according to final guidelines issued on Monday by an influential U.S. panel. | true | Health News | The final recommendations, issued by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force and published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, apply to people aged 55 to 80 whose smoking has put them at high risk of cancer. That includes former heavy smokers who have quit within the past 15 years. Heavy smokers are considered to be th... |
29341 | "A Japanese study found electronic cigarettes (popularly called ""e-cigs"") contain ten times as many carcinogens as tobacco cigarettes." | What's true: A 2014 study conducted in Japan examined formaldehyde levels in electronic cigarette vapor; early and inaccurate summaries of that research led to rumors that e-cigarettes contain ten times more carcinogens than tobacco cigarettes. What's false: A Japanese study did not conclude all, most, or necessarily a... | false | Medical, cancer, e-cigarettes, melt my hearth | In late April 2017, click bait site MeltMyHearth.com published a report purporting to show that a “new” Japanese study determined that electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, contain an astonishing ten times the carcinogens of their tobacco counterparts: In the research commissioned by the Japanese Ministry of Health, ... |
34238 | Bone fragments found in the Vatican in late October and early November 2018 belong to two teen girls who were first reported missing in 1983. | “I don’t want to delude myself,” said Gregori’s sister Maria Antonietta Gregori. “I want to keep my feet on the ground but in my heart I hope the bones belong to Mirella so that we can put an end to this story and have a place to weep and take a flower to my sister.” | unproven | Politics, Emanuela Orlandi, Mirella Gregori | A pair of recent discoveries led authorities in Italy to reopen investigations into the disappearances of two teenage girls in 1983. On 31 October 2018, Rome police announced that construction workers in the Vatican had discovered bone fragments from a head and tooth while renovating a building connected to the Italian... |
10133 | Portland cancer center among those offering experimental immune therapy ipilimumab | It’s really refreshing to see a local newspaper localize a national story and to do so in a responsible way. Sure, the story led with its personal anecdote. But the personal trials of being in a trial came through in that anecdote. And sure, there were company predictions of how quickly this might be approved and on th... | true | "No discussion of costs. Is this OK because this is still experimental? We don’t think so, not when the drug company is allowed to project possible approval within a year. Much better to say, as a Wall Street Journal story did, that the company said it was too early to set pricing. But to ignore costs entirely is a mis... | |
1767 | French entrepreneurs launch test to detect pork in food. | Two French entrepreneurs have launched a portable device to test for the presence of pork in food for use by Muslims who abide by dietary laws. | true | Science News | With France’s five million Muslims making up about eight percent of the overall population, the test, similar in size to a pregnancy test, aims to help consumers detect traces of pork not just in food, but also in cosmetics or medicines. The kit comes with a small test tube in which a food sample is mixed with warm wat... |
36728 | An online prayer vigil is being called for 13-year-old boy named Dakota Miller from Greenup, Kentucky, who accidentally shot himself. | Militia fighters in eastern Congo killed four people and injured several others in attacks on two Ebola response centers on Thursday, in what responders described as a serious setback to efforts to contain the epidemic. | mixture | Fact Checks, Prayers, Religious, Viral Content | Violence and unrest have hampered the health authorities’ response to the second worst Ebola outbreak on record, which has killed 2,199 people since it was announced in August 2018. Mai Mai militia fighters and local residents have attacked health facilities, sometimes because they believe Ebola does not exist, in othe... |
33796 | ABC banned on-air news personnel from wearing American flag pins after 9/11. | Nonetheless, the claim that ABC has “banned” their on-air personnel from wearing U.S. flag pins wasn’t true in 2001, and it isn’t true now (despite commonly being reported in e-mail forwards as if it were a recent occurrence). And ABC News couldn’t have “joined” President Obama in this endeavor (as asserted in the seco... | false | September 11th | After the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States, many Americans were eager and proud to visibly affirm their support for their country by adorning themselves, their homes, their workplaces, and their cars with various patriotic symbols: U.S. flags; red, white, and blue ribbons; flag lapel pins; flag ... |
1277 | Novartis migraine drug not cost effective - UK price watchdog. | Britain’s drug price watchdog on Thursday rejected Novartis’s migraine drug Aimovig for now, concluding in a draft decision that the medicine was not a cost-effective use of National Health Service resources. | true | Health News | Novartis, with exclusive rights to the drug in Europe while cooperating with Amgen in the United States, said it was “disappointed” in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) conclusion. It marks the second time within months the UK agency has rejected reimbursement for a key medicine from the Sw... |
4236 | Woman accused of faking cancer to reap donations. | An Iowa woman is accused of lying about a cancer diagnosis so she could collect donations. | true | Iowa, Cancer, Health, General News, Minnesota, Rochester | Jennifer Hope Mikesell, of Northwood, is charged with ongoing criminal conduct, fraudulent practices and forgery. Her attorney didn’t immediately return a call Tuesday from The Associated Press. Authorities said more charges might be filed later. The Worth County Sheriff’s Office said the 43-year-old Mikesell had told ... |
11077 | Cutting Edge: Robots and Surgery | The article discusses surgical robotic technology and provides a little drama by telling stories through the eyes of patients. A key weakness of the story is that the evidence used to support claims of benefit is not the best evidence or perhaps not even the right evidence. A stronger study (meta-analysis) concluded th... | false | While costs of the machine are mentioned, costs per procedure and how that compares to standard procedures (either open or laparoscopic) are not mentioned. Additionally, costs to the patient are not mentioned, since patients may have out-of-pocket expenses associated with the new technology, even if they do have insura... | |
8935 | Disease that killed millions of China's pigs poses global threat. | Bettie the beagle, a detector dog for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, picked up the scent of pork on a woman arriving from China at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. | true | Health News | Soon the dog’s handler discovered and confiscated a ham sandwich in the purse of a passenger who had flown on a China Eastern Airlines flight from Shanghai. The danger? That the food might be contaminated with African swine fever and spread the disease to the United States. China has lost millions of pigs in outbreaks ... |
3753 | California bill would limit genitalia surgery for children. | California doctors would be barred from treating or performing surgery on children born with genitals that don’t fit a single gender or are otherwise atypical unless it’s medically necessary or the child consents, under a bill unveiled Monday. | true | Health, California, Legislation, Scott Wiener | It’s the latest effort by state legislators to give minors more control over their bodies and gender identities. “The fundamental premise of the legislation is that people should make decisions about their own bodies,” said Democratic Sen. Scott Wiener of San Francisco, the bill’s sponsor. “In California we strongly be... |
5669 | Congo police detain ex-health minister in Ebola funds probe. | Police in Congo have detained the former minister of health amid an investigation into the use of Ebola funds as confirmed Ebola deaths rose to near 2,000 and confirmed cases of the virus exceeded 3,000 in the sprawling African nation. | true | Religion, Arrests, Health, Ebola virus, Africa, International News, Felix Tshisekedi, General News | Former Minister of Health Oly Ilunga was taken into custody, police said in a statement Saturday. Ilunga resigned in July to protest President Felix Tshisekedi’s decision to take over the management of the response to the world’s second deadliest Ebola outbreak, which is ongoing now in eastern Congo, from Ilunga. As he... |
35728 | A motorcyclist killed in a crash in Florida in 2020 was listed as a COVID-19 death. | A person who died in a motorcycle accident was added to Florida’s COVID-19 death count, according to a state health official. | mixture | Politics, COVID-19 | In late July 2020, Snopes readers began inquiring about news reports that a person killed in a motorcycle crash had been listed as a COVID-19 death in Florida. Florida was among states experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases amid the ongoing pandemic, but political leaders including U.S. President Donald Trump and Trump... |
6494 | To boost milk, dairy groups support high school coffee bars. | Coffee bars selling $3 iced lattes are popping up in high schools, helped along by dairy groups scrambling for new ways to get people to drink milk. | true | Coffee, New York, General News, Lifestyle, Health, Business, U.S. News | It’s one small way the dairy industry is fighting to slow the persistent decline in U.S. milk consumption as eating habits change and rival drinks keep popping up on supermarket shelves. At a high school in North Dakota, a $5,000 grant from a dairy group helped pay for an espresso machine that makes lattes with about 8... |
33450 | Forty Marines rescued kids from a Pentagon daycare facility on 9/11, then enclosed them in a protective corral of cribs. | Unknown to him as he helped shepherd kids, Stoppel’s office had been one of those that sustained a direct hit. Many of his co-workers had perished in the attack, including the man with which he had shared a cubicle. Stoppel himself was presumed dead for the better part of the day. | false | September 11th, 9/11, glurge, pentagon | While the urge to take something good from the awfulness that was 11 September 2001 serves as motivation to look to uplifting stories from that day, true accounts of such nature are few and far between. This tale about 40 Marines standing guard over a corral of cribs protecting babies and toddlers rescued from a daycar... |
36336 | The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 against the use of the Qur'an for swearing oaths. | Did the Supreme Court Rule 5-4 Against Swearing in on the Qur’an? | false | Disinformation, Fact Checks | On June 11 2019, a Facebook user shared the following text-based status update (archived here), claiming the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 against the use of the Qur’an for swearing oaths:Right off the bat, the format of the post was a scourge to fact-checking sites. Text against a colorful background, rarely if ever accompa... |
6723 | Health officials warn of measles exposure in SE Minnesota. | State health officials are warning residents of southeastern Minnesota about possible exposure to measles. | true | Health, Minnesota, Albert Lea, Measles | The Minnesota Department of Health learned this week that a non-Minnesota resident with confirmed measles traveled through Minnesota from another state. According to the department, people may have been exposed to measles on April 13 at a McDonald’s on Main Street in Winona and on April 16 at the Freeborn County Co-op... |
23905 | Todd Staples Says EPA regulation of greenhouse gases will endanger 575 Texas dairy facilities, 58 swine operations, 1,300 corn farms and 28,000 beef cattle operations. | Staples says EPA regulation of greenhouse gases endangers Texas farms, dairy plants and cattle operations | false | Environment, Energy, Texas, Todd Staples, | "Todd Staples, the state agriculture commissioner, this year joined Gov. Rick Perry and Attorney General Greg Abbott in objecting to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency designating half a dozen greenhouse gases as endangering public health. Staples says on his campaign website, which we visited in late May, that h... |
28376 | "Judge Brett Kavanaugh once ruled that a teenage immigrant who had been raped must take time to ""think maturely"" before undergoing an abortion." | What's true: In October 2017, Judge Brett Kavanaugh ruled that a 17-year-old unlawful immigrant could be required to delay obtaining an abortion, for 11 days so that she could first be placed with an immigration sponsor. What's false: Kavanaugh did not declare that the young woman must 'think about [abortion] maturely'... | mixture | Politics, abortion, brett kavanaugh | In October 2018, before the controversial confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh as a Supreme Court Justice, the left-wing Facebook page “The Other 98%” posted a meme which hinted at a degree of irony or hypocrisy in one of Kavanaugh’s past opinions: Brett Bart Kavanaugh was the judge that told the 17 year old immigrant... |
9731 | 'Super' berry may help boost memory, heart health | This story is part profile of an entrepreneur and part promotion for the schisandra berry, a component of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) botanical supplements that’s being cultivated in Massachusetts. The reporting is from ethnobotanist and self-proclaimed “Medicine Hunter” Chris Kilham. And like another Kilham seg... | false | Chris Kilham,Dr. Manny Alvarez,supplements | No costs are mentioned. The story positions the Massachusetts producer of schisandra profiled in the story as a pioneer. One gets the impression the company is a sole provider. However, a quick web search yielded dozens of U.S. schisandra berry vendors. The costs range from $3.69 for 100 – 580 mg capsules to $38 for 2 ... |
10126 | Tonsil Removal Might Cure Bedwetting in Some Kids With Sleep Apnea | The story also pointed out clearly that research presented at meetings has not yet been rigorously peer-reviewed and must be viewed in that light. This should be the standard in reporting from medical meetings. The story could have been improved if it had included some cost information, addressed the potential harms fr... | mixture | HealthDay | The story does not discuss costs. Tonsillectomies are not cheap, and the cost definitely should have been factored in here. Also, there is a question about whether insurance would cover a tonsillectomy that was done primarily to resolve a bedwetting problem. Right in the lead, the story quantifies the benefits, saying,... |
681 | China extends pollution curbs ahead of National Day celebrations. | The heavy industrial city of Xuzhou in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangsu will shut local factories on Thursday as part of efforts to reduce smog ahead of the country’s National Day celebrations next week, the local government said. | true | Environment | Xuzhou, around 400 miles (640 kilometers) from Beijing, is implementing an “orange alert” pollution control program aimed at “ensuring air quality during the National Day period”, according to a notice reviewed by Reuters and authenticated by industry sources. China’s environment ministry warned on Monday that “unfavor... |
5989 | World moves closer to eradicating Guinea worm disease. | A new report says the world is moving closer to eradicating Guinea worm disease, in which a meter-long worm slowly emerges from a blister in a person’s skin. | true | Chad, South Sudan, Health, Guinea, Africa, Ethiopia, Mali, International News | The U.S.-based Carter Center, which leads the eradication campaign, says just 30 cases were reported last year in isolated areas of Ethiopia and Chad. All 15 cases in Ethiopia occurred at a farm where workers drank unfiltered water from a contaminated pond. Mali has not reported any cases in 25 months, and civil war-to... |
9273 | Researchers propose new treatment to prevent kidney stones | This release from the University of Houston says a molecular cousin of a supplement commonly recommended to prevent kidney stones could turn out to be a better option. The wording is generally cautious, making clear that the researchers are merely proposing further study. However, the top of the release is vague about ... | mixture | kidney stones,University of Houston | The release could have mentioned the price of the supplement used by researchers. The product is sold as a weight loss aid. The manufacturer’s recommended dose of two capsules taken three times a day costs about $17 per month. The release merely states that, in lab tests, hydroxycitrate appears to be capable of dissolv... |
5076 | Schools agree to buy beef produced with reduced antibiotics. | Four upstate New York school districts have signed onto a new program aimed at reducing use of antibiotics on farms to prevent the emergence of antibiotic-resistant superbugs that threaten human health. | true | New York, Health, Ithaca, Public health | The Tompkins County districts have awarded beef procurement contracts to Slate Foods, which purchases cattle from farms that agree to reduce use of antibiotics. It’s the first success in the Oneonta-based Center for Agricultural Development and Entrepreneurship’s campaign to grow market demand for safer antibiotic prac... |
15841 | "According to the CDC, ""110 million Americans now have a sexually transmitted illness." | "Robertson said that, according to the CDC, ""110 million Americans now have a sexually transmitted illness."" The figure isn't out of thin air -- it has been touted aggressively by the CDC -- but Robertson describes its meaning incorrectly. There are 110 million infections -- not people who are infected -- and only a ... | false | Health Care, Public Health, PunditFact, Phil Robertson, | "At the annual CPAC convention -- a multi-day gathering that draws conservative politicians and activists to the Washington, D.C., area -- there were lots of speakers in suits and ties. And then there was Phil Robertson, the patriarch of the family featured on the A&E reality show Duck Dynasty, sporting his signature s... |
1997 | Concussions keep hockey players off ice for longer. | Head injuries are keeping professional hockey players off the ice for longer, indicating either more severe injuries, or a tougher medical regime, according to a study released on Monday. | true | Health News | Montreal Canadiens Max Pacioretty lies on the ice after being hit into a glass stanchion by Boston Bruins Zdeno Chara during the second period of NHL hockey play in Montreal, March 8, 2011. REUTERS/Shaun Best With the National Hockey League playoffs under way after a season where jarring head shots grabbed headlines, r... |
11588 | Stem cell brain implants could 'slow ageing and extend life', study shows | This story describes some interesting but very early research into the mechanisms of aging and how they might be altered. The story made it clear that this was mouse-level research and has several hurdles to go before it’s ever tested in people. One weak point for the story was how the story assumed there might be bene... | true | mice studies,stem cell therapy,stem cells | We’ll give the story a “N/A” in this category since it makes clear early on that this research is in the earliest of stages, done in an animal model, and says clearly that clinical trials are a future hope. This is way too early to consider costs which, we assume, would be substantial. The story says the stem cell inte... |
8750 | Zeltia drug delays progression of ovarian cancer. | Women with recurrent ovarian cancer given Zeltia’s drug Yondelis in combination with chemotherapy go longer before their disease progresses than those on chemo alone, researchers said on Monday. | true | Health News | The news is a boost for the Spanish biotech company, which already sells Yondelis as a treatment for soft tissue sarcoma, a rare disease, and now hopes to address a much bigger commercial opportunity. Bradley Monk, an oncologist from the University of California Irvine Medical Center who led a Phase III trial of t... |
24474 | "If President Obama signs the Copenhagen climate change treaty, he ""will sign your freedom, your democracy, and your prosperity away forever — and neither you nor any subsequent government you may elect would have any power whatsoever to take it back again." | "British climate-change skeptic says Copenhagen treaty threatens ""democracy,"" ""freedom""" | false | Environment, National, Legal Issues, Foreign Policy, Christopher Monckton, | "Christopher Monckton — a British hereditary peer and high-profile skeptic of both global warming and international agreements — caused a stir on Oct. 14, 2009, with a forceful denunciation of the upcoming international talks on climate change in Copenhagen, Denmark, scheduled for Dec. 7-18, 2009. In a speech in St. Pa... |
6246 | Philly hospital’s plight spurs aid pledge, Sanders rally. | A longtime Philadelphia teaching hospital will stop admitting emergency room patients this week as its impending closure drew pledges of millions in aid to the community Monday and condemnation during a rally at the hospital by Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. | true | Health, General News, Philadelphia, Election 2020, Tom Wolf, Bernie Sanders, Jim Kenney | Gov. Tom Wolf, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney and Sanders laced into Hahnemann University Hospital’s investment banker owner, blaming him for taking it into bankruptcy and moving to shut down the 496-bed hospital. Joel Freedman insisted he tried to keep the money-losing hospital open, even exploring its transfer it to a... |
28167 | During pregnancy, if the mother suffers organ damage, the baby in the womb sends stem cells to repair the damaged organ. | While this study was performed on mice, there is a wide body of research that suggests similar phenomena could occur in humans. There is still much research to be done, however, on the overall mechanisms behind this process and the totality of effects it may have on both fetus and mother. | true | Medical, fetus, pregnancy, science memes | A popular (but completely citation-free) science meme suggests that a pregnant mother’s fetus can send its own stem cells to its mother to repair damaged organs. Although any memes of this nature run the gamut from “nodding acquaintance with truth” to “has never met truth and never will,” this particular one is mostly ... |
11143 | Remedies: Honey for Coughing | The story attempts to synthsize the available evidence on the value of honey as a treatment for cough in children. In doing so, it provides what is arguably incomplete and potentially misleading information to the consumer. The results of the 2007 paper, highlighted in the blog, should have been explained a bit more co... | mixture | New York Times | The story makes no mention of costs. We also would have liked to have seen some explanation of whether it mattered if a parent used the cheapest honey or the pricey organic stuff. The story could have provided some of the specific differences between the treatments. Our guess is that with a study on only 100 patients, ... |
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