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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

The 2022 FactCheck Awards

The 2022 FactCheck Awards

We are very serious fact-checkers, but we also like to have a bit of fun. That’s why every two years, on Election Day, we recognize a few of the many political ads we see during the campaign cycle with some not-to-be-taken-seriously awards.

Conservative Figures Spread Baseless Claims About Attack on Paul Pelosi

Conservative Figures Spread Baseless Claims About Attack on Paul Pelosi

A man armed with a hammer broke into the home of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and fractured the skull of her husband, Paul. Some conservative figures — including Donald Trump Jr. — have shared social media posts claiming with no evidence and contrary to police reports that the man was a prostitute known to Paul Pelosi. He wasn’t.

What Biden’s Marijuana Pardon Proclamation Does — and Does Not Do

What Biden’s Marijuana Pardon Proclamation Does — and Does Not Do

In early October, President Joe Biden issued a proclamation pardoning certain individuals previously charged with or convicted of simple marijuana possession offenses under federal and Washington, D.C., law. But Biden exaggerated the scope when he claimed he was keeping a promise not to incarcerate those convicted of simple possession charges.

Pro-Dixon Ad Uses ‘Joke’ About Drag Queens in a Misleading Attack on Whitmer

Pro-Dixon Ad Uses ‘Joke’ About Drag Queens in a Misleading Attack on Whitmer

Michigan’s Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel said that she was joking when she said in a June speech that there should be “a drag queen for every school.” But a TV ad from a super PAC supporting Republican Tudor Dixon is using a version of Nessel’s quote out of context in a misleading attack against Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

Biden’s Misleading Claims About the Economic Recovery and Unemployment

Biden’s Misleading Claims About the Economic Recovery and Unemployment

When President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan into law in March 2021, U.S. gross domestic product had increased for three quarters straight, and the unemployment rate had decreased nearly nine percentage points from its pandemic peak. But Biden wrongly credited the Democratic COVID-19 relief bill with rescuing a U.S. economy “in decline.”