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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Baseless Conspiracy Theories Follow Key Bridge Collapse

Baseless Conspiracy Theories Follow Key Bridge Collapse

The Francis Scott Key Bridge near Baltimore collapsed after being hit by a cargo ship in the early morning on March 26. Although all evidence points to an accident, conspiracy theorists spread the baseless claim that it was intentionally caused by a “cyber-attack.” Officials have dismissed the claim.

Posts Misrepresent WHO Term ‘Disease X’ for Possible Future Illness

Posts Misrepresent WHO Term ‘Disease X’ for Possible Future Illness

The World Health Organization began using the term “Disease X” in a 2018 planning document to refer to a “currently unknown” illness. But since the term was used at the January meeting of the World Economic Forum, conspiracy theorists baselessly claim Disease X is part of a “Globalist Plan to … Install World Government.”

Commentators Push Unfounded Claims About Ohio Train Derailment

Commentators Push Unfounded Claims About Ohio Train Derailment

The derailment of a freight train carrying toxic chemicals in eastern Ohio has sparked a slew of unfounded claims by conservative commentators. There’s no indication that this incident will rise to the level of a “domestic Chernobyl”; it has been covered steadily by the media; federal and state agencies are monitoring air and water quality and its impact on people and animals.

Blood Transfusion Doesn’t Transfer COVID-19 Vaccine

Blood Transfusion Doesn’t Transfer COVID-19 Vaccine

A blood transfusion from a vaccinated person doesn’t transfer the inoculation to an unvaccinated person. But high-profile purveyors of misinformation have been promoting the long-standing false claim that it does.

Vaccine Ingredient SM-102 Is Safe

Vaccine Ingredient SM-102 Is Safe

The COVID-19 vaccine from Moderna uses an ingredient called SM-102 to deliver the mRNA that carries instructions for how to develop antibodies against the novel coronavirus. A widely shared video is now spreading the falsehood that SM-102 is harmful, but the warning label it shows is for chloroform, not SM-102.

Bogus Claims of ‘Crisis Actors’ in Death of George Floyd

Bogus Claims of ‘Crisis Actors’ in Death of George Floyd

False claims that nearly everyone involved in George Floyd’s death — including Floyd — are “crisis actors” have spread widely online. But the pictures that supposedly prove this theory actually show unrelated people.

Martial Law Isn’t ‘Imminent’

Martial Law Isn’t ‘Imminent’

Viral social media posts and videos have falsely claimed that “martial law [is] imminent” in the U.S. Those bogus reports are being pushed in some cases by those who sell emergency and survivalist products.

Puerto Rican Teamsters Stories are Bogus

Puerto Rican Teamsters Stories are Bogus

Q: Did a Teamsters strike hinder aid efforts in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria?

A: No. Stories claiming so misrepresented an actual quote from an Air Force colonel.

No Evidence Linking Vegas Shooter to Antifa

No Evidence Linking Vegas Shooter to Antifa

Stories claiming that the Las Vegas shooter was linked to antifa, a loosely organized group of anti-fascist activists, are proliferating online. But his purported links to antifa are either false, fabricated or unsubstantiated.