Facebook Twitter Tumblr Close Skip to main content
A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

McCarthy Is Supportive of Raskin’s Head Covering, Contrary to Online Posts

McCarthy Is Supportive of Raskin’s Head Covering, Contrary to Online Posts

Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland wears head coverings on the House floor to cover his hair loss while undergoing treatment for cancer. Social media posts falsely claim that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a Republican, refused to allow Raskin to wear his head covering. The posts misinterpret a joke Raskin made in response to a question. 

Biden’s Tax Rate Comparison for Billionaires and Schoolteachers

Biden’s Tax Rate Comparison for Billionaires and Schoolteachers

President Joe Biden has said there are hundreds, if not a thousand, billionaires paying lower federal tax rates than schoolteachers, police officers, firefighters and nurses. What his audience may not know is that his comparison relies on including wealthy families’ gains on unsold stock as income.

Posts Misrepresent Moderna CEO’s Remarks on Vaccine Production

Posts Misrepresent Moderna CEO’s Remarks on Vaccine Production

Moderna’s CEO said in January that the company’s total production in 2019 was “100,000 dose,” referring to all its vaccines and therapeutics. Online posts distorted the remarks to falsely claim Moderna made COVID-19 vaccines “before the pandemic started.” Moderna’s first batch of COVID-19 vaccines wasn’t ready until February 2020.

Trump’s Hollow ‘Empty Folders’ Defense

Trump’s Hollow ‘Empty Folders’ Defense

Former President Donald Trump’s latest defense for having classified documents found by FBI agents at his Mar-a-Lago home is that many of them were simply “empty folders” stamped “classified” on the outside that Trump kept as mementos. The FBI says it did find dozens of empty folders, but it also found 103 classified documents.

Internet Hoax Spreads False ID on Michigan State University Shooter

Internet Hoax Spreads False ID on Michigan State University Shooter

Police identified the suspect in the Feb. 13 mass shooting at Michigan State University as Anthony Dwayne McRae, who shot and killed himself. But a viral internet hoax used the photo of another man and falsely claimed that the suspect was named “Lynn Dee Walker.”

The Facts on Sen. Scott’s Claim That Biden Is a ‘Tax Cheat’

The Facts on Sen. Scott’s Claim That Biden Is a ‘Tax Cheat’

After President Joe Biden took a veiled swipe at him during the State of the Union address, Sen. Rick Scott released an ad labeling Biden a “tax cheat.” The White House defends the tax maneuver, one it says the IRS blessed, though some tax experts remain unconvinced.

‘Heckling’ at State of the Union Addresses

‘Heckling’ at State of the Union Addresses

A day after several Republicans interrupted President Joe Biden’s second State of the Union address with loud jeering, a Democratic leader said he couldn’t “remember a Democrat ever heckling a president in a State of the Union.” But the Democrats have voiced displeasure with a Republican president at such events on several occasions, dating to at least 2005.

Posts Misquote Biden’s Year-Old Remarks on Tanks for Ukraine

Posts Misquote Biden’s Year-Old Remarks on Tanks for Ukraine

President Joe Biden announced on Jan. 25 that the U.S. would provide Ukraine with 31 tanks. After the announcement, a meme on social media misquoted Biden’s remarks from March 2022, suggesting he said that sending tanks to Ukraine would cause World War III. Biden said sending weapons “with American pilots and American crews” would cause a world war.