Our annual recap of the worst falsehoods of the year.
The Whoppers of 2025
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FactChecking Trump’s Economic Speech
In a campaign-style rally in Pennsylvania on Dec. 9, President Donald Trump honed a message of “lower prices, bigger paychecks” ahead of next year’s midterm elections. Some of his talking points on the economy missed the mark.
Vaccine Panel, Voting to Change Hepatitis B Shot for Newborns, Shares Misleading Information
Upending decades-old guidance, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine advisory committee voted to no longer issue a blanket recommendation that all newborns receive a hepatitis B vaccine at birth. Throughout the meeting, many panelists made misleading claims about the vaccine.
Unpacking the FDA’s Black Friday Vaccine Memo
The head of the Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine division claimed in a leaked email that “at least 10 children” died from COVID-19 vaccination, using that to justify major vaccine regulatory changes. Experts, however, say too little information was provided to verify the claim.
Q&A on Vetting of Accused National Guard Shooter
In the aftermath of the deadly ambush shooting of two National Guard members in Washington, D.C., President Donald Trump and others in his administration immediately blamed Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, for failing to vet the Afghan national accused of the attack. Here, we’ll answer some questions about what we know so far about the suspect and the vetting process.
Previewing the CDC’s December Vaccine Advisory Meeting
The vaccine advisory committee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is scheduled to meet Dec. 4 and 5. On the agenda: the hepatitis B vaccine, the overall childhood vaccine schedule and specific vaccine ingredients. We’ll summarize what we’ve written about these topics and what the committee has said about them in recent meetings.
Experts Say Democratic Video Not ‘Seditious,’ as Trump Claims
After six congressional Democrats released a video advising members of the U.S. military and national security community to “refuse illegal orders,” President Donald Trump said the lawmakers should be tried in court for “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” But legal experts told us this was not sedition and that the legislators were restating the law that only lawful orders must be followed.
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Revised CDC Website About Autism and Vaccines Is Not Evidence-Based
Under Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime anti-vaccine advocate who is now Health and Human Services secretary, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revised its website to say that its previous statement that “vaccines do not cause autism” is “not an evidence-based claim.” But it’s the revised website that misleads about vaccines.
Trump at Odds with CIA Assessment on Khashoggi Killing
President Donald Trump brushed aside a reporter’s question to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman about the 2018 killing of Washington Post contributing columnist Jamal Khashoggi, saying the crown prince “knew nothing about it and we can leave it at that.” But Trump’s claim is at odds with a CIA assessment.