China first reported a new strain of viral pneumonia in the city of Wuhan on Dec. 31, and, within a month, the internet was infected with misinformation about the illness, now called the 2019 novel coronavirus.
An outbreak of viral pneumonia that began in the central Chinese city of Wuhan at the end of 2019 has now sickened thousands, and led to more than 100 deaths. Here, we answer some key questions about what is known so far about the outbreak and the virus.
One of President Donald Trump’s defense lawyers described Rudy Giuliani as “just a minor player” in Ukraine matters that resulted in the president being impeached. But the evidence suggests otherwise.
A conspiracy theory website distorted the facts about an emergency preparedness exercise to suggest that the “GATES FOUNDATION & OTHERS PREDICTED UP TO 65 MILLION DEATHS” from the coronavirus now spreading. The event dealt with a hypothetical scenario involving a fictional virus.
Social media posts falsely claim that a “Chinese spy team” working in a Canadian government lab sent “pathogens to the Wuhan facility” prior to the coronavirus outbreak in China. Two Canadian agencies have told us those claims are wrong.
A meme falsely claims comedian Sam Hyde is responsible for the spread of the new coronavirus. Researchers are still working to determine the source of this latest coronavirus, though evidence suggests it was first transmitted to humans from an animal.
President Donald Trump, who last year froze hundreds of millions of dollars in security aid for Ukraine, claimed “they got all” of it “long before schedule.” That’s false. Congress had to grant an extension to ensure the government could spend all of that aid for Ukraine.
Multiple social media posts are spreading a bogus conspiracy theory about the deadly Wuhan virus. The posts falsely claim that the virus has been patented and a vaccine is already available. That’s not true; the patents the posts refer to pertain to different viruses.
Social media posts make a broad and misleading claim that “Democrats stood with” the leaders of Venezuela, China and Iran rather than supporting oppressed people in those countries. The facts don’t support that generalization.
Despite repeated statements from President Donald Trump that “no one was hurt” in Iran’s missile attack on two military bases in Iraq, the Pentagon now says 11 U.S. service members were treated for concussion symptoms.