Here’s a guide to our coverage of the facts. Click on the headlines for the full stories.
Our Latest Stories
These are stories published in the last seven days, as of April 17:
Trump’s Inaccurate COVID-19 Death Rate Comparison
Available data on confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths contradicts President Donald Trump’s recent claim that “the United States has achieved a significant lower mortality rate than almost all other countries.” As of April 16, there were at least 90 countries with a lower case fatality rate than the U.S., according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
Stimulus Checks Won’t Reduce Future Tax Refunds
Social media posts falsely claim that federal payments from the COVID-19 stimulus package could reduce taxpayers’ future refunds. The Internal Revenue Service says the payment “will not reduce your refund or increase the amount you owe when you file your 2020 tax return next year.”
Trump’s False Claims about Pelosi and Chinatown
President Donald Trump is making false and exaggerated claims about House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s Feb. 24 trip to San Francisco’s Chinatown.
The White House Coronavirus Briefings
FactCheck.org Managing Editor Lori Robertson spoke with WHYY radio in Philadelphia about fact-checking the White House’s daily coronavirus task force briefings.
FactChecking Trump’s Attack on the WHO
In announcing that his administration would halt funding for the World Health Organization, President Donald Trump made a series of false, misleading and unsubstantiated claims about the WHO.
Reports Didn’t Misrepresent One Man’s Death as Two
A bogus meme on Facebook suggests that the news media has tried to pass off one man’s death, attributed to complications from COVID-19, as two separate cases. But the headlines cited simply focused on different parts of his biography.
Conspiracy Theory Misinterprets Goals of Gates Foundation
A conspiracy theory falsely claims Bill Gates is plotting to use COVID-19 testing and a future vaccine to track people with microchips. The Gates Foundation has advocated for expanded testing and has funded vaccine research, but neither of those involves implanted microchips.
Constitutional Experts: Trump Lacks Power to ‘Open Up the States’
Constitutional experts say President Donald Trump is wrong that he, not governors, has the power to “open up the states” where businesses were closed or residents were ordered to stay at home as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Democratic Ad Twists Trump’s ‘Hoax’ Comment
The Democratic super PAC Priorities USA Action has been running an ad falsely suggesting President Donald Trump called the coronavirus outbreak a “hoax.”
Trump Falsely Distorts New York Times COVID-19 Science Story
In a weekend tweet, President Donald Trump erroneously described a New York Times article, falsely stating that it said the coronavirus originated in Europe and suggesting that it had no named sources. The story, which reported on new genomic analyses of some of the first coronavirus cases in the New York area, made no such claim — and quoted no fewer than seven scientists by name.
TV News Report Prompts Unfounded Attacks on Michigan Governor
A TV station’s report on Michigan’s fine for those violating the state’s social distancing orders used old footage of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer at a signing ceremony with a crowd of people — prompting false accusations of hypocrisy on social media.
Trump’s Snowballing China Travel Claim
In early March, President Donald Trump said that restrictions he placed on travel to and from China “saved a lot of lives,” a claim that grew to “probably tens of thousands” and “hundreds of thousands” by early April. But we found no support for such figures.
False Claim of Deadly Coronavirus Vaccine Trial in Africa
Posts across social media are falsely claiming that a vaccine trial for the novel coronavirus in Senegal resulted in the death of seven children. There is no clinical trial for a potential vaccine currently taking place in Senegal.
