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☆ Fact Check-Fabricated tweet about Nashville shooting attributed to trans entertainer and activist
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A fabricated tweet alluding to the recent Nashville school shooting is being falsely attributed to trans entertainer and activist Peppermint. However, the tweet does not exist on Peppermint’s official Twitter page (twitter.com/Peppermint247). The tweet does not exist in an archived version of the Twitter page (here). anti-trans comments misgendering me don't deter me from uplifting people from marginalized communities.”She also addressed the claim on her Instagram page (here). A tweet attributed to trans performer and activist Peppermint being shared online has been fabricated.

☆ Trump raised more than $4 million within 24 hours following grand jury indictment, his campaign says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-01 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Trump's campaign said it raised more than $4 million after he was indicted. It said that the influx of grassroots donations demonstrated the American people's support for Trump. "This incredible surge of grassroots contributions confirms that the American people see the indictment of President Trump as a disgraceful weaponization of our justice system by a Soros-funded prosecutor," the statement said. The campaign said the donations further solidified Trump's status as "the clear frontrunner in the Republican primary." Trump and his campaign have repeatedly lashed out at Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and tried to frame the indictment as a political attack.

☆ A father whose 6-year-old son died was flooded with anti-vaxxer harassment. When a commenter baselessly claimed he killed his son, Facebook said he could 'hide' the comment 'if he didn't like it.'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-01 | by ( Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Billy Ball lost his 6-year-old son due to a rare medical condition in January. Facebook and Twitter often took no action when the comments were reported, Ball said. But the father's social media feeds soon devolved into a cesspool of conspiracy theorists baselessly claiming that Ball killed his son by getting him vaccinated for COVID-19. One Facebook user managed to find his private account and commented on a random post that was a few years old. Ball reported the comment and, on March 2, received a message from Facebook support that told him that the comment did not violate "Community Standards."

☆ Fact Check-Photos misidentifying the Nashville school shooter circulate on social media
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SAM HYDE HOAX RECIRCULATESA tweet sharing a photo of a person with a gun said: “BREAKING: Nashville Police have positively identified the corpse of the suspected Nashville Covenant School shooter as 31 year old Samantha Hyde. Social media posts indicate Samantha was a trans woman who previously went by the name Samuel” (here). ARTIST MISIDENTIFIED AS SHOOTERSome posts falsely saying the shooter was identified as “Samantha Hyde” shared photos in these posts (here) and (here). “Apparently I am being confused with the Nashville incident that happened today,” he said in a March 27 TikTok video. Photos of individuals who are not linked to the March 27 Nashville school shooting have been miscaptioned and shared online.

☆ Terrorism experts say Trump's 'dangerous' rhetoric offers his extreme followers 'an excuse' for violence if he's indicted
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Experts on political violence are alarmed by Trump's latest rhetoric as he faces a possible indictment. They warn that Trump's words could trigger riots or assassinations. He has viciously attacked figures like Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and mocked calls for peaceful protests — leading extremism experts to warn of the potential for political violence. In one of his latest posts to Truth Social, Trump's social media platform, the former president threatened "death and destruction" if he's indicted. A number of those arrested over the insurrection have said that Trump's words drove their behavior.

“And yet, Mr. Carlson persists with his assault on the truth.”The letter from Teter demanded a formal retraction and on-air apology “for the lies” that have been spread about Epps on the channel. On many occasions, Carlson has specifically mentioned Epps on his show, and has played footage from January 6 of Epps at the Capitol. Each time Mr. Carlson and Fox News spreads more misinformation about Mr. Epps, the harm redoubles.”Spokespeople for Fox News did not immediately respond to a request for comment. He has publicly pushed for professional accountability against lawyers who have spread election lies. The lawsuit from Dominion has unearthed damning messages from Fox News executives and hosts that have shown the network peddled election lies to its audience that it knew were false.

☆ George Conway says an insanity defense is Donald Trump's best shot against a possible indictment in New York, but that he'll never use it
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

George Conway says an insanity defense might be Trump's best shot in New York. Conway was weighing in on a series of incoherent Truth Social rants Trump posted on Sunday. Conway was responding on Twitter to screenshots of one of Trump's Truth Social rants on Sunday. "Are the coup-attempter's lawyers intending to use these posts as their proof in an insanity defense?" Conway told Insider on Sunday that from a legal perspective, even an insanity defense won't help Trump get off the hook in New York.

☆ Former GOP Gov. Asa Hutchinson, a potential 2024 presidential candidate, says Trump's campaign message is bad for the party: 'We don't need to be led by arrogance and revenge'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( Sarah Al-Arshani | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Asa Hutchinson said Trump's campaign message of "revenge" is bad for the party. Asa Hutchinson said former President Donald Trump's 2024 presidential campaign message is bad for Republicans. Hutchinson, a potential 2024 presidential candidate, told CNN's Dana Bash on Sunday that he thinks more voices countering Trump's message is the "best thing in the right direction." "We need to have alternatives again to Donald Trump. Donald Trump is a known quantity.

☆ Mike Lindell called Ron DeSantis a 'Trojan Horse' for the left in a rant at CPAC
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Mike Lindell tore into Gov. Ron DeSantis at CPAC, calling him a "Trojan Horse" for the left. Ron DeSantis at the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, on Tuesday. "Now I'll tell you what Ron DeSantis is, and he's got money behind him, did he do anything for Disney? "He is a Trojan Horse, he is the Trojan Horse," Lindell shouted.

☆ Putin's KGB past is key to grasping what he might do next in his failing Ukraine war, ex-spies say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

Putin's time in the KGB helps explain his worldview and brutal approach to warfare, ex-spies say. As Western intelligence agencies vie to stay two steps ahead of the Russian leader and get inside his head, peering into Putin's KGB past may offer clues on what he's thinking. "Putin's KGB background tells us a lot about how he thinks and how he sees the war. He is a creation of the KGB, and the KGB was a terrorist organization," John Sipher, a former CIA officer who served in Russia, told Insider. The Ukraine war has seen Putin and his propagandists make a series of assertions — ranging from plausible to preposterous — to justify Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

☆ Alex Jones bankruptcy filing shows that he has guns that belong to Jan. 6 rioters
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Taiyler Simone Mitchell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Alex Jones is holding onto firearms for January 6 rioters, The Washington Post reported. Jones filed for bankruptcy after a judge ordered he pays the families of Sandy Hook victims. Among the items, Jones wrote that he's "holding firearms for certain January 6th participants," the document reads, per the Post. Before Jones was ordered to pay the families, InfoWars had also filed for bankruptcy, but only after it transferred millions to other entities. According to the bankruptcy filing, in 2021 Jones reported making a gross income of $617,143.02 and approximately $639,000 in 2020.

☆ Sidney Powell cited woman who claimed to be headless, time-traveling entity in email pushing election conspiracy theories
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Cheryl Teh | Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A court filing cited a wild email Sidney Powell sent to Fox to support her claims of voter fraud. Powell used it as proof of her voter fraud claims before a Fox appearance, Dominion argues. Dominion said that Powell forwarded the email to Fox personality Maria Bartiromo in November 2020, and informed Bartiromo that she'd received "evidence" about voter fraud. The lawyers for Dominion did not name the writer of the email, which had the subject "Election Fraud Info." The company is asking for $1.3 billion in damages, alleging that the trio pushed a slew of baseless voter fraud claims that hurt its business.

Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu and former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, among others. [1/7] Old welcome signs heralding the hometown of former South Carolina governor and former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley sit behind the town center in Bamberg, South Carolina, U.S. February 14, 2023. Haley will kick off the start of her 2024 presidential campaign in Charleston, South Carolina. "People don't understand, unless you were here, just what a demonstrative act of leadership that was," said Tom Davis, a Republican state senator who is backing Haley's presidential bid.

☆ Fact Check-Vehicle set alight outside British hotel was a police van and therefore exempt from MOT testing
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The MOT status of a police van that was set alight outside a British hotel housing asylum seekers has been baselessly used by social media users to imply the violence was staged. The vehicle, with registration PO15 AEC, was set on fire during a protest outside Suites Hotel in Knowsley near Liverpool on Feb. 10. An MOT refers to an annual test of cars in Britain to ensure safety, roadworthiness, and to check emissions (here and here). The status of a vehicle’s MOT certificate can be checked online via its registration number www.check-mot.service.gov.uk . Under Regulation 6 (1) (xiv) of The Motor Vehicles (Tests) Regulations 1981, vehicles maintained in a government-approved workshop are exempt from MOT testing (here).

☆ An ex-Twitter exec told Congress he had to sell his home after a barrage of 'homophobic and antisemitic' harassment over the 'Twitter Files'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A former Twitter exec said "homophobic and antisemitic" harassment forced him to sell his home. Yoel Roth testified to Congress that the release of Elon Musk's "Twitter Files" harmed former staff. During a lengthy hearing related to Twitter's handling with the Hunter Biden laptop story, Roth was asked how the release of Elon Musk's Twitter Files had affected his personal safety. He began by saying that the "Twitter Files" also affected more junior employees at Twitter, and that staff as far away as the Philippines were "doxxed, had their families threatened, and experienced harm equal to or greater than what I've experienced." The "Twitter Files" are a series of tweets released under Musk's leadership about "free speech suppression" on the platform under its previous management.

☆ Tucker Carlson called Boris Johnson a 'terrified old woman,' officially kicking off a feud with the former British PM
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Tucker Carlson has ignited a feud with former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson. During his show on Wednesday, Carlson called Johnson a "terrified old woman." During a panel discussion with the Atlantic Council, Johnson accused Carlson of influencing "wonderful Republicans" with anti-Ukraine rhetoric. "I've been amazed and horrified by how many people are frightened of a guy called Tucker Carlson," Johnson said. "Has anybody heard of Tucker Carlson?

☆ Tucker Carlson is infecting the minds of Republicans over Vladimir Putin, former UK PM Boris Johnson says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Boris Johnson accused Tucker Carlson of infecting people's minds with "bad ideas" about Putin. The former UK prime minister said Republicans seem to be "intimidated" by Carlson's perspective. Speaking on Wednesday during a panel discussion with the Atlantic Council, Johnson said: "I've been amazed and horrified by how many people are frightened of a guy called Tucker Carlson. "Has anybody heard of Tucker Carlson? In May 2022, Carlson baselessly claimed that the US government's involvement in Ukraine was aimed at deposing Putin as "payback for the 2016 election."

Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley campaigns for Georgia Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Herschel Walker at a rally with supporters in Hiram, Georgia, U.S. November 6, 2022. REUTERS/Jonathan ErnstWASHINGTON, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley will launch her candidacy for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination on Feb. 15, squaring off against her one-time boss, former President Donald Trump, according to a source familiar with her plans. If she were to win the nomination, Haley would be the first woman at the top of the Republican presidential ticket in history, as well as the party's first non-white nominee. Even in a field where most candidates have changed their mind about key issues multiple times, Haley is particularly chameleonic. Haley, who governed the state from 2011 to 2017, is popular there, polls show.

☆ As Ukraine war drags on, Russian lawmakers told to compare it to the bloody (but ultimately victorious) WWII Battle of Stalingrad
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russia's largest party told members to compare the Ukraine war with World War II's biggest battle. Politicians were told to talk about the Battle of Stalingrad, which turned the tide against Nazi Germany. Russia's war in Ukraine is dragging on and sees no end in sight, with casualties mounting. The Battle of Stalingrad was one of the biggest battles in World War II, helping to stop Nazi forces from advancing into the Soviet Union. Up to two million people died in and around Stalingrad, according to news agency AFP.

☆ Trump says he has more lawyers working for him than even 'the late great gangster' Al Capone did
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Donald Trump on Monday compared his legal predicament to that of mobster Al Capone's. Trump wrote on Truth Social that he has "more lawyers" working for him than Capone did. Trump appeared to laud the mob boss, calling him the "late great gangster, Alphonse Capone." In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote that he has "more lawyers" working for him "than any human being in the history of our Country, including even the late great gangster, Alphonse Capone!" "Like the Al Capone effect, you're not going to get him on murder, extortion, racketeering.

☆ Twitter cofounder says Elon Musk has undone positive changes that were made to the platform before his takeover
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Kate Duffy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Twitter cofounder Biz Stone said Elon Musk reversed positive changes on the site, per The Guardian. Stone said in the interview that Musk doesn't strike him as the right person to own Twitter. In an interview with The Guardian, Stone said he made advancements in morale and supervising content on Twitter after he rejoined the company in 2017. Twitter is experiencing financial difficulties, but Stone told The Guardian he thought the concept of the platform would survive. Twitter and representatives for Stone didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comment made outside of normal US operating hours.

Former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao called out former President Donald Trump amid his racist broadsides aimed at her and his other anti-Asian rhetoric. Trump, who is ramping up his 2024 presidential campaign, has repeatedly made racist attacks against Chao, who served in his administration, in recent months. Chao’s latest statement comes in the wake of several high-profile shootings targeting Asian Americans. Other Republicans, such as Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., have stopped short of condemning Trump’s attacks, often equating them to the former president’s penchant for using nicknames. She later served as Transportation secretary for the Trump administration.

☆ Fact Check-Ukrainian church fire from 2021 likely started by electrical fault, according to priest
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A 2021 video of a burning church in Ukraine has circulated online with a caption that baselessly claims it was set alight by Ukrainian nationalists. The posts claim that “Ukrainian nationalists” started the fire after the church rector refused to switch from the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, now in its 11th month, has led many Ukrainians to rally round the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), which they see as more pro-Ukrainian than its rival, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC). The Ukrainian Orthodox Church Dnipropetrovsk Eparchy published a statement at the time with videos and photos of the church (here ). The video shows a fire at a church in the Dnipropetrovsk region in 2021.

☆ Rudy Giuliani says Trump once advised him to take top-secret files home
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Rudy Giuliani says Trump once told him to take top-secret documents home. Giuliani said the incident occurred just after Trump became president, when he was working at Mar-a-Lago. Giuliani said he was at Mar-a-Lago, working on "vetting" some "very rich" people — specifically, going through their tax returns for Trump. The incident occurred right after Trump became president, Giuliani said. During its raid of Trump's Mar-a-Lago property on August 8, the FBI seized batches of classified documents, including some marked "top secret."

☆ Republicans ignored Rep. George Santos' red flags as he propelled himself to a House victory deceiving voters, NYT reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Taiyler Simone Mitchell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

An NYT report revealed that at least some of the GOP knew of Rep. George Santos' lies. "I guess unfortunately we rely on the person to be truthful to us," the GOP Nassau County chairman told The Times. According to the Times, Santos hired an unnamed Washington research firm to conduct a vulnerability study in connection to his campaign towards the end of 2021. But the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee failed to follow up on red flags when looking into Rep. George Santos because researchers were encumbered with other researching dozens of other candidates, per the Times. Santos has faced multiple calls to resign but has remained steadfast in his conviction to complete his term despite deceiving 142,000 voters.

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