debunked

Lightning bolts during a storm in Germany.

This Debunked Lightning Safety Tip Just Won’t Die—and It’s Still Dangerous

Outdated lightning safety advice is making the rounds again, prompting experts to speak up about what actually keeps you safe in a storm.

Health Margherita Bassi Apr 3

Scientists Debunk Claim That Iran’s 2024 Earthquake Was a Nuclear Weapons Test

Minutes after a magnitude 4.5 earthquake hit Iran on October 5, 2024, rumors swirled that it wasn’t natural—claims that scientists have now shown to be false.

Earth Science Margherita Bassi Feb 9

Taylor Swift performs on stage during the "Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour" at Wembley Stadium on August 15, 2024 in London, England.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s ‘Break-Up Contract’ Goes Viral—but It’s Totally Fake

No, Taylor Swift and her football player boyfriend aren't breaking up on September 28.

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 4

Viral 5G Conspiracy Diagram Actually Shows How to Build Your Own Guitar Pedal

Does this diagram show the secret plans of Bill Gates and his minions to inject 5G chips into the bloodstreams of unsuspecting people who get the covid-19 vaccine? Not quite. But it can sure scoop the hell out of those mids. The schematic, which has gone viral on Facebook and Twitter, purports to show how…

Health Matt Novak Jan 5

That Viral Story About Selfie-Takers on a Thai Beach ‘Facing the Death Penalty’ Is Totally Fake

Recently, you may have seen news stories claiming that tourists could “face the death penalty” for taking selfies on a certain beach in Thailand—which we can all agree is a little bit extreme. Thankfully, those claims are totally fake. This week, a flurry of fear-mongering reports came out warning that taking a photo on Mai Khao…

Tech News Melanie Ehrenkranz Apr 9

This Viral Photo of a Homeless Person Freezing on the Street Is Actually From 2013… in Canada

It’s a heartbreaking photo. But it doesn’t show what you think it does. The viral photo, which shows a person sleeping on the sidewalk and covered in snow, has been making the rounds on politically conservative social media this week in an attempt at commentary on immigration. It’s been tweeted by actor James Woods, retweeted…

Tech News Matt Novak Jan 31

Texas Governor Tweets Fake Churchill Quote About Fascism, Gets Flooded With Equally Made-Up Replies

Have you heard the famous Winston Churchill quote that “the fascists of the future will call themselves anti-fascists”? Well, it’s a fake quote. Churchill never said it. But that didn’t stop Texas Governor Greg Abbott from tweeting the fake quote late last night. And while Abbott is rightly being taken to task, the responses to…

Tech News Matt Novak Aug 7

Trump and Macron’s Disappearing Tree is Just in Quarantine to be Monitored For Pests

US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron planted a tree at the White House on April 23rd in a friendship ceremony. But the tree quickly went missing, and some people started to wonder if a conspiracy was afoot. But there’s no grand conspiracy. The tree, which was brought from France, is simply in…

Tech News Matt Novak Apr 30

Man Who Was Allegedly Stabbed For His Neo-Nazi Haircut Actually Stabbed Himself

Remember that guy on Facebook a couple of weeks ago who said he got stabbed by some stranger because he had a “neo-Nazi” haircut? You’re never going to believe this, but the story was total bullshit. He accidentally stabbed himself. And blamed it on a non-existent black guy. Joshua Witt, a 26-year-old from Colorado, posted…

Tech News Matt Novak Aug 28

That Viral Story About a Japanese Man Crushed to Death by His Porn Collection is Totally Fake

Did a man in Japan really get crushed to death by his porn collection? No. But you’d be forgiven for thinking otherwise, thanks to this dumb game of Telephone we call The Internet. “Porn really is bad for you!” the Daily Mail headline blares. “Lonely Japanese man who amassed a SIX-TON pile of dirty magazines…

Tech News Matt Novak Mar 5

You Aren’t Living in a Hologram, Even if You Wish You Were

You may have read today that the entire universe is a giant hologram. Maybe your mind was blown while you hit your Big Bong and contemplated a 2D universe, or that researchers had somehow found substantial evidence you were “living in an illusion.” No, nope. Not what happened. Rather, physicists figured out that one of…

Space & Spaceflight Ryan F. Mandelbaum Jan 30

9 Quotes From Winston Churchill That Are Totally Fake

I’ve been getting a lot of tweets and emails from neo-Nazis and neo-fascists lately. To be fair, I said that Nazis and fascists were bad, so I was kind of asking for it. But the thing that I’ve found most interesting amongst the mountains of hate are all the fake quotes that racists send me,…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 29

There’s Little Evidence to Back Up Reports that CNN Broadcasted 30 Minutes of Porn Last Night

On Friday, many news sources reported that people RCN Boston mistakenly broadcast a half hour of hardcore pornography last night on CNN. If we look a little deeper, we can see this may not be true. The International Business Times first reported the story based on a series of tweets from one account that is now…

Tech News Eve Peyser Nov 25

Trump Supporters Still Spreading Bullshit About Armrests, Get Debunked Again

Trump supporters claim that airline armrests are the key to proving Donald Trump couldn’t have sexually assaulted a woman on a plane in 1979. But the aviation nerd community keeps debunking their bullshit. The Braniff Foundation, a nonprofit organization that documents and preserves the history of Braniff Airways, just released a flight attendant manual from…

Tech News Matt Novak Oct 15

Trump Supporters Claim First Class Armrests Couldn’t Move in the 1980s, Which Is a Lie

Is it even physically possible that Donald Trump sexually assaulted a woman on a plane in the 1980s? One woman, now in her 70s, says yes. The Trump camp says no. Internet sleuths, however, also say yes. At least five women came forward yesterday to talk about their experiences with unwanted sexual advances from Donald…

Tech News Matt Novak Oct 13

How the Rubik’s Cube Juggler Tricked the Internet

Last week the internet watched in amazement as Leo Weston solved three Rubik’s cubes while juggling them. Now he’s back to show us how he faked the entire thing, and its just as impressive. The footage was captured by juggling solved cubes and then digitally removing them—so that element at least wasn’t faked. Leo and…

Sploid Avery Ellis Mar 24

9 More Viral Photos That Are Actually Fake

Sometimes it feels like half of the internet is just fake photos. Whether it’s Elvis cutting Johnny Cash’s hair (FAKE), Hillary Clinton posing next to someone in an ‘I’m With Stupid’ t-shirt (FAKE) or John Lennon on a skateboard (FAKE FAKE FAKE), we’re breaking down the latest fakes swirling around the internet. 1. Is this…

Tech News Matt Novak Jul 29

Stop Freaking Out: Fukushima Isn’t Mutating the Daisies

A picture of some deformed plant sex organs is alarming people all over the internet this week. The photo, taken by Twitter user @san_kaido, shows a bunch of daisies that look like conjoined twins. The accompanying tweet describes their twisted, ribbonlike appearance, and reports a radiation reading for the spot. Given that the photo was…

Tech News Diane Kelly Jul 24

Urban Legend: Babies Born at Disneyland Get a Lifetime Pass

On July 4, 1979 little Teresa Salcedo was the first baby born in Disneyland at California. But contrary to urban legend, she didn’t get a lifetime pass to the Happiest Place on Earth. It’s a surprisingly popular misconception that any baby born in a Disney Park gets a lifetime pass. But it’s completely untrue. And…

Tech News Matt Novak Jul 22

University of Toronto Defends Class That Taught Anti-Vaccine Propaganda

Are you a student looking for a great health studies course? I’d suggest steering clear of the University of Toronto’s Scarborough campus. The school has recently become the laughingstock of the scientific community for a course that includes materials on the dangers of vaccines. Jenny McCarthy would be so proud. The health course was taught…

Tech News Matt Novak Jul 7

debunked

This Debunked Lightning Safety Tip Just Won’t Die—and It’s Still Dangerous

Scientists Debunk Claim That Iran’s 2024 Earthquake Was a Nuclear Weapons Test

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s ‘Break-Up Contract’ Goes Viral—but It’s Totally Fake

Viral 5G Conspiracy Diagram Actually Shows How to Build Your Own Guitar Pedal

That Viral Story About Selfie-Takers on a Thai Beach ‘Facing the Death Penalty’ Is Totally Fake

This Viral Photo of a Homeless Person Freezing on the Street Is Actually From 2013… in Canada

Texas Governor Tweets Fake Churchill Quote About Fascism, Gets Flooded With Equally Made-Up Replies

Trump and Macron’s Disappearing Tree is Just in Quarantine to be Monitored For Pests

Man Who Was Allegedly Stabbed For His Neo-Nazi Haircut Actually Stabbed Himself

That Viral Story About a Japanese Man Crushed to Death by His Porn Collection is Totally Fake

You Aren’t Living in a Hologram, Even if You Wish You Were

9 Quotes From Winston Churchill That Are Totally Fake

There’s Little Evidence to Back Up Reports that CNN Broadcasted 30 Minutes of Porn Last Night

Trump Supporters Still Spreading Bullshit About Armrests, Get Debunked Again

Trump Supporters Claim First Class Armrests Couldn’t Move in the 1980s, Which Is a Lie

How the Rubik’s Cube Juggler Tricked the Internet

9 More Viral Photos That Are Actually Fake

Stop Freaking Out: Fukushima Isn’t Mutating the Daisies

Urban Legend: Babies Born at Disneyland Get a Lifetime Pass

University of Toronto Defends Class That Taught Anti-Vaccine Propaganda

‘Good Omens’ Season 3 Is Still Just One Episode, Despite Being Called That

Steam Gaming Has Arrived on Apple Vision Pro, and It’s Unexpectedly Glorious

RFK Jr. Will Take on Joe Rogan for Podcaster Supremacy

The Spymaster’s Guide to the Secret Agencies of ‘Star Trek’

Uber Is Testing Driverless Volkswagen ID. Buzz Vans in Los Angeles

Cast Adrift, Meta Employees Have No Idea Who the ‘Token Legend’ Is Anymore

Microsoft Office 2024 and Windows 11 Pro Bundle Hits 76% Off, a Complete PC Setup for Less

You Can Add ‘Lamp That Folds Your Laundry’ to the List of Doomed Startups

Asus Zenbook A16 Review: Start Considering Snapdragon on PC, for Real

Aqara Thermostat Hub W200 Review: Almost Better than My Ecobee

HP Omen Max 45L Review: 4K60 Gaming Has Never Been So Easy

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Let us help find what you are looking for...