PeakMetrics / Fact Checks
Politics & government fact checks
Explore claims publishers have checked about politics & government. Read their original ratings and follow the evidence.
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Search by text or image12,754 published reviews in this topic
Image of a bus terminal built by AIMIM party in Hyderabad.
Publisher’s rating: FALSE
The claim concerns an image circulated as showing a bus terminal built by the AIMIM party in Hyderabad. FACTLY identifies the pictured site as Alambagh bus terminal in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, and says its redevelopment was a state-government project carried out through a public-private partnership—not a project connected to Hyderabad or AIMIM. The attribution in the post therefore misidentifies both the terminal’s location and the project behind it. The review describes a reverse-image search that led to a Smart Cities Council India article dated 04-10-2018. That article identified the same image as Alambagh bus terminal and described its redevelopment as a pilot project under a state initiative for state road-transport bus stands. FACTLY also says a news report placed the terminal’s inauguration on 13 June 2018 and that the image appeared among Google-uploaded images of Alambagh Bus Stand, where it was noted as captured in June 2018. Together, the image match and the reporting on the terminal’s location and redevelopment contradict the post’s Hyderabad-and-AIMIM attribution. The review does not describe the bus terminal as an AIMIM project; it links it to the Uttar Pradesh government initiative.
“Remember seeing those neo-Nazis and Klansmen and white supremacists coming out. … Remember what the president said when asked? He said there were, quote, very fine people on both sides. It was a wake-up call for us as a country. And for me, a call to action.”
Publisher’s rating: Lacks context
Hablando de protestas violentas en Charlottesville, Virginia, en 2017, "¿Recuerdan el choque violento que se produjo entre los que propagan el odio y los que tienen el coraje de oponerse a él? ¿Y recuerdan lo que dijo el presidente cuando se le preguntó? Él dijo que había “gente muy buena en ambos lados"
Publisher’s rating: Verdad
President Trump said there were "very fine people on both sides", when asked about a far-right rally in 2017.
Publisher’s rating: President Trump did say - when asked about the presence of neo-Nazis at the rally - "you had some very bad people in that group, but you also had people that were very fine people, on both sides." During the same press conference, Mr Trump went on to say "I'm not talking about the neo-Nazis and the white nationalists, because they should be condemned totally."
Video of Congress MLA Anil Upadhyay blaming Congress leaders for anti-CAA protests and associated violence
Publisher’s rating: FALSE
The claim concerned a video in which a man blamed Congress leaders for anti-CAA protests and associated violence. The social-media post identified him as Congress MLA Anil Upadhyay. FACTLY’s review examined that identity claim, rather than establishing that the speaker’s remarks about the protests were accurate: its stated finding was that there was no Congress MLA named Anil Upadhyay. FACTLY describes two checks. It says a search found an extended version of the same video on YouTube, uploaded by the channel “The Newspaper” on 4 March 2020. The review notes that the upload did not identify the man as a Congress MLA. It also reports searching the My Neta website for “Anil Upadhyay”: although two people with that name appeared in the results, neither belonged to the Indian National Congress. On that basis, the review rejected the post’s identification of the speaker as a Congress MLA. It also places the post within a recurring pattern, saying that other random videos had previously been circulated using the name Anil Upadhyay, but describing those earlier claims as identifying him as a BJP MLA. The excerpt does not establish the speaker’s actual identity or independently assess the video’s statements about the protests.
NSA Ajit Doval posted India Independence Day wishes with the Egyptian flag.
Publisher’s rating: FALSE
The claim concerned a screenshot of a Facebook post said to show National Security Advisor Ajit Doval wishing India a happy Independence Day with an Egyptian flag. FACTLY checked whether the account behind the screenshot was Doval’s official account and investigated the post’s history. The review reports that its search found no official Facebook account for Doval, and says he had no official account on any social-media platform. It then traced the screenshot to a fan page in Doval’s name. That distinction is decisive: the image was linked to a fan account, not an account established as belonging to the NSA. FACTLY also examined the fan-page post’s edit history. Although the Egypt flag was no longer visible in the post when the review checked it, the history showed that the Independence Day wishes had originally been posted with an Egyptian-flag emoji. Thus, the flag detail had a basis in the fan-page post, but the screenshot misleadingly attributed that post to Doval himself.
نریندر مودی جواہر لال نہرو کے مجسمے کے سامنے خراج تحسین پیش کر رہے ہیں۔
Publisher’s rating: FALSE
Spekulationen über überhöhte Teilnehmerzahlen bei der Demonstration gegen Corona-Auflagen in Berlin am 1. August verbreiten sich weiterhin. In sozialen Medien kursiert eine Rechnung, die belegen soll, dass etwas nicht stimmt mit den offiziellen Angaben über Zahlen der Demo-Teilnehmer. Dafür wird die Fläche herangezogen, die Demonstranten angeblich bei der Versammlung besetzt haben sollen. «Die Straße des 17. Juni ist 3,58 km lang und 85 m breit. Macht eine Fläche von 304.300 qm», heißt es weiter. «Wenn die offiziellen Meldungen über 17.000 Demonstranten stimmen, dann befand sich am Samstag auf 18qm, also einem knappen Wohnzimmer, lediglich ein einziger Demonstrant.»
Publisher’s rating: Die Angabe der Breite der Straße des 17. Juni ist falsch - sie ist nur etwa 40 Meter breit. Die Länge ist grundsätzlich korrekt - allerdings erstreckte sich die Demonstration nur über einen wesentlich kleineren Teilbereich der Straße. Die Flächenrechnung belegt also keine in Wirklichkeit höhere Teilnehmerzahl, als offiziell gemeldet.
The post argued that official attendance figures for the August 1, 2020 demonstration against coronavirus restrictions in Berlin were implausible. Its calculation multiplied the full 3.58-kilometre length of the Straße des 17. Juni by an alleged width of 85 metres, then divided that area by 17,000 people. The review found that this calculation used both a wrong width and too much of the road’s length for the demonstration area. To check the width, the agency reports measuring the street on Google Maps and on strecken-messen.de, and says a spokesperson for Berlin-Mitte district confirmed a width of about 40 metres, including the carriageway, sidewalks, cycle path, median and other road sections. The district’s roughly 80-metre figure applied only at the roundabout around the Victory Column. The road’s approximately 3.5-kilometre overall length was broadly correct, but the crowd extended at most about 1.7 kilometres, from the Brandenburg Gate to the Victory Column; photographs showed it thinning well before the monument. The review also distinguishes the police figures for separate parts of the event: 17,000 people in the march and 20,000 at the subsequent rally. It contrasts these with organizers’ claim of 1.3 million, while noting that this review’s area calculation did not demonstrate a higher attendance than officially reported. Thus, the post’s arithmetic relied on an overwide measurement and applied the road’s full length where the crowd occupied a shorter section.
“He breaks up with our allies and writes love letters to dictators.”
Publisher’s rating: No evidence
Kamala Harris has not previously identified as a black American woman
Publisher’s rating: This is false. Ms Harris has been explicit about her dual heritage. She wrote in her autobiography: "My mother understood very well that she was raising two black daughters. "She knew that her adopted homeland would see Maya [her sister] and me as black girls, and she was determined to make sure we would grow into confident, proud black women."
నెహ్రు, ఖాన్ అబ్దుల్ గఫ్ఫార్ ఖాన్, వల్లభాయ్ పటేల్ మధ్య జరిగిన సంభాషణ
Publisher’s rating: FALSE
Kamala Harris is linked to the "pizzagate" conspiracy theory
Publisher’s rating: There is not a shred of evidence to support this false conspiracy theory
«Er sorgt für möglichst lange Maskenpflicht, Ehefrau kassiert»: Mit diesen Worten wird unterstellt, dass Karin Baumüller-Söder, die Ehefrau des bayerischen Ministerpräsidenten Markus Söder, von der in Bayern geltenden Maskenpflicht finanziell profitiere. Diese Behauptung wurde bereits vor einigen Monaten aufgestellt und taucht nun erneut im Netz auf.
Publisher’s rating: Das zur Baumüller-Gruppe gehörende Unternehmen Baumüller Services hat laut eigenen Angaben kurzfristig Face Shields (Gesichtsvisiere) hergestellt, diese jedoch nicht verkauft. Es wurden rund 200 Gesichtsvisiere produziert und an zwei Krankenhäuser gespendet, so das Unternehmen. Karin Baumüller-Söder hat somit nicht finanziell von der Maskenpflicht profitiert.
The claim concerned Karin Baumüller-Söder, wife of Bavarian premier Markus Söder, and alleged that she was profiting financially from the state’s mask requirement because a company connected to her was producing face shields. The review identifies her as a shareholder in the Baumüller Group, whose subsidiary Baumüller Services made the shields. It examined whether that production involved sales or instead served employees and donation purposes. (S1: “Die Ehefrau des bayerischen Ministerpräsidenten, Karin Baumüller-Söder, ist Gesellschafterin der Baumüller-Gruppe mit Sitz in Nürnberg.”; “Baumüller Services, eine Tochter der Nürnberger Firmengruppe Baumüller”) The review reports that Baumüller Services announced on 4 May 2020 that it was shifting part of its production to make face shields. It quotes the company’s announcement as saying that all shields were made for its own employees or for donations. The company later told dpa that it donated 200 shields to Martha-Maria Hospital in Nuremberg and Frankenalb Clinic Engelthal, with another 10 made for employees or as samples. (S1: “Am 4. Mai 2020 teilte das Tochterunternehmen Baumüller Services mit, dass man auf die aktuellen Herausforderungen reagiere und einen Teil seiner Fertigung auf die Herstellung von Face Shields umstelle.”; “Alle produzierten Face Shields wurden für die eigenen Mitarbeiter bzw. für Spendenzwecke hergestellt.”; “insgesamt 200 Face Shields an das Martha-Maria-Krankenhaus in Nürnberg sowie die Frankenalb-Klinik Engelthal gespendet. Weitere 10 Exemplare wurden für Mitarbeiter beziehungsweise als Muster gefertigt.”) The review’s account includes follow-up inquiries to the company: dpa says Baumüller Group reported on 29 May that no further shields would be produced, and on 17 August that it had produced no additional ones. It also notes that the donation to Martha-Maria was documented in photographs. These details address the alleged financial benefit by describing the reported destination of the production and the company’s responses about its scale and continuation. (S1: “Auf Nachfrage der dpa teilte die Baumüller-Gruppe am 17. August mit, keine weiteren Face Shields produziert zu haben.”; “Die Übergabe der Visiere an das Krankenhaus Martha-Maria in Nürnberg ist auf Fotos dokumentiert.”)
പിണറായി ആവശ്യപ്പെട്ടാൽ 14 ദിവസത്തേക്ക് മുഖ്യമന്ത്രിയാകാൻ ഞാൻ തയ്യാറാണ് എന്ന് രമേശ് ചെന്നിത്തല
Publisher’s rating: FALSE
Image of PM Modi bowing to a statue of Nehru
Publisher’s rating: FALSE
The review examined a circulating image purporting to show Prime Minister Narendra Modi bowing to a statue of Jawaharlal Nehru. It says the scene was instead based on a photograph of Modi bowing to Mahatma Gandhi during the inauguration of Rashtriya Swachhata Kendra. The review describes the Nehru image as a digital alteration of that photograph, rather than an authentic depiction of Modi paying tribute to Nehru.
Die Demonstrationen gegen Corona-Auflagen in Berlin am 1. August haben für viele Diskussionen gesorgt. Im Internet kursiert der Screenshot eines Tweets, wonach die Teilnehmer vermeintlich prominenten Zuspruch erhalten haben: Angeblich habe US-Präsident Donald Trump sich vor der Demonstration an die «deutschen Patrioten» gerichtet und ihnen «viel Glück im Kampf für Freiheit» gewünscht. Er sende Grüße vom Weißen Haus an «mehr als acht Millionen Revolutionäre».
Publisher’s rating: Der Tweet ist gefälscht. Es handelt sich um einen manipulierten Screenshot. Es stimmt nicht, dass Donald Trump den Demonstranten in Berlin Grüße zur Unterstützung gesandt habe.
The claim concerned a screenshot circulating online that purported to show US President Donald Trump encouraging people who demonstrated against coronavirus restrictions in Berlin on 1 August 2020. In the alleged tweet, he supposedly addressed “German patriots,” wished them luck in the fight for freedom, and sent greetings from the White House to “more than eight million revolutionaries.” The investigation checked whether the purported message appeared on Trump’s account and compared it with the genuine tweet for the time shown in the screenshot. [S1: “Der vermeintliche Tweet ist auf Trumps Account nicht zu finden. Der echte Tweet zu angegebenem Datum und Uhrzeit drehte sich um den angekündigten Abzug von US-Truppen aus Deutschland.”] The genuine post, from the afternoon of 29 July 2020 in local time, discussed Germany’s energy payments to Russia, NATO contributions, and a planned withdrawal of some US troops from Germany—not support for the Berlin demonstrators. The review notes that the screenshot used a German timestamp corresponding to 30 July, because of the time difference. [S1: “Der Tweet stammt vom Nachmittag des 29. Juli 2020 (Ortszeit). In dem auf Facebook kursierenden Screenshot wird der deutsche Zeitstempel wiedergegeben, der wegen der Zeitverschiebung auf den 30. Juli 2020 datiert.”] The review also checked an archive that, according to the article, includes Trump tweets that were later deleted. It found no entry matching the purported date or subject, so the archive provided no indication that a matching post had been deleted. Together, the account check, the different content of the genuine post at the indicated time, and the archive search contradict the screenshot’s attribution to Trump. [S1: “In der entsprechenden Liste findet sich aber kein Eintrag mit dem angegebenen Datum oder zum Thema. Es gibt also keinen Hinweis darauf, dass ein entsprechender Tweet von derselben Uhrzeit gelöscht sein könnte.”]
Kamala Harris is listed as 'Caucasian' on her birth certificate.
Publisher’s rating: False