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PeakMetrics / Fact Checks

Politics & government fact checks

Explore claims publishers have checked about politics & government. Read their original ratings and follow the evidence.

12,754 published reviews in this topic

FACTLYPolitics & government

Amit Shah had said to the VHP cadre that they would change the demography of Kashmir in just four years

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

The claim concerned a newspaper clip presented as a Hindustan Times report, which purported to quote Amit Shah telling VHP cadre that the government would change Kashmir’s demography in four years. FACTLY says the clip was edited, rather than an authentic report of those remarks. To check the clip, the review reports searching Google for wording from it, which found no such article. It then describes cropping the image and using reverse-image search; that led to a Hindustan Times article with the same image, author and date as the clip. But the genuine article covered a different subject: changes to Kashmir’s domicile rules, including eligibility for junior government posts and people who had resided in the state for 15 years. It also reported that Amit Shah had told Kashmiri leaders their concerns about demographic change were baseless. The review adds that the article’s writer, identified in its account as Neeraj Chauhan and an associate editor at Hindustan Times, publicly said the information in the circulated clip was fake and the clip had been edited. Taken together, the mismatch between the authentic article’s subject and the claims inserted into the clip, along with the writer’s clarification, supports the conclusion that the clip does not substantiate the alleged statement.

Boatos.orgPolitics & government

Marco Aurélio, ministro do STF, pede afastamento de Bolsonaro. Você é a favor?”

Publisher’s rating: Falso

The claim was that STF Justice Marco Aurélio Mello had asked for President Jair Bolsonaro’s removal, including the version phrased as “Marco Aurélio, ministro do STF, pede afastamento de Bolsonaro.” The review distinguishes that allegation from the actual filing and procedural steps. It says the request for action existed, but Marco Aurélio did not initiate it: the complaint was submitted by federal deputy Reginaldo Lopes and five lawyers, and the justice was selected by lottery to handle it. The review describes the filing as a “notícia-crime,” or notice to authorities alleging a crime. It says Lopes submitted it on March 25, 2020, alleging that Bolsonaro had violated Penal Code article 268. The petition went to the Supreme Federal Court, where Marco Aurélio chose to proceed by sending it to the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGR) for consideration. The review says the PGR, then headed by Augusto Aras, was responsible for deciding whether to pursue a criminal accusation. The distinction matters because the review describes removal as a possible later consequence, not an action Marco Aurélio had requested or ordered. According to its account, only if the PGR brought a case, the Chamber of Deputies authorized an investigation by a two-thirds vote, and the Supreme Court then decided Bolsonaro should become a defendant would he be removed for 180 days. Thus, the post conflated the justice’s handling of a complaint filed by others with a request by the justice himself to remove Bolsonaro.

ComprovaPolitics & government

Vaza aúdio do assessor da Casa Civil do governo do Ceára, Ricardo Certi, que indica que decisão de fechar o comércio é para ter uma revolta contra Bolsonaro

Publisher’s rating: FALSO: Os envolvidos negam o conteúdo do áudio e o nome Ricardo Certi não consta na lista de servidores estaduais do Ceará nem foi encontrado em outros sistemas de busca. O único nome semelhante encontrado pelo Comprova é Riccardo Certi, um barítono italiano de Bréscia

Aiswarya SriramPolitics & government

Russian president Putin attend a meeting in Hazmat suit

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

The claim concerned a viral image said to show Russian President Vladimir Putin attending a meeting in a hazmat suit. The review says the image circulated with the caption “Have Trust issues but Putin is on Another Level..!!” and reports that it checked whether Putin really attended such a meeting. [S1]

NewtralPolitics & government

Una concejala de Podemos en Canarias ha publicado un tuit sobre “ancianos inútiles muertos” que “sobran por la calle”

Publisher’s rating: Falso

The investigation examined a viral attribution linking a Twitter account named Clara Giner (@ClaraGiner) to Podemos Canarias. The account had posted a question contrasting the deaths of “media docena de ancianos inútiles” with the destruction of a country’s economy. The article reports that the tweet was later deleted, and that the party publicly denied the author was either a member or a public official. It also says the claim that the author was a Podemos supporter arose from a separate user’s post describing her as such. The article checked the party’s public statements and its online list of municipal councillors. It reports that the party said the account’s author did not belong to the party or hold public office, and that she did not appear on the councillor listings. Those checks address the central allegation that the tweet came from a Podemos Canarias councilwoman. A further complication was mistaken identity: journalist Clara Giner, who shares a name with the account holder, denied writing the tweet and said they were two different people. The article also reports that searches for the alleged author’s social-media accounts found them deleted. Taken together, the reported checks do not support identifying the tweet’s author as a Podemos Canarias councilwoman.

台灣事實查核中心Politics & government

【錯誤】網傳影片宣稱「法國巴黎 爆發抗議示威，反對封城」？

Publisher’s rating: 錯誤

The claim attached to the video was that a protest had broken out in Paris in opposition to lockdown. The investigation examined the video’s provenance and the date and purpose of the demonstration it showed. It reports that the footage came from a post by French media outlet actu Paris, describing a Yellow Vest demonstration in Paris on March 14—not a protest against lockdown. The review says the post identified it as the movement’s 70th demonstration and reported about 2,000 people at the scene. To trace the footage, the fact-checkers used reverse image search and found a Straits Times article republishing a Reuters report with a matching screenshot. They also sought verification from French fact-checking organization CheckNews and F24 Observers. An F24 Observers journalist supplied the video’s original link; a CheckNews journalist identified the event and explained the public-health restrictions then in force. The review also reports searching Twitter for Yellow Vest hashtags and finding posts describing the same demonstration as opposition to President Emmanuel Macron’s policies. The key chronological distinction is that France had not yet announced nationwide lockdown measures when the demonstration took place on March 14. According to the review, the government announced those measures on March 16, with the first day of lockdown on March 17. The footage therefore documents a real demonstration in Paris, but the date and identified purpose of that demonstration do not support the claim that it was held against lockdown.