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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

200 సంవత్సరాలలో ఇండియాను పాలించిన బ్రిటీషర్లు దోచుకున్న దాని కన్నా, 20 సంవత్సరాలలో సోనియా దోచుకుంది 3 రేట్లు ఎక్కువ’ అని ‘ది వాషింగ్టన్ పోస్ట్’ వార్తా సంస్థ పేర్కొన్నది.

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

Fact CrescendoPolitics & government

Claim: Modi picture in Arab costume

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

The claim concerns a social-media image that appeared to show Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi walking in Arab clothing, including a head covering. The post’s accompanying text accused him of changing his appearance abroad. The review says the image was shared by Mylai Kamarudeen on August 24, 2019, while Modi was returning from a trip that included Abu Dhabi after a visit to France. The post’s setting and wording therefore matched the review’s investigation of this particular image, rather than a different photograph or event. The reviewers noticed that the head covering looked as though it had been added and searched for the image’s original. They report finding the unaltered photograph in coverage by The Hindu and NDTV, and also on Modi’s own Twitter account. In those versions, Modi was not wearing anything on his head. The review quotes Modi’s post as saying, “Reached Abu Dhabi,” and dating it August 23, 2019; it described the post as a photograph from his arrival there. That comparison addresses the central question: the viral image was not an authentic photograph of Modi wearing the head covering. According to the review, someone took the original Abu Dhabi photograph and added an Arab-style garment through image editing. The review concludes that the circulated Facebook image was fake. Its account supports that conclusion through comparison with the original image and other published versions; it does not describe a separate forensic examination of the edited file.

NewtralPolitics & government

El PSOE ha tenido que hacer gobiernos de coalición en todas las comunidades en las que no tiene mayoría absoluta

Publisher’s rating: Falso

The claim, made by Pablo Iglesias, was that wherever the PSOE lacked an absolute majority in Spain’s autonomous communities, it had to form a coalition government. The review disputes that universal assertion by examining Asturias, where the PSOE won the regional presidency despite having only 20 of the parliament’s 45 seats.

DUBAWAPolitics & government

A Facebook picture alleges the demise of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Publisher’s rating: False

DUBAWA examined a Facebook image claiming that CNN had reported President Muhammadu Buhari’s death. The post’s caption said CNN had “finally” released news of his demise and referred to January 27, 2017; DUBAWA describes the image as a recurring hoax that had circulated since Buhari’s first medical trip in 2016. The review also notes that the image had attracted more than 900 shares when it reappeared on Facebook. To check the image, DUBAWA reports using a Google reverse-image search. It found multiple images featuring the same presenter or newscaster, with the same posture and hand placement but different news elements. The review says this pattern indicated that the image had been altered, and adds that the picture had also appeared in unrelated “local man” memes. The review found no available evidence that CNN had issued the alleged report. Its conclusion is that the picture was doctored and that the CNN attribution was unsupported. The investigation’s described evidence concerns the image’s reuse and alteration, alongside the absence of evidence for the claimed CNN report; it does not identify the Facebook account that first posted the image.

FACTLYPolitics & government

Modi clapping while watching Chidambaram getting arrested.

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

The claim concerns a video circulated as showing Narendra Modi clapping while watching P. Chidambaram’s arrest. FACTLY reports that the video was edited: the arrest footage was inserted into a clip that originally showed Modi watching the Chandrayaan-2 launch. The review states, “The Chandrayaan-2 launch visuals coming on television in the original video have been edited to show the visuals of Chidambaram’s arrest.” To investigate, the review says it ran screenshots from the circulating video through Google Reverse Image Search. It found a similar video tweeted by ANI on July 22, 2019, identifying the footage as Modi watching the Chandrayaan-2 launch. The review quotes ANI’s description as saying Modi “watched the live telecast of #Chandrayaan2 launch by ISRO, at 2:43 pm today.” The original clip therefore gives a different explanation for the clapping than the one implied by the edited version: FACTLY says Modi was clapping after the successful Chandrayaan-2 launch, not in response to Chidambaram’s arrest. The review’s account and the cited ANI post support that distinction; the supplied excerpt does not describe any further video-forensic checks.

Deutsche Presse-AgenturPolitics & government

In einem Facebook-Post werden angebliche Leistungen der kroatischen Präsidentin Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović aufgezählt. Die 51-Jährige soll demnach unter anderem das Präsidentenflugzeug und 35 Dienstwagen der Marke Mercedes Benz verkauft haben. Weiter wird behauptet, Grabar-Kitarović habe die Gehälter von Ministern und Diplomaten gekürzt, Pensionen für Kongressabgeordnete abgeschafft und den Mindestlohn im privaten Sektor erhöht. Außerdem spreche sie sieben Sprachen.

Publisher’s rating: Die Behauptungen sind fast alle falsch. Nur die Aussage über ihre Sprachkenntnisse ist im Kern richtig.

Projeto ComprovaPolitics & government

Lembra da história dos chocolatinhos que depois da Reforma da Previdência seriam devolvidos? Bolsonaro, Weintraub e os deputados comeram eles. Com o dinheiro cortado da educação, Bolsonaro distribuiu R$3bilhões aos parlamentares para aprovar a reforma da Previdência

Publisher’s rating: Evidência comprovada - É verdade que quase um terço do dinheiro que o governo pretende remanejar vem do Ministério da Educação ** Enganoso - Não é possível afirmar com certeza quanto do dinheiro será remanejado devido a acordos com parlamentares. O Comprova identificou que, dos valores remanejados, 58% aumentam as verbas para ações incluídas no Orçamento integralmente por emendas parlamentares

Deutsche Presse-AgenturPolitics & government

Ein Foto zeigt den bayerischen Ministerpräsidenten Markus Söder, der ein Lebkuchenherz mit der Aufschrift «Der Islam ist Bestandteil Bayerns» hält. Das Bild wird in sozialen Medien verbreitet.

Publisher’s rating: Die Aufnahme ist manipuliert.

The claim concerns a photo circulated on social media showing Bavarian Minister-President Markus Söder holding a gingerbread heart bearing the words «Der Islam ist Bestandteil Bayerns». The review traces the image to a photograph by Marco Orlando Pichler, made for Bayerischer Rundfunk. In the original, the heart instead reads «Dahoam is Dahoam»; the picture was connected to the television series of that name, in which Söder appeared as himself. The episode aired on 20 January 2015, and Söder posted a similar photo around its broadcast. S1 states: “Das Original stammt vom Fotografen Marco Orlando Pichler und wurde für den Bayerischen Rundfunk aufgenommen. In dem Original-Foto hält Markus Söder ein Lebkuchenherz mit der Aufschrift «Dahoam is Dahoam». Es entstand im Zusammenhang mit der Fernsehserie «Dahoam is Dahoam», in der Söder sich selbst spielte. Ausgestrahlt wurde die Folge am 20. Januar 2015”. The review describes specific alterations comparing the circulated image with the original: the original photo was cropped and mirrored, the lettering on the heart was obscured with brown areas, and replacement wording was added in the “Shout out” font by Comicraft. It points to visible signs of editing, including differences in color and edges around altered areas, particularly on Söder’s left lapel and the center of the heart. Some of the original lettering remains visible. These described comparisons explain why the circulated wording does not reflect what was on the heart in the source photograph. S1 reports: “Für die Manipulation wurde das Original-Foto beschnitten und gespiegelt. Die Original-Schrift des Lebkuchenherzens ist in der Fälschung mit braunen Flächen überlagert und der neue Text in der Schriftart «Shout out» von Comicraft darüber gelegt. Die Manipulationen lassen sich besonders gut an Farbunterschieden und Rändern an bearbeiteten Stellen erkennen - besonders am linken Revers Söders und in der Mitte des Lebkuchenherzens. Zudem sind noch Teile der Original-Schrift zu erkennen.”

Deutsche Presse-AgenturPolitics & government

Dem US-Politologen Francis Fukuyama wird in sozialen Medien ein Zitat über Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel zugeschrieben. Er soll gesagt haben: «Angela Merkel ist eine größere Bedrohung für Europa als der IS!»

Publisher’s rating: Francis Fukuyama hat die Aussage so nicht getätigt. Es handelt sich um eine überspitzte Überschrift einer britischen Boulevardzeitung, die als Zitat weiterverbreitet wird.

The claim attributes to US political scientist Francis Fukuyama a statement that Angela Merkel was a greater threat to Europe than ISIS. The review traces the wording to a Daily Express headline dated 3 August 2016: it framed the comparison as a “shock claim” attributed to a US professor. The review says that headline was later circulated as though it were Fukuyama’s own quotation. [The review identifies the headline and its date, and describes how it was recirculated.] The Daily Express article referred to an interview with Fukuyama published by Die Welt. According to the review, the alleged Merkel-versus-ISIS sentence does not appear in that interview. Instead, the Express amplified and connected Fukuyama’s remarks in its own headline. The review reports that Fukuyama described jihadist ideology as a serious threat, but said the greater danger to democracy lay in loss of public trust in institutions and the resulting growth of populism. [The review distinguishes the interview’s wording from the Express headline and summarizes Fukuyama’s remarks.] Fukuyama did criticize Merkel in the interview, saying that she was focused on domestic approval rather than leading Europe toward peace and prosperity. But the review presents this as an example within his discussion of European leadership—not as a statement that Merkel herself posed a greater threat than ISIS. The misleading attribution therefore turns a newspaper’s sharpened headline into a quotation Fukuyama did not make. [The review quotes Fukuyama’s Merkel remark and explains its role in the interview.]

FACTLYPolitics & government

Imran Khan’s first interview after the revocation of Article 370 in Kashmir.

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

The post presented footage of Imran Khan losing his temper at a press conference as his first interview after the revocation of Article 370 in Kashmir. FACTLY compared the circulated footage with other online material and traced it to a video uploaded to YouTube on December 19, 2015. The review says the YouTube video’s title identifies a press conference in Islamabad on June 8, 2015, years before the revocation. The investigation describes using the InVid plugin to extract keyframes, then reverse-image-searching those frames to find the same video on YouTube. It also reports that Khan can be heard mentioning Punjab Police. A search for that reference led FACTLY to a Samaa TV newspaper article dated June 8, 2015, about Khan blaming Punjab Police for murders in Rawalpindi. The review explicitly cautions that it could not confirm whether the footage and that article concern the same incident. Its conclusion rests on the footage’s earlier provenance: the video predates the Article 370 revocation and, according to the review, has no connection to it.