Category Russian propaganda

FACT CHECK: Did Vladimir Putin Blame Americans For Interfering With Their Own Democracy? | Check Your Fact

Verdict: False The video was created by the non-partisan anti-corruption organization, RepresentUs. A spokesperson for the organization confirmed the footage of Putin included in the video was not real.
Read MoreFACT CHECK: Did Vladimir Putin Blame Americans For Interfering With Their Own Democracy? | Check Your Fact

No, this video doesn’t show Ukrainians setting fire to an Orthodox church

Did Ukrainians really set a Russian Orthodox church on fire? A video purporting to show just that has been circulating online since April 5, 2023. However, it turns out that this video was filmed in Russia more than ten years ago and shows an accidental fire.
Read MoreNo, this video doesn’t show Ukrainians setting fire to an Orthodox church

Russian embassy shares AI-generated image of Julian Assange in prison

The Russian Embassy in Kenya shared an image on Twitter on April 6 showing an exhausted-looking Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, who has been incarcerated in the United Kingdom since 2019. However, it turns out that one of his supporters generated the image using artificial intelligence.
Read MoreRussian embassy shares AI-generated image of Julian Assange in prison

Is This Real Footage of Ukrainians Burning Russian-Affiliated Orthodox Church?

Miscaptioned. Context: The video being shared was posted on YouTube around 10 years ago and is reportedly of a church being burned in Russia.
Read MoreIs This Real Footage of Ukrainians Burning Russian-Affiliated Orthodox Church?
Does Video Show U.S. Senator's 'Confessions' to Ukraine Coup?

Does Video Show U.S. Senator’s ‘Confessions’ to Ukraine Coup?

There are a number of misleading elements to this tweet. Firstly, the video is not a "confession" at all. It is footage from an interview with Russian state-funded broadcaster RT. [...] The tweet did not provide the necessary context for readers to be able to judge the significance of the footage, which only contained the opinions of a retired state senator.
Read MoreDoes Video Show U.S. Senator’s ‘Confessions’ to Ukraine Coup?

Claims that Vladimir Putin destroyed an ‘adrenochrome warehouse in Ukraine’ lack evidence

A recent blog post builds on a fictitious narrative that Russian President Vladimir Putin is stymieing the production of adrenochrome in Ukraine.......We found no credible news reports or sources to corroborate the unfounded allegations, which were published on Real Raw News, a site that regularly posts fake news. The blog's stories are written by someone using a pseudonym and the site has a disclaimer saying it contains "humor, parody and satire," though the author has defended his stories as truth. The same site wrote separately that Putin intercepted a shipment of adrenochrome bound for the United States. We rated that Pants on Fire!......We rate claims that Putin destroyed an adrenochrome warehouse in Ukraine Pants on Fire!
Read MoreClaims that Vladimir Putin destroyed an ‘adrenochrome warehouse in Ukraine’ lack evidence

Vladimir Putin didn’t intercept shipment of chemical compound adrenochrome

Adrenochrome features heavily in QAnon conspiracy theories, which purport the baseless idea that a global cabal of pedophiles is harvesting the chemical from the blood of children to stay young and healthy. That's false, and so is the claim that Putin foiled a shipment of it. We found no credible news reports or other sources to corroborate the claims in this post. Real Raw News has a disclaimer saying it contains "humor, parody and satire," though the author has defended his stories as truth. The website also regularly publishes false, fantastical stories authored by someone using a pseudonym. We rate this baseless post Pants on Fire!
Read MoreVladimir Putin didn’t intercept shipment of chemical compound adrenochrome
Have Over 150K Ukraine Troops Been Killed in Russia Conflict?

Have Over 150K Ukraine Troops Been Killed in Russia Conflict?

Unverified. The figures quoted in Twitter come from a Turkish website that does not link to its sources, nor does it provide any other authenticated evidence. The claim that it received its data from Israeli security services is also highly dubious. While we cannot verify the actual number of soldiers killed on either side of the Ukraine-Russia conflict, the estimates quoted in the tweet and the article do not match anywhere near the figures cited by Western intelligence services and senior officials.
Read MoreHave Over 150K Ukraine Troops Been Killed in Russia Conflict?
Has Ukraine Banned 19 Million Russian Books From its Libraries?

Has Ukraine Banned 19 Million Russian Books From its Libraries?

The tweet suggests that all 19 million books have been banned, which the details of this story do not clarify. It may also imply incorrectly that only books by Russian authors or about Russia are being removed. Although books such as these may well be removed, the tweet does not summarize the details of this story, or lack thereof, correctly.
Read MoreHas Ukraine Banned 19 Million Russian Books From its Libraries?