We all hoped that 2021 would be an improvement from the year before. But in terms of disinformation, the news cycle never sloowed down, In many ways it was a repeat of 2020—lots of disinformation related to the pandemic and election conspiracies. So, in 2021, The Dispatch Fact Check continued to work tirelessly on familiar forms of ddisinformation. Coronavirus and vaccine misinformation continued apace, and new conspiracies popped up in other areas like the events of January 6. We’ve assembled a list of some of the most significant (and strangest) pieces of disinformation of the year, and enter into the new year hoping to leave them all behind. 

Election Disinformation

The Dispatch Fact Check

Assessing the Various Claims in Mike Lindell’s ‘Absolute Proof’

Close to a month into Joe Biden’s presidency, Mike Lindell, CEO of MyPillow and a Donald Trump supporter, has released a two-hour documentary called Absolute Proof purporting to show that Trump won the 2020 election. The film premiered on February 5 and aired several times on One America News, w…

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a year ago · 54 likes · 19 comments · Khaya Himmelman

The Dispatch Fact Check

Fact Checking Trump’s Claims From His Call With Brad Raffensperger

In a phone call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Saturday, President Trump pleaded with Raffensperger to “find” enough votes to overturn the results of the election in Georgia, which Joe Biden won by 11,779 votes. The Washington Post…

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a year ago · 52 likes · 85 comments · Khaya Himmelman

The Dispatch Fact Check

Fact Checking Donald Trump’s WSJ Letter to the Editor

On October 27, the Wall Street Journal published a letter to the editor from Donald Trump, responding to “Pennsylvania’s 2020 Election.” In it, Trump maintains that the 2020 election was “rigged.” The former president recycled familiar—and previously debunked—voter fraud claims to make his case…

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2 months ago · 54 likes · 60 comments · Khaya Himmelman

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Fact Checking Donald Trump’s Speech From the ‘Save America March’

Shortly before a violent mob stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6, President Trump gave a speech in front of a “Save America March” during which he went through a litany of familiar conspiracy theories and false voter-fraud allegations about…

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a year ago · 35 likes · 5 comments · Khaya Himmelman

January 6 Disinformation

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Were Antifa Supporters Among Those Who Overtook the Capitol Building?

Viral social media posts claimed that two prominent participants in the riot that overtook Capitol Hill Wednesday were actually leftists or Antifa members…

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a year ago · 92 likes · 78 comments · Alec Dent

The Dispatch Fact Check

Debunking the Conspiracy Theories Claiming That Antifa Led the Attack on the Capitol

Following the storming of Capitol Hill by Trump supporters on Wednesday, many on the pro-Trump right attempted to shift blame for the attack to Antifa instead. Two connected conspiracy theories started to spread: one claiming that two men at the riot had been identified as leftists and Antifa members, the other…

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a year ago · 156 likes · 123 comments · Alec Dent

The Dispatch Fact Check

Fact Checking Joe Biden’s Comment on the Death of Brian Sicknick

During a press conference after his meeting with Vladmir Putin on Wednesday, President Joe Biden was asked about Putin justifying crackdowns on political opposition by saying he didn’t want something like the January 6 attack on the Capitol to happen in Russia. Biden…

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7 months ago · 17 likes · 20 comments · Alec Dent

The Dispatch Fact Check

Do Reports That Militia Members Planned to Storm the Capitol ‘Undermine’ the Case for Impeachment?

An article from PJ Media claims that “the Washington Post Admits Trump Did Not Incite the Capitol Riot” and that reports that some rioters planned their attack in advance “completely undermine[s] the entire case Democrats made for impeaching Trump.” As evidence, the article links to a recent…

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a year ago · 28 likes · 15 comments · Alec Dent

COVID-19 Disinformation 

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Could the mRNA Vaccines Permanently Alter DNA?

An article from The Defender, a news website that describes itself as “an online news site to evade official censorship, to report fact-based news and sponsor the kind of honest debate that terrifies the new generation of corporate and government commissars,” claims that scientific research suggests that coron…

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8 months ago · 24 likes · 2 comments · Khaya Himmelman

The Dispatch Fact Check

Could the mRNA Vaccines Lead to an Increase in Neurodegenerative Disorders?

A viral Facebook post suggests that the messenger RNA vaccines produced by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna could lead to an increase in prion disease years from now. The post relies on a screenshot of a purported research article from J. Bart Classen, who writes that “we will see a rise in prion disease in …

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9 months ago · 92 likes · 66 comments · Khaya Himmelman

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Did the NIAID Fund Research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology?

During a Senate hearing on May 11, Sen. Rand Paul questioned Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, about whether the United States had provided funds to the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Fauci responded that “We do not send money now to the Wuhan Virol…

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8 months ago · 94 likes · 80 comments · Alec Dent

The Dispatch Fact Check

Does the Pfizer/BioNTech Vaccine Contained Aborted Fetal Cells?

Following the release of a Project Veritas video interview with a Pfizer “whistleblower,” social media posts suggested that it revealed the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine contained aborted fetal cells…

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3 months ago · 26 likes · 2 comments · Alec Dent

Weirdest Claims 

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Is Donald Trump’s Christmas Card, Um, NSFW?

A viral image of what is purportedly former President Donald Trump’s Christmas card has been making the rounds on social media, as it shows Trump as … errrrr, well if real it would feature a major design flaw. (We normally embed tweets when relevant but these are what you call NSFW…

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a month ago · 24 likes · 11 comments · Alec Dent

The Dispatch Fact Check

Did Nancy Pelosi Buy a $25 Million Mansion in Florida?

A viral social media post claims that Nancy Pelosi “bought a 25,000,000 mansion in Florida. The Instagram post shows a screenshot of a tweet, which has been shared more than 8,000 times, that claims: “Nancy Pelosi just bought a $25,000,000 mansion in Florida. Remember this the next time she criticizes…

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a month ago · 20 likes · 7 comments · Khaya Himmelman

The Dispatch Fact Check

Has an International Court Issued a Warrant for Pope Francis’ Arrest?

A viral video claiming an international court had issued a warrant for Pope Francis’ arrest began spreading on Facebook over the weekend, with further videos, websites, and social media posts repeating that the International Common Law Court of Justice—based in Brussels, New York, and Vancouver—issued a w…

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2 months ago · 27 likes · 32 comments · Alec Dent

The Dispatch Fact Check

Does Ivermectin Cause Sterility in 85 Percent of Men Who Use It?

Widely shared social media posts claim that ivermectin, an anti-parasitic medication that some are using to treat COVID-19 despite little evidence of efficacy, sterilizes 85 percent of men who use the drug. For context, the FDA has warned against using ivermectin to treat COVID-19…

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3 months ago · 11 likes · 13 comments · Khaya Himmelman

Most Repeated Claims 

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Did Maricopa County ‘Delete All Records Used for Election Results’?

In response to the recent release of the results of the Republican-led Maricopa County “audit,” a widely shared tweet claims that “Someone from @maricopacounty intentionally went into the system and chose to delete all records used for election results…

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3 months ago · 21 likes · 5 comments · Khaya Himmelman

The Dispatch Fact Check

Did the Maricopa County Audit Find 17,322 Duplicate Ballots?

After the results of Maricopa County’s unofficial election review were released last week, baseless rumors about alleged election fraud have been circulating on social media. A popular Instagram post, for example, claims that “over 17,000 duplicate ballots were found JUST in Maricopa count…

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3 months ago · 25 likes · 24 comments · Khaya Himmelman

The Dispatch Fact Check

Did Pennsylvania Receive More Mail-In Ballots Than Were Sent Out?

Widely shared social media posts are once again spreading a recycled voter fraud claim about Pennsylvania mail-in votes. The posts claim that Pennsylvania sent out 1,823,143 mail-votes, but got back 2,589,242 votes…

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5 months ago · 25 likes · 6 comments · Khaya Himmelman

The Dispatch Fact Check

Has Michigan Authorized a Forensic Audit of the 2020 Election?

Widely shared social media posts claim that Michigan has authorized “a forensic audit” of the 2020 presidential election. One Facebook post reads: “After a preliminary audit of Dominion machines in Antrim County turned up MAJOR fraud Michigan now wants a full forensic audit…

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8 months ago · 18 likes · 2 comments · Khaya Himmelman

Biggest Whoppers 

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Fact-Checking Biden’s Latest Statements on the Afghanistan Withdrawal

On Friday, President Joe Biden delivered a speech on the effort to evacuate Americans and our Afghan allies from Afghanistan. During his speech, Biden made false claims about the presence of al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and the safety of Americans attempting to evacuate the country through its capital city of Kabu…

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5 months ago · 103 likes · 147 comments · Alec Dent and Khaya Himmelman

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Did All Americans Who Wanted to Evacuate Afghanistan Get Out?

During an interview with News Channel 9 on September 3, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer claimed “the Americans, all of whom wanted to come out [of Afghanistan], have come out.” Schumer’s comments came just a few days after President Joe Biden said…

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4 months ago · 17 likes · 14 comments · Alec Dent

The Dispatch Fact Check

Fact Checking Xavier Becerra’s Claim That He ‘Never Sued Any Nuns’

During his Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday, President Joe Biden’s nominee for health and human services secretary, Xavier Becerra—the attorney general of California since 2017—claimed that he “never sued any nuns” in response to a question about litigation against the Little Sisters of the Poor. Becerra f…

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10 months ago · 73 likes · 110 comments · Alec Dent

The Dispatch Fact Check

Fact Checking Joe Biden’s Address to Congress

President Joe Biden addressed a joint session of Congress last Wednesday. During his speech, the president made a number of misleading and inaccurate statements. Here’s a breakdown of Biden’s falsehoods: While discussing the state of the economy, Biden took a moment to criticize the tax cuts passed by his predecess…

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8 months ago · 16 likes · 7 comments · Alec Dent and Khaya Himmelman

The Dispatch Fact Check

Are the Taliban and the Haqqani Network ‘Separate Entities’?

On August 27, during a State Department briefing on Afghanistan, State Department spokesman Ned Price was asked if the State Department’s security “coordination” on security with the Taliban “extends to members of the Haqqani Network.” In …

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4 months ago · 26 likes · 4 comments · Khaya Himmelman

Non-Sequiturs 

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Does a Pfizer Ad Tell Kids the Vaccine Will Give Them Superpowers?

“PURE EVIL: Disturbing Pfizer Ad Tells Kids They’ll Get Superpowers from COVID Jab (VIDEO).” Or so claims the headline of this story from misinformation peddler the Gateway Pundit. The article focuses on a video recently released by Pfizer, in which children talk about “getting ready to fight COVID” by getting their coronavirus vaccines. “All of us want…

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2 months ago · 25 likes · 21 comments · Alec Dent

The Dispatch Fact Check

Did Legislation Passed in 1871 Make Washington, D.C., a Foreign Entity?

Joe Biden’s inauguration has not stopped people from falsely claiming that Donald Trump is actually still in power. One theory spreading on social media suggests that in 1871, Congress passed legislation that formed the “Corporation of the United States of America” and made Washington, D.C., a foreign entity under…

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a year ago · 24 likes · 24 comments · Khaya Himmelman

The Dispatch Fact Check

Did President Biden Joke About Running Over a Reporter in a Car?

A number of viral social media posts claim that President Joe Biden said he would answer a question about Israel from a reporter only if she got “in front of the car” as he stepped on the gas. Some posts more generally referenced Biden saying he would run over a journalist…

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8 months ago · 22 likes · 6 comments · Alec Dent

The Dispatch Fact Check

Has an International Court Issued a Warrant for Pope Francis’ Arrest?

A viral video claiming an international court had issued a warrant for Pope Francis’ arrest began spreading on Facebook over the weekend, with further videos, websites, and social media posts repeating that the International Common Law Court of Justice—based in Brussels, New York, and Vancouver—issued a w…

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2 months ago · 27 likes · 32 comments · Alec Dent

The Dispatch Fact Check

Was President Macron Covered in Garlands in French Polynesia?

A viral tweet claims to show French President Emmanuel Macron covered in floral garlands that he received upon his arrival in French Polynesia…

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5 months ago · 36 likes · 15 comments · Alec Dent