While it’s easy to consider President George Washington as a Founding Father from long ago, his political milieu of the 1700s had at least one thing in common with today: People used misinformation to try to gain political advantage. And, yes, even George Washington was a target. Forged letters from before his presidency claimed to […]
Many Democrats in Congress were disappointed that they couldn’t muster enough support to pass sweeping voting rights legislation this year. They had hoped for a new law that would protect in-person voting and voting by mail in all 50 states. But that doesn’t mean the federal government will have to sit on the sidelines when […]
This year’s Super Bowl brought a capacity crowd of more than 70,000 to SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The decision not to limit the number of fans in attendance was a contrast with last year, when the Super Bowl was played in front of a crowd of just 25,000 fans (and 30,000 cardboard cutouts). Some […]
After he finished “Lose Yourself” on the Super Bowl halftime show stage, rapper Eminem bowed his head and dropped to his knee as Dr. Dre seated himself at a piano and performed some of Tupac’s “I Ain’t Mad at Cha.” It was one of several moves that had people talking about the hip-hop show well […]
Days after members of the “Freedom Convoy” in Canada staged a large protest in Ottawa, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called their behavior “an insult to memory and truth.” Protesters were caught on camera standing and dancing on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and other war memorials, and one demonstrator was recorded with an upside-down […]
In an October 2020 campaign speech in Georgia, just days before the election that sent him to the White House, candidate Joe Biden used a quote from Pope Francis. The quote came from a letter the pope had sent to Roman Catholic bishops, in which he urged world leaders to “ask ourselves, ‘Why I am […]
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said the FDA was blocking the use of “lifesaving” monoclonal antibody drugs “without a shred of clinical data.” That wording obscures the full story: There were several scientific studies — including ones from the drugmakers themselves — that found that the drugs from Regeneron and Eli Lilly are ineffective against […]
At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. government rolled out a loan relief program to help small businesses impacted by the crisis. Businesses have been able to use these Paycheck Protection Program loans to maintain payroll, hire back employees who may have been laid off, and cover applicable overhead expenses. More than 11.4 […]
Citing newly acquired intelligence, the U.S. in early February accused Russia of plotting a fake attack by Ukrainian forces as a pretext for invading the neighboring country. U.S. officials provided few details about the alleged “false flag” attack, saying it could jeopardize sources and methods used to obtain the intelligence. But they said the disinformation […]
Perhaps due to its global renown, Kilimanjaro has long been at the center of climate research — and disagreements about the impact of climate change. In the 2006 documentary “An Inconvenient Truth,” former Vice President Al Gore used Kilimanjaro, Africa’s tallest mountain, to demonstrate the effects of climate change on its glaciers, showing a series […]
Fox News and other outlets are touting a new study that looked at how early COVID-19 lockdowns impacted mortality of the disease. The stories come with bombshell headlines that say research conducted by Johns Hopkins University found that lockdowns barely reduced deaths. “Johns Hopkins Study: Lockdowns Had ‘Little To No Effect On COVID-19 Mortality’ But […]
An obscure portion of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution says that public officials cannot serve in any future federal, state, or military office if they engaged in “insurrection or rebellion.” Would that apply to people who participated in the Jan. 6 attack on Congress? Some legal experts say the clause could be used […]