MEBRO · DISINFO DESK
Investigations
Long-form dossiers on the hoaxes, deepfakes, and death rumors that go viral — each one stamped with a verdict and printed with every source on the record.
Viral Misinformation
Krakatau Really Erupted. The Viral 'Footage' Was AI, Recycled From Ten Months Earlier.
As Indonesia's Anak Krakatau volcano stranded 270,000 travelers and grounded eight airports, a synthetic video with no connection to the real eruption raced across TikTok as if it were live coverage of the disaster.
FILED SEP 11, 2026 · 3 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
LA Wildfires Misinformation January 2025: Complete Fact-Check
Comprehensive debunking of January 2025 LA wildfire misinformation including AI fake images, DEI conspiracy theories, geo-engineered fire claims, and Chinese-language disinformation.
FILED SEP 10, 2026 · UPDATED SEP 10, 2026 · 13 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
No, Trump Didn't Die on September 3. A Fake Pop Base Screenshot Did the Rounds Instead.
A single X post with a fabricated screenshot claimed Pop Base had announced Trump's death at 80. It hadn't — and the panic it set off traces back to a cryptic White House scheduling post, not any real news.
FILED SEP 8, 2026 · UPDATED SEP 8, 2026 · 4 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Iran's '11 City Target List': How Recycled Nuclear Maps Became a Viral War Hoax
Viral posts claimed Iran released a target list of 11 US cities. The graphics were recycled nuclear vulnerability maps. Iran's missiles max out at roughly 1,200 miles (2,000 km) — the US mainland is about 10,000 km away. Debunked by PolitiFact and Poynter.
FILED SEP 7, 2026 · UPDATED SEP 7, 2026 · 27 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Trump Didn't Rename New Mexico. He Just Reposted the Hoax That Said He Did.
A parody account's fake executive order claiming Trump renamed New Mexico to "New America" went viral on September 1. Five days later, the president posted the map himself — without ever signing anything.
FILED SEP 7, 2026 · UPDATED SEP 7, 2026 · 4 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
No, Trump Didn't Chop Down Dozens of DC's Historic Cherry Trees
Viral posts say Trump's golf course renovation destroyed dozens of Washington's famous Japanese cherry trees. Of the roughly 60 trees actually removed at East Potomac Park, fact-checkers confirmed exactly one was a cherry tree.
FILED SEP 6, 2026 · UPDATED SEP 6, 2026 · 3 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Hollywood Sign AI Fire Image: Viral Fake During LA Wildfires
During the January 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires, AI-generated images showing the Hollywood sign engulfed in flames went viral before being debunked by fact-checkers and the Hollywood Sign Trust.
FILED SEP 3, 2026 · UPDATED SEP 3, 2026 · 4 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
No, Olivia Rodrigo Didn't Give $20 Million Straight to Abortion Groups
A viral claim says Olivia Rodrigo funneled a $20 million festival haul into "abortion organizations." She did raise the money for charity — but most of the ten groups getting it don't provide abortion care at all.
FILED SEP 3, 2026 · UPDATED SEP 3, 2026 · 3 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Hank Dingle Schrader's February 18 Doomsday: How a Breaking Bad Meme Became Viral Panic
TikTok user 'Hank Dingle Schrader' predicted a February 18, 2026 doomsday in a viral comment. The primary video hit 14.7M views in 6 days, and the claim had zero factual basis. Algorithmic amplification met Gen Z's documented climate and mental-health anxiety to turn an absurdist joke into a genuine source of panic for some viewers.
FILED SEP 2, 2026 · UPDATED SEP 2, 2026 · 14 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
No, Michelle Obama Didn't Say She's 'Glad' Her Kids Are 'Finally Gone'
A right-wing site turned Michelle Obama's real comments on empty-nest life into a headline she never said. She talked about missing the daily grind of parenting less than her husband did — not about being glad her daughters are gone.
FILED SEP 2, 2026 · UPDATED SEP 2, 2026 · 4 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Fake 15-Year Car Loan Announcement
Forensic analysis of the viral fake White House announcement claiming Trump proposed 15-year car loans. How satirical content from @TheRealThelmaJohnson fooled thousands and exposed blue checkmark credibility crisis.
FILED AUG 30, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 30, 2026 · 23 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Epstein Files Disinformation: How Fabricated Celebrity Claims Hijacked the Truth
Investigation into how AI-generated images and fabricated claims hijacked the Epstein files release, with Grok generating fake celebrity images in 87% of requests.
FILED AUG 29, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 29, 2026 · 32 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Epstein Photo Leaks: Which Viral Images Are Real
Real photos from the Epstein estate have been released by Congress and in court filings — but a wave of AI-generated fakes has circulated alongside them, fooling millions of viewers.
FILED AUG 28, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 28, 2026 · 10 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
AI-Generated Image of Jeffrey Epstein Alive in Tel Aviv Goes Viral
An AI-generated image claiming to show Epstein alive in Tel Aviv drew over 10 million views across viral X posts alone. Created on Reddit Feb 1, 2026 with its Gemini watermark later cropped out, the hoax exploited DOJ file-release timing to fuel antisemitic conspiracy theories.
FILED AUG 28, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 28, 2026 · 31 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
The Nepal Flood Video Millions Watched Wasn't Real. AI Made It.
As a glacial flood killed at least 160 people in the Himalayas, AI-generated clips and repurposed disaster footage flooded social media claiming to show the destruction — none of it real.
FILED AUG 28, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 28, 2026 · 5 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Earth Losing Gravity for 7 Seconds: The Viral Hoax Debunked
Debunking the viral claim that Earth will lose gravity for 7 seconds on August 12, 2026. Tracing the hoax origin, spread across 8 platforms, and the real science of gravity.
FILED AUG 26, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 26, 2026 · 30 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Disinformation Roundup: Week Ending January 10, 2026
Six verified viral misinformation campaigns from early January 2026 — AI deepfakes filling an information vacuum after Maduro's capture, a nonconsensual-imagery scandal at xAI's Grok, fabricated images after a fatal Minneapolis ICE shooting, a fake TIME cover, a miscounted vaccine-schedule claim from the White House, and an unverified $100 million daycare-fraud figure.
FILED AUG 25, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 25, 2026 · 11 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Institutionalized Narrative Combat and the Erosion of the Informational Commons
Comprehensive analysis of five disinformation topics circulating in January 2026, investigating their origins within executive communication channels, fake-news ecosystems, and foreign influence networks.
FILED AUG 25, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 25, 2026 · 17 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
No, a 91-Year-Old Wasn't Arrested for Stealing Her Husband's Heart Medicine
The 'Helen and George' story has circulated since November 2025 and resurfaced again this summer — no court record, no news coverage, and a courtroom photo that detection tools flag as overwhelmingly likely AI-generated.
FILED AUG 25, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 25, 2026 · 4 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
No, Sandra Bullock Didn't Announce a Cancer Diagnosis — The Videos Are AI
Viral TikTok and X clips claimed Sandra Bullock revealed her multiple myeloma had returned after '18 years in remission.' She never said any of it — the clips are AI fabrications tied to a wider catfishing scam.
FILED AUG 24, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 24, 2026 · 3 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
The Viral "Karma" Video About a Blind TikToker Splices Three Different Stories Into One Lie
A clip claiming a blind influencer dumped her boyfriend for being "ugly" and was immediately robbed by an immigrant replacement racked up 12 million views. It's a fabricated mashup of unrelated events — and she says she's now getting death threats over it.
FILED AUG 22, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 22, 2026 · 3 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Clickbait Propaganda: 5 Case Studies in December 2025 Disinformation
A forensic re-verification of five viral disinformation campaigns from the December 2025 news cycle — corrected against primary reporting, including one case study our original review had mis-dated by over a year.
FILED AUG 21, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 21, 2026 · 21 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Buc-ee's $1 Million ICE Donation Hoax
Viral hoax claimed Buc-ee's donated $1M to ICE. Posts hit 280K+ likes before the company's denial. The real $1M donation went to Texas flood relief. Two Instagram accounts fabricated the claim during a wave of anti-ICE boycotts.
FILED AUG 19, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 19, 2026 · 23 SOURCES
Viral Misinformation
Dipu Chandra Das Lynching: The Videos That Weren't Him
After a Bangladeshi mob lynched Hindu garment worker Dipu Chandra Das over a false blasphemy accusation, at least two unrelated videos went viral misidentified as showing his final moments or his killer — real footage, but of different people, different places, different dates.
FILED AUG 17, 2026 · UPDATED AUG 17, 2026 · 6 SOURCES
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Investigative reports — not user-submitted fact-checks.