Bill McCarthy
@billmccarthy.bsky.social
Senior digital investigation journalist covering online mis- and disinformation for AFP • Formerly with PolitiFact and the Raleigh News & Observer • Duke alum • “The internet folks” - Stephen Colbert
https://factcheck.afp.com/Bill-MCCARTHY
https://factcheck.afp.com/Bill-MCCARTHY
Pinned
Bill McCarthy
@billmccarthy.bsky.social
· May 21
Trump Displays DRC Visual As Proof Of South African 'Genocide'
US President Donald Trump brandished a stack of printed articles at the White House Wednesday that he claimed documented a genocide taking place against white people in South Africa.
www.barrons.com
“Look, here's burial sites all over the place. These are all white farmers that are being buried,” Donald Trump said during today’s White House meeting with South Africa’s president.
The image he was holding up, however, is of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
www.barrons.com/news/trump-d...
The image he was holding up, however, is of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
www.barrons.com/news/trump-d...
Walmart has rejected claims that it is shutting down locations in California after US President Donald Trump twice shared an AI-generated video that falsely claimed the US retail giant was closing more than 250 stores over Gavin Newsom's policies. factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
February 4, 2026 at 10:01 PM
Walmart has rejected claims that it is shutting down locations in California after US President Donald Trump twice shared an AI-generated video that falsely claimed the US retail giant was closing more than 250 stores over Gavin Newsom's policies. factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
This video claimed to show ICE agents beating an unarmed migrant teenager actually captures the moment Anaheim police arrested a juvenile they said was on the run and attempting a carjacking days after having participated in a massive jewelry store heist.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
February 4, 2026 at 8:51 PM
This video claimed to show ICE agents beating an unarmed migrant teenager actually captures the moment Anaheim police arrested a juvenile they said was on the run and attempting a carjacking days after having participated in a massive jewelry store heist.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
'They Couldn’t Break Me': A Protester, the White House and a Doctored Photo www.nytimes.com/2026/02/03/u...
‘They Couldn’t Break Me’: A Protester, the White House and a Doctored Photo
www.nytimes.com
February 3, 2026 at 3:55 PM
'They Couldn’t Break Me': A Protester, the White House and a Doctored Photo www.nytimes.com/2026/02/03/u...
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
The Trump administration faced intensifying pressure Sunday over its mass immigration crackdown in Minneapolis, after federal agents shot dead a second US citizen and graphic cell phone footage again contradicted officials' immediate description of the incident. u.afp.com/SBLz
u.afp.com
January 25, 2026 at 9:28 PM
The Trump administration faced intensifying pressure Sunday over its mass immigration crackdown in Minneapolis, after federal agents shot dead a second US citizen and graphic cell phone footage again contradicted officials' immediate description of the incident. u.afp.com/SBLz
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
A review of statements by Greg Bovino and Kristi Noem finds several assertions unverified or contradicted by video and witness accounts.
Fact check: Federal officials’ claims about fatal Minneapolis shooting
A review of statements by Greg Bovino and Kristi Noem finds several assertions unverified or contradicted by video and witness accounts.
bit.ly
January 25, 2026 at 1:32 PM
A review of statements by Greg Bovino and Kristi Noem finds several assertions unverified or contradicted by video and witness accounts.
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
Federal immigration agents shot dead a man in Minneapolis on Saturday, in the second fatal shooting of a civilian during the Trump administration's controversial operation in the city, sparking fresh protests and outrage from state officials.
January 24, 2026 at 8:16 PM
Federal immigration agents shot dead a man in Minneapolis on Saturday, in the second fatal shooting of a civilian during the Trump administration's controversial operation in the city, sparking fresh protests and outrage from state officials.
This image, supposedly showing an anti-ICE statement lit up in the Chicago skyline, is altered.
The original photo shows the skyscraper's windows, in a nod to the Chicago Bears during their recent NFL playoff run, simply saying: "Bear Down."
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The original photo shows the skyscraper's windows, in a nod to the Chicago Bears during their recent NFL playoff run, simply saying: "Bear Down."
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
January 21, 2026 at 9:55 PM
This image, supposedly showing an anti-ICE statement lit up in the Chicago skyline, is altered.
The original photo shows the skyscraper's windows, in a nod to the Chicago Bears during their recent NFL playoff run, simply saying: "Bear Down."
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The original photo shows the skyscraper's windows, in a nod to the Chicago Bears during their recent NFL playoff run, simply saying: "Bear Down."
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
🌬️Reposting our latest piece on Trump's extremely wrong takes on China's wind power sector -- and just wind turbines in general: u.afp.com/Chinawind
January 21, 2026 at 4:37 PM
🌬️Reposting our latest piece on Trump's extremely wrong takes on China's wind power sector -- and just wind turbines in general: u.afp.com/Chinawind
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
An FBI agent conducted an initial review of the Renee Good killing and determined sufficient grounds existed to open a civil rights probe into the actions of the ICE officer who shot her. Justice Department says no inquiry is warranted. @perrystein.bsky.social www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
FBI opened probe on Minneapolis shooting; none exists now, Justice Dept. says
After the death of Renée Good in Minneapolis, FBI agents launched a civil rights probe into the shooting. The Justice Department says no such case now exists.
www.washingtonpost.com
January 19, 2026 at 6:59 PM
An FBI agent conducted an initial review of the Renee Good killing and determined sufficient grounds existed to open a civil rights probe into the actions of the ICE officer who shot her. Justice Department says no inquiry is warranted. @perrystein.bsky.social www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
This is a fake photo, created by combining a photo of Barack Obama letting a young Black boy touch his hair with an unrelated picture of Iran's supreme leader.
The two never met in person.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The two never met in person.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
January 16, 2026 at 6:43 PM
This is a fake photo, created by combining a photo of Barack Obama letting a young Black boy touch his hair with an unrelated picture of Iran's supreme leader.
The two never met in person.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The two never met in person.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
Just hours after Renee Good was shot, one member of Customs and Border Patrol’s elite tactical team on an adjacent street fired a less-lethal weapon five times in less than five minutes, with four shots aimed at the faces of protestors. www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/01...
Analysing One Federal Agent’s Use of Less-Lethal Launcher in Minneapolis
After the fatal shooting of Renee Good, Border Patrol agent "EZ-17" was filmed shooting less-lethal munitions at protesters five times in five minutes.
www.bellingcat.com
January 16, 2026 at 4:52 PM
Just hours after Renee Good was shot, one member of Customs and Border Patrol’s elite tactical team on an adjacent street fired a less-lethal weapon five times in less than five minutes, with four shots aimed at the faces of protestors. www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/01...
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
This image claimed to show Renee Good mocking Charlie Kirk's assassination is spreading online in posts calling it "karma" that an ICE agent fatally shot her.
It is a fake, with her head edited on the body of another woman who made the gesture at an October rally.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
It is a fake, with her head edited on the body of another woman who made the gesture at an October rally.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
January 15, 2026 at 9:45 PM
This image claimed to show Renee Good mocking Charlie Kirk's assassination is spreading online in posts calling it "karma" that an ICE agent fatally shot her.
It is a fake, with her head edited on the body of another woman who made the gesture at an October rally.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
It is a fake, with her head edited on the body of another woman who made the gesture at an October rally.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
A new video analysis from the New York Times examines several camera angles of an ICE agent's fatal shooting of Renee Good.
"The visual evidence shows no indication that the agent who fired the shots, Jonathan Ross, had been run over," the Times reports.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/v...
"The visual evidence shows no indication that the agent who fired the shots, Jonathan Ross, had been run over," the Times reports.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/v...
Video Analysis of ICE Shooting Sheds Light on Contested Moments
www.nytimes.com
January 16, 2026 at 5:58 PM
A new video analysis from the New York Times examines several camera angles of an ICE agent's fatal shooting of Renee Good.
"The visual evidence shows no indication that the agent who fired the shots, Jonathan Ross, had been run over," the Times reports.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/v...
"The visual evidence shows no indication that the agent who fired the shots, Jonathan Ross, had been run over," the Times reports.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/v...
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
Nicolás Maduro’s capture is stirring long-dead conspiracy theories about the 2020 U.S. presidential election, Yvonne Wingett Sanchez reports.
MAGA Thinks Maduro Will Prove Trump Won in 2020
The capture of the Venezuelan leader has revived a debunked conspiracy theory.
bit.ly
January 14, 2026 at 2:09 AM
Nicolás Maduro’s capture is stirring long-dead conspiracy theories about the 2020 U.S. presidential election, Yvonne Wingett Sanchez reports.
This image claimed to show Renee Good mocking Charlie Kirk's assassination is spreading online in posts calling it "karma" that an ICE agent fatally shot her.
It is a fake, with her head edited on the body of another woman who made the gesture at an October rally.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
It is a fake, with her head edited on the body of another woman who made the gesture at an October rally.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
January 15, 2026 at 9:45 PM
This image claimed to show Renee Good mocking Charlie Kirk's assassination is spreading online in posts calling it "karma" that an ICE agent fatally shot her.
It is a fake, with her head edited on the body of another woman who made the gesture at an October rally.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
It is a fake, with her head edited on the body of another woman who made the gesture at an October rally.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
Some of the extremist discourse on the far-right message board 4chan regarding ICE's operations in Minneapolis. Warning: violent and explicit language.
January 15, 2026 at 9:24 PM
Some of the extremist discourse on the far-right message board 4chan regarding ICE's operations in Minneapolis. Warning: violent and explicit language.
"Anti-regime X and TikTok users in the United States also posted AI videos depicting Iranian protesters symbolically renaming local streets after President Donald Trump." www.france24.com/en/live-news...
AI-created Iran protest videos gain traction
AI-generated videos purportedly depicting protests in Iran have flooded the web, researchers said Wednesday, as social media users push hyper-realistic deepfakes to fill an information void amid the…
www.france24.com
January 15, 2026 at 3:10 PM
"Anti-regime X and TikTok users in the United States also posted AI videos depicting Iranian protesters symbolically renaming local streets after President Donald Trump." www.france24.com/en/live-news...
For years, Nikolay Gentchev has been asked: “You’re not dead, are you?”
Meet the Bulgarian mechanic who keeps getting "killed off" by pro-Russian propaganda sites, his photo shared alongside claims he was burned alive by a Ukrainian mob in Odesa in 2014.
www.digitaljournal.com/tech-science...
Meet the Bulgarian mechanic who keeps getting "killed off" by pro-Russian propaganda sites, his photo shared alongside claims he was burned alive by a Ukrainian mob in Odesa in 2014.
www.digitaljournal.com/tech-science...
January 15, 2026 at 2:56 PM
For years, Nikolay Gentchev has been asked: “You’re not dead, are you?”
Meet the Bulgarian mechanic who keeps getting "killed off" by pro-Russian propaganda sites, his photo shared alongside claims he was burned alive by a Ukrainian mob in Odesa in 2014.
www.digitaljournal.com/tech-science...
Meet the Bulgarian mechanic who keeps getting "killed off" by pro-Russian propaganda sites, his photo shared alongside claims he was burned alive by a Ukrainian mob in Odesa in 2014.
www.digitaljournal.com/tech-science...
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
This anonymous X account has repeatedly spread misinformation about US protests over the shooting by an ICE agent of a Minnesota woman.
These three videos, all falsely claimed to show recent US demonstrations, were in fact taken in Minneapolis in 2020, Los Angeles in June and Greece in November.
These three videos, all falsely claimed to show recent US demonstrations, were in fact taken in Minneapolis in 2020, Los Angeles in June and Greece in November.
January 14, 2026 at 10:02 PM
This anonymous X account has repeatedly spread misinformation about US protests over the shooting by an ICE agent of a Minnesota woman.
These three videos, all falsely claimed to show recent US demonstrations, were in fact taken in Minneapolis in 2020, Los Angeles in June and Greece in November.
These three videos, all falsely claimed to show recent US demonstrations, were in fact taken in Minneapolis in 2020, Los Angeles in June and Greece in November.
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
This video is spreading in posts falsely claiming it shows protests against Donald Trump's policies after the fatal shooting by an ICE agent of a Minnesota woman.
The clip actually shows Waymo taxis torched during demonstrations in Los Angeles in June.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The clip actually shows Waymo taxis torched during demonstrations in Los Angeles in June.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
January 14, 2026 at 9:55 PM
This video is spreading in posts falsely claiming it shows protests against Donald Trump's policies after the fatal shooting by an ICE agent of a Minnesota woman.
The clip actually shows Waymo taxis torched during demonstrations in Los Angeles in June.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The clip actually shows Waymo taxis torched during demonstrations in Los Angeles in June.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
This video of Molotov cocktails is spreading widely online as some posts claim it shows the United States and others say it was filmed in Iran.
The truth: it is neither. The clip is from November and captures violent clashes after a concert in Greece.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The truth: it is neither. The clip is from November and captures violent clashes after a concert in Greece.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
January 14, 2026 at 9:21 PM
This video of Molotov cocktails is spreading widely online as some posts claim it shows the United States and others say it was filmed in Iran.
The truth: it is neither. The clip is from November and captures violent clashes after a concert in Greece.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The truth: it is neither. The clip is from November and captures violent clashes after a concert in Greece.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
This video, depicting a man saying he is receiving an hourly wage to protest against ICE after an agent fatally shot a woman in Minneapolis, is AI-generated.
The fake has spread despite its Sora watermark.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The fake has spread despite its Sora watermark.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
January 13, 2026 at 8:32 PM
This video, depicting a man saying he is receiving an hourly wage to protest against ICE after an agent fatally shot a woman in Minneapolis, is AI-generated.
The fake has spread despite its Sora watermark.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The fake has spread despite its Sora watermark.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
Our video on how an X account with fewer than 100 followers created an AI-generated image of Nicolas Maduro that went so viral the White House shared it.
www.youtube.com/shorts/JP4VB...
www.youtube.com/shorts/JP4VB...
Looking at AI: Viral AI Maduro image creator "never expected" millions of views
YouTube video by AFP News Agency
www.youtube.com
January 14, 2026 at 2:32 PM
Our video on how an X account with fewer than 100 followers created an AI-generated image of Nicolas Maduro that went so viral the White House shared it.
www.youtube.com/shorts/JP4VB...
www.youtube.com/shorts/JP4VB...
This anonymous X account has repeatedly spread misinformation about US protests over the shooting by an ICE agent of a Minnesota woman.
These three videos, all falsely claimed to show recent US demonstrations, were in fact taken in Minneapolis in 2020, Los Angeles in June and Greece in November.
These three videos, all falsely claimed to show recent US demonstrations, were in fact taken in Minneapolis in 2020, Los Angeles in June and Greece in November.
January 14, 2026 at 10:02 PM
This anonymous X account has repeatedly spread misinformation about US protests over the shooting by an ICE agent of a Minnesota woman.
These three videos, all falsely claimed to show recent US demonstrations, were in fact taken in Minneapolis in 2020, Los Angeles in June and Greece in November.
These three videos, all falsely claimed to show recent US demonstrations, were in fact taken in Minneapolis in 2020, Los Angeles in June and Greece in November.
This video is spreading in posts falsely claiming it shows protests against Donald Trump's policies after the fatal shooting by an ICE agent of a Minnesota woman.
The clip actually shows Waymo taxis torched during demonstrations in Los Angeles in June.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The clip actually shows Waymo taxis torched during demonstrations in Los Angeles in June.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
January 14, 2026 at 9:55 PM
This video is spreading in posts falsely claiming it shows protests against Donald Trump's policies after the fatal shooting by an ICE agent of a Minnesota woman.
The clip actually shows Waymo taxis torched during demonstrations in Los Angeles in June.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The clip actually shows Waymo taxis torched during demonstrations in Los Angeles in June.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....