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...
This video is -- as the words on the wall make clear -- from a local board of education meeting in California, not British Columbia, Canada
The school district welcomed a high school graduate to perform a traditional dance for Native American Heritage Month.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The school district welcomed a high school graduate to perform a traditional dance for Native American Heritage Month.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
November 25, 2025 at 4:37 PM
This video is -- as the words on the wall make clear -- from a local board of education meeting in California, not British Columbia, Canada
The school district welcomed a high school graduate to perform a traditional dance for Native American Heritage Month.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The school district welcomed a high school graduate to perform a traditional dance for Native American Heritage Month.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
Donald Trump shared several QAnon-themed images last night from the same self-avowed QAnon account.
November 24, 2025 at 9:39 PM
Donald Trump shared several QAnon-themed images last night from the same self-avowed QAnon account.
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
Denton Loudermill Jr. was falsely accused online, including by politicians, of being the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooter and an undocumented immigrant.
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
November 20, 2025 at 3:47 PM
Denton Loudermill Jr. was falsely accused online, including by politicians, of being the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooter and an undocumented immigrant.
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
Denton Loudermill Jr. was falsely accused online, including by politicians, of being the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooter and an undocumented immigrant.
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
Read more: u.afp.com/Shk8
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
Read more: u.afp.com/Shk8
November 23, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Denton Loudermill Jr. was falsely accused online, including by politicians, of being the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooter and an undocumented immigrant.
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
Read more: u.afp.com/Shk8
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
Read more: u.afp.com/Shk8
This image purporting to show Walmart offloading Trump-themed merchandise for 99 cents in a massive clearance sale is AI-generated, as is evidenced by the Google Gemini watermark in the lower-right corner.
It has spread widely across platforms anyway.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
It has spread widely across platforms anyway.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
November 21, 2025 at 10:31 PM
This image purporting to show Walmart offloading Trump-themed merchandise for 99 cents in a massive clearance sale is AI-generated, as is evidenced by the Google Gemini watermark in the lower-right corner.
It has spread widely across platforms anyway.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
It has spread widely across platforms anyway.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
NEW: Elon Musk's Grokipedia cites a neo-Nazi website 42 times, researchers say www.nbcnews.com/tech/elon-mu...
Elon Musk’s Grokipedia cites Stormfront — a neo-Nazi forum — dozens of times, study finds
An analysis by researchers at Cornell University is the first comprehensive look at Grokipedia since Musk launched his project last month.
www.nbcnews.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:22 PM
NEW: Elon Musk's Grokipedia cites a neo-Nazi website 42 times, researchers say www.nbcnews.com/tech/elon-mu...
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
Kansas City Chiefs fan Denton Loudermill Jr. died in April after misinformation falsely accusing him of a shooting at the 2024 Super Bowl champions' parade sent him into a year-long spiral of paranoia.
His family is still trying to pick up the pieces.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
His family is still trying to pick up the pieces.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Grieving Family Blames False US Shooting Accusations For Death Of NFL Fan
Denton Loudermill Jr. watched every Kansas City Chiefs game at his sister's house with his family. The Kansas native and his late father were diehard fans.
www.barrons.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:51 PM
Kansas City Chiefs fan Denton Loudermill Jr. died in April after misinformation falsely accusing him of a shooting at the 2024 Super Bowl champions' parade sent him into a year-long spiral of paranoia.
His family is still trying to pick up the pieces.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
His family is still trying to pick up the pieces.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
I really appreciate @billmccarthy.bsky.social for bringing my attention to this tragic case. As I told him in our interview, "What depresses me about these cases is that even if they're ultimately successful, the damage is really impossible to undo."
Denton Loudermill Jr. was falsely accused online, including by politicians, of being the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooter and an undocumented immigrant.
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
November 20, 2025 at 10:13 PM
I really appreciate @billmccarthy.bsky.social for bringing my attention to this tragic case. As I told him in our interview, "What depresses me about these cases is that even if they're ultimately successful, the damage is really impossible to undo."
Trump floats death penalty for 'seditious' Democrats www.yahoo.com/news/article...
Trump floats death penalty for 'seditious' Democrats
US President Donald Trump on Thursday evoked the death penalty for Democratic lawmakers who urged the military to refuse illegal orders, calling them traitors and accusing them of "seditious behavior....
www.yahoo.com
November 20, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Trump floats death penalty for 'seditious' Democrats www.yahoo.com/news/article...
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
One of the most tragic stories I have ever worked on. www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Grieving Family Blames False US Shooting Accusations For Death Of NFL Fan
Denton Loudermill Jr. watched every Kansas City Chiefs game at his sister's house with his family. The Kansas native and his late father were diehard fans.
www.barrons.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:57 PM
One of the most tragic stories I have ever worked on. www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
Exclusive: The U.S. Coast Guard will no longer classify the swastika, nooses and the Confederate flag as hate symbols.
The military service drafted a new policy that classifies them as “potentially divisive.”
The military service drafted a new policy that classifies them as “potentially divisive.”
U.S. Coast Guard will no longer classify swastikas, nooses as hate symbols
The military service, which falls under the Department of Homeland Security, has drafted a new policy that classifies such items “potentially divisive.”
www.washingtonpost.com
November 20, 2025 at 6:37 PM
Exclusive: The U.S. Coast Guard will no longer classify the swastika, nooses and the Confederate flag as hate symbols.
The military service drafted a new policy that classifies them as “potentially divisive.”
The military service drafted a new policy that classifies them as “potentially divisive.”
Robert F. Kennedy Jr, who has long voiced anti-vaccine rhetoric and inaccurate claims connecting immunizations to autism, has now inserted his own views into official US advice, with the CDC updating its website Wednesday to reflect his vaccine skepticism. www.france24.com/en/live-news...
US health agency edits official website to reflect anti-vax views
The US health agency has updated its official website to reflect the vaccine skepticism of a senior Trump official, backpedaling on its own years of efforts to combat misinformation on the topic.
www.france24.com
November 20, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Robert F. Kennedy Jr, who has long voiced anti-vaccine rhetoric and inaccurate claims connecting immunizations to autism, has now inserted his own views into official US advice, with the CDC updating its website Wednesday to reflect his vaccine skepticism. www.france24.com/en/live-news...
"When outraged Filipinos turned to an AI-powered chatbot to verify a viral photograph of a lawmaker embroiled in a corruption scandal, the tool failed to detect it was fabricated -- even though it had generated the image itself." www.france24.com/en/live-news...
AI's blind spot: tools fail to detect their own fakes
When outraged Filipinos turned to an AI-powered chatbot to verify a viral photograph of a lawmaker embroiled in a corruption scandal, the tool failed to detect it was fabricated -- even though it had…
www.france24.com
November 20, 2025 at 6:12 PM
"When outraged Filipinos turned to an AI-powered chatbot to verify a viral photograph of a lawmaker embroiled in a corruption scandal, the tool failed to detect it was fabricated -- even though it had generated the image itself." www.france24.com/en/live-news...
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
Horrible, personalized cost of the toxic misinformation frenzies that ensue after a shooting
One of the most tragic stories I have ever worked on. www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Grieving Family Blames False US Shooting Accusations For Death Of NFL Fan
Denton Loudermill Jr. watched every Kansas City Chiefs game at his sister's house with his family. The Kansas native and his late father were diehard fans.
www.barrons.com
November 20, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Horrible, personalized cost of the toxic misinformation frenzies that ensue after a shooting
One of the most tragic stories I have ever worked on. www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Grieving Family Blames False US Shooting Accusations For Death Of NFL Fan
Denton Loudermill Jr. watched every Kansas City Chiefs game at his sister's house with his family. The Kansas native and his late father were diehard fans.
www.barrons.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:57 PM
One of the most tragic stories I have ever worked on. www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
"He would still be here today had it not been for that," Reba Paul told me.
Her late brother Denton Loudermill died after internet sleuths and politicians falsely claimed he was behind a shooting at a Super Bowl parade -- and an undocumented immigrant.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Her late brother Denton Loudermill died after internet sleuths and politicians falsely claimed he was behind a shooting at a Super Bowl parade -- and an undocumented immigrant.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
November 20, 2025 at 3:56 PM
"He would still be here today had it not been for that," Reba Paul told me.
Her late brother Denton Loudermill died after internet sleuths and politicians falsely claimed he was behind a shooting at a Super Bowl parade -- and an undocumented immigrant.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Her late brother Denton Loudermill died after internet sleuths and politicians falsely claimed he was behind a shooting at a Super Bowl parade -- and an undocumented immigrant.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Kansas City Chiefs fan Denton Loudermill Jr. died in April after misinformation falsely accusing him of a shooting at the 2024 Super Bowl champions' parade sent him into a year-long spiral of paranoia.
His family is still trying to pick up the pieces.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
His family is still trying to pick up the pieces.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Grieving Family Blames False US Shooting Accusations For Death Of NFL Fan
Denton Loudermill Jr. watched every Kansas City Chiefs game at his sister's house with his family. The Kansas native and his late father were diehard fans.
www.barrons.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:51 PM
Kansas City Chiefs fan Denton Loudermill Jr. died in April after misinformation falsely accusing him of a shooting at the 2024 Super Bowl champions' parade sent him into a year-long spiral of paranoia.
His family is still trying to pick up the pieces.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
His family is still trying to pick up the pieces.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Denton Loudermill Jr. was falsely accused online, including by politicians, of being the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooter and an undocumented immigrant.
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
November 20, 2025 at 3:47 PM
Denton Loudermill Jr. was falsely accused online, including by politicians, of being the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooter and an undocumented immigrant.
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
The misinformation sent the father of three into a year-long spiral of paranoia. Then he died.
www.barrons.com/news/grievin...
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
CDC has overhauled its website to assert that “the claim ‘vaccines do not cause autism’ is not an evidence-based claim”
November 20, 2025 at 2:26 AM
CDC has overhauled its website to assert that “the claim ‘vaccines do not cause autism’ is not an evidence-based claim”
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
New: Reuters has tallied job losses, suspensions and investigations stemming from the reaction to Charlie Kirk's Sept. 10 assassination. Its findings: More than 600 Americans have been punished, and the figure is likely to be an under-count.
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
November 19, 2025 at 11:35 AM
New: Reuters has tallied job losses, suspensions and investigations stemming from the reaction to Charlie Kirk's Sept. 10 assassination. Its findings: More than 600 Americans have been punished, and the figure is likely to be an under-count.
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
Reposted by Bill McCarthy
"A man pardoned by President Donald Trump for storming the Capitol was arrested on child molestation charges, according to Florida officials, who said he tried to use an anticipated Jan. 6 payout to silence the victim."
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
Pardoned Capitol rioter tried to bribe child sex victim with promise of Jan. 6 payout, officials say
Andrew Paul Johnson, 44, faces multiple charges in Florida, including lewd/lascivious molestation, according to the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office.
www.nbcnews.com
November 18, 2025 at 8:48 PM
"A man pardoned by President Donald Trump for storming the Capitol was arrested on child molestation charges, according to Florida officials, who said he tried to use an anticipated Jan. 6 payout to silence the victim."
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
In an Instagram video, rock singer Chris Daughtry slammed the onslaught of "unbelievably not true" AI clickbait stories about him and said he has tried to get Meta to remove some pages.
"It affects me on a deep level when things are said that aren't true about me or my family."
"It affects me on a deep level when things are said that aren't true about me or my family."
November 19, 2025 at 9:02 PM
In an Instagram video, rock singer Chris Daughtry slammed the onslaught of "unbelievably not true" AI clickbait stories about him and said he has tried to get Meta to remove some pages.
"It affects me on a deep level when things are said that aren't true about me or my family."
"It affects me on a deep level when things are said that aren't true about me or my family."
This widespread image purporting to show one of Donald Trump's supporters wearing an "I don't care if Trump is a pedophile" shirt is doctored.
The original is from 2018 and shows the man in generic campaign attire supporting the 2020 Republican ticket.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The original is from 2018 and shows the man in generic campaign attire supporting the 2020 Republican ticket.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
November 18, 2025 at 10:40 PM
This widespread image purporting to show one of Donald Trump's supporters wearing an "I don't care if Trump is a pedophile" shirt is doctored.
The original is from 2018 and shows the man in generic campaign attire supporting the 2020 Republican ticket.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
The original is from 2018 and shows the man in generic campaign attire supporting the 2020 Republican ticket.
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
A country-music song featuring a male singer's voice generated by artificial intelligence reached the top of the US charts for the first time this week. www.barrons.com/news/ai-coun...
AI Country Song Rollicks To The Top Of US Sales Chart
A country-music song featuring a male singer's voice generated by artificial intelligence reached the top of the US charts for the first time this week.
www.barrons.com
November 12, 2025 at 2:49 PM
A country-music song featuring a male singer's voice generated by artificial intelligence reached the top of the US charts for the first time this week. www.barrons.com/news/ai-coun...
Democrats released emails today in which Jeffrey Epstein suggested that US President Donald Trump was aware of the financier's sexual abuse and "knew about the girls." www.rfi.fr/en/internati...
Epstein alleged Trump 'knew about the girls': Democrats
Democrats released emails Wednesday in which Jeffrey Epstein suggested that Donald Trump was aware of the financier's sexual abuse and definitely "knew about the girls."
www.rfi.fr
November 12, 2025 at 2:47 PM
Democrats released emails today in which Jeffrey Epstein suggested that US President Donald Trump was aware of the financier's sexual abuse and "knew about the girls." www.rfi.fr/en/internati...