Misleading
Misleading Instagram posts use news headlines out of context to imply COVID-19 vaccines increase COVID-19 mortality risk
Claim:
Higher COVID-19 vaccination rates in White people are related to higher COVID-19 death rates
Search results for: "miscarriage risk calculator"
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Source: Instagram, Carl Higbie, David Harris Jr., 2023-08-22 -
UnsupportedEvidence shows that COVID-19 vaccines don’t increase the risk of death, contrary to claim by financier Edward Dowd
Claim:
COVID-19 vaccines are causing excess deaths around the world; sudden adult death syndrome is new
Source: Audrey Marcus Podcast, Edward Dowd, 2023-01-04 -
InaccurateMammograms don’t increase risk of dying from breast cancer; they reduce it
Claim:
Mammograms don’t prevent cancer; mammograms contribute to cancer development
Source: TikTok, Facebook, Barbara O'Neill, 2024-05-22 -
MisleadingInadequate analysis of Japan data used to spread false claim about COVID-19 vaccine mortality
Claim:
Japanese database of 18 million vaccinated people show that the more COVID-19 vaccine doses you get, the sooner you die
Source: Rumble, United Citizens for Stopping mRNA Vaccines, Twitter/X, YouTube, Emerald Robinson, Peter Imanuelsen (aka Peter Sweden), Yasufumi Murakami, 2025-07-12 -
UnsupportedNeurological adverse events are very rare after COVID-19 vaccination and less frequent than after SARS-CoV-2 infection
Claim:
A study shows that “COVID vaccines could be causing ‘long-term brain damage’”
Source: Leading Report, Anonymous, 2023-05-10 -
UnsupportedFluoride level in U.S. drinking water is safe; people of all ages, including infants, can consume fluoridated water
Claim:
Babies shouldn’t drink fluoridated water; the blood-brain barrier in infants is not fully formed until six months of age
Source: Instagram, Robert W. B. Love, 2024-03-05 -
IncorrectInstagram reel rehashes old misinformation inaccurately linking autism with vaccines, glyphosate, and MTHFR mutations
Claim:
Vaccines, MTHFR mutation, and glyphosate lead to autism in children with brain injury
Source: Instagram, Nathan Riley, 2023-11-19 -
InaccurateCOVID-19 vaccines reduce SARS-CoV-2 transmission and don’t increase mortality, contrary James Thorp’s claim
Claim:
COVID-19 vaccines are “an unqualified disaster”; they didn’t “[halt] viral spread” and they caused “high morbidity and mortality rates”
Source: The Wellness Company, James Thorp, 2023-12-13 -
Flawed reasoningMask use does not increase risk of COVID-19 as viral social media posts claim
Claim:
More people who wear masks become sick with COVID-19 compared to non-mask wearers, therefore masks don’t work or are making us ill
Source: The Federalist, Jordan Davidson, 2020-10-12 -
IncorrectGout is an inflammatory disease caused by uric acid crystals, not liver dysfunction
Claim:
Gout is “a liver condition”; uric acid crystals “aren’t the cause of gout or the cause of gout’s pain”
Source: Instagram, Anthony William, 2024-09-04