‘The Simpsons’ didn’t predict Pope Francis’ death
Pope Francis died April 21 following a cerebral stroke. But according to a recent social media post, the writers of the TV show “The Simpsons” previously knew it was going to happen.
“The Simpsons predicted Pope Francis’ death in 2025,” declared a TikTok video posted later that day. “In a little-known episode of The Simpsons, a misplaced coffin stands at the center of Saint Peter’s Basilica, surrounded by silent cardinals.
“A Vatican flag flies at half mast, and in the background, a giant screen displays the exact time, 11:11. Meanwhile, Kent Brockman reports on the passing of the supreme pontiff, stating that the official cause of death is severe bronchitis.”
“The Simpsons” has been credited with predicting various world events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, Queen Elizabeth’s death and the California wildfires. But like those claims, the idea the show forecast the pope’s death is false, according to PolitiFact.
The fake video includes images of Vatican City and Lisa Simpson holding the book, “The End of a Cycle 2025,” although the title is shown misspelled or illegible. The look of the cartoon doesn’t match “The Simpsons” style and the video was previously posted to social media and labeled AI-generated. The clip, which is not from an actual “Simpsons” episode, first appeared earlier this year in a satirical TikTok account.
The show’s last mention of the pope occurred in a Sept. 29, 2019, episode in which news anchor Kent Brockman reported the pope died. But the pope wasn’t mentioned by name and the report didn’t include details such as when he died or what was the cause of death.
Video not about Trump
Thousands of people gathered recently to protest the administration of President Donald Trump. Videos and photos were shared online April 5 showing people at “Hands Off!” rallies against Trump and his adviser Elon Musk.
One video posted to social media on April 5 appeared to show the scene in Wisconsin.
“Huge turnout of protesters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for 'hands off' rally against Trump and Elon,” read the caption on that post.
But that video has nothing to do with Trump, Musk or politics, according to Reuters.
That clip, showing people at Milwaukee's Mecca Sports Bar and Grill, is actually from July 20, 2021, when a large crowd gathered for a watch party cheering on the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks went on to beat the Phoenix Suns for the NBA championship.
The video was shared at that time on Facebook and was credited to videographer Dan Garcia.
Garcia confirmed to Reuters that he shot the clip during the basketball game and photos from the same angle appear on his website.
Federal employee stat is wrong
A Jan. 28 Facebook post reported a surprising statistic about federal employees.
“It appears that only 6% of all federal employees work full-time in an office,” read the post, which was repeated by politicians and conservative commentators.
But this number is not accurate, according to USA Today. The figure is actually 54%, a federal agency told Congress.
“There is plenty of bogus and made-up data out there,” Stanford University professor Nicholas Bloom told USA Today.
The 6% figure originated in an April 22, 2024, story by the Federal News Network. The story focused on a survey of nearly 6,300 people who said they were federal employees and they worked exclusively in-person. It didn’t cover which employees worked full time but not in an office.
The Federal News Network later added an editor’s note to say the survey was not scientific, that the respondents were self-selected and self-identified as federal employees.
“Our story never attempted to make any broad statistical claims about the federal workforce,” Federal News Network deputy editor Jared Serbu told USA Today. “(The figure) was part of an analysis of our own readership’s observations and attitudes surrounding return-to-office policies.”
Missing girl misidentified
Various recent Facebook posts claim a girl named Shelly Sheridan has gone missing in England.
“Please Help!! Everyone I’m a desperate mom asking every member of the community to help me find my daughter Shelly Sheridan (12) who has not returned home for 3 days now,” read one post. “Last seen wearing that grey minie mouse sweater, black trousers, grey sneakers.”
But this is a hoax, according to FullFact.org, a fact-checking site in England and Wales.
The girl’s name is sometimes listed as Shelly, sometimes as Sarah. However, it’s actually a photo of a 16-year-old girl named Rayahna Miller, who went missing earlier this year in Pulaski County, Kentucky.
On Jan. 7, the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office reported Miller was found safe.
• Bob Oswald is a veteran Chicago-area journalist and former news editor of the Elgin Courier-News. Contact him at boboswald33@gmail.com.