Facts Matter: Vietnam wall not damaged during protest
A photo of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial defaced by graffiti was shared on social media, along with false claims the damage occurred during recent protests in Washington, D.C., following the death of George Floyd.
The vandalism is real but it happened in 2016 when a replica of the memorial was defaced in Los Angeles, according to The Associated Press.
A man was sentenced to four years in state prison for the graffiti, according to the Los Angeles Times. The same monument was damaged by graffiti in 2017 in an unrelated crime.
The base of the steps outside the Lincoln Memorial in Washington were damaged with graffiti during the protests, according to FactCheck.org. But a photo on social media showing the statue of Abraham Lincoln covered in graffiti and missing part of its head is fake. That doctored image was created for "The Michael Knowles Show" on the conservative website the Daily Wire, FactCheck said.
"Every day, my show is uploaded to our channel with artistic images, usually of the comedic or outrageous variety," Knowles told FactCheck.
"It would seem the drawing of a ridiculously defaced Abraham Lincoln statue, partially beheaded, was taken by someone on the internet, cropped, stripped of the context of our show, and passed off as real," he said.
Fast-food chains not funding Trump's reelection
Social media posts last week claimed some of the largest fast-food chains were donating to President Donald Trump's 2020 reelection campaign and people should boycott those restaurants.
McDonald's, Taco Bell and Wendy's each used Twitter to say they don't contribute to any presidential campaigns, <URL destination="https://www.businessinsider.com/are-mcdonalds-wendys-fast-food-donating-to-trump-not-really-2020-6?amp&fbclid=IwAR1w-CI6cFEskkz9V4DXApu4H9LUlDDBS8PZX1iYiQ7eMlxt2AhCYZpT0g4">according to the Business Insider.
</URL>"Because some of you are asking, and it matters to us that you all know, McDonald's does not contribute to presidential candidates," McDonald's said on Twitter.
"We never have and will never contribute to a presidential campaign," Wendy's said.
Taco Bell said it doesn't donate to presidential campaigns, but "has no involvement with or control over donations made by franchisees."
Much of the misinformation resulted from a $440,000 donation to Trump's campaign by James Bodenstedt, CEO of Muy Cos., a franchisee of Wendy's, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, Business Insider said. In May, Bodenstedt participated in a restaurant roundtable about the industry's recovery, hosted by the president.
Politician in photo isn't Biden
A photo of a man with gray hair kissing a young girl has been shared on social media with the false claim it's former Vice President Joe Biden, according to Snopes.com.
"Ladies and gentlemen. Your democratic presidential candidate!!!," the fake meme proclaims.
But the man in the image isn't Biden, Snopes said. It's a photo of Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador in March as he greeted a crowd in Ometepec in southwestern Mexico.
"Beware of imitations," Snopes said. "Many politicians look alike."
White House not protected by barbed wire
A security fence was recently placed around the White House as people filled nearby streets, protesting the killing of George Floyd.
Shortly after that, a manipulated photo on social media showed razor wire along the top of the fence, with the claim, "There is now barbed wire around the White House," according to Snopes.com.
The fence is real, the barbed wire is not, Snopes said. By enlarging the image, it's clear the wire was added to a genuine photo.