Facts Matter: Claim of earliest Lincoln photo resurfaces on social media

An old claim about a photo purported to be the earliest photographic image of Abraham Lincoln recently has reappeared on social media.

"The earliest known photo of Abraham Lincoln, 1840," read the Facebook post earlier this month on a page for historic photos. The post includes an image of a young man produced as a daguerreotype, an early form of photography using a silver-plated copper sheet.

But there is no evidence to prove the man in the image is Lincoln, according to The Associated Press.

And many Lincoln experts doubt this is a photo of the man who would become our 16th president.

The daguerreotype was purchased by stockbroker Albert Kaplan in the 1970s, and he claimed for decades the it was Lincoln in the black and white photo. Kaplan died last year and his obituary mentioned he was the "discoverer of the daguerreotype of young Abraham Lincoln."

Born in 1809, Lincoln would have turned 31 years old in 1940. That date also makes the claim suspect since the daguerreotype was invented in 1839 in France and was not easily available in the U.S. for some time.

DePaul University associate professor Mark Pohlad told the AP the man in the photo doesn't match Lincoln's features.

"Anyone who's familiar with Lincoln's face can see immediately - with their 'gut,' crucially - that the man in the Kaplan photo is not Abraham Lincoln. The nose is the wrong shape, the eyes aren't thin enough, the eyebrows arch too dramatically," Pohlad said. "Images that simply 'look like' a famous person are the least convincing kind of historical evidence."

The oldest known photo of Lincoln is a daguerreotype taken in 1846 or 1847 in Springfield.

Threat to McCarthy was not from Trump

An image of a statement, purported to be written by former President Donald Trump threatening to release videos of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, has been making the rounds on social media.

"IF KEVIN MCCARTHY DOESN'T END THESE INVESTIGATIONS IMMEDIATELY, I WILL DIRECT MY SUPPORTERS IN CONGRESS TO VOTE TO END HIS SPEAKERSHIP AND I WILL HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO LEAK SOME 'INTERESTING VIDEOS' I TOOK OF HIM AT MAR-A-LAGO!" read the text in the image that appears to be from Trump.

But this meme is satire, according to Reuters. This statement can't be found on Trump's Truth Social platform or in any other statements from the former president.

Telltale signs the image is fake include the fact it's dated March 18, 2022, and the name printed under a replica of Trump's Save America logo reads, "President Doofy J. Trump."

Giuliani can't remove the Manhattan DA

A grand jury was convened to hear evidence concerning hush payments made by former President Donald Trump. Since that case has been going on, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has been the subject of online attacks and false information on social media.

"Rudy Giuliani fires Alvin Bragg immediately for fake prosecution targeting Trump," reads the caption above a video recently posted to Facebook.

But not only is that not true, but Giuliani has never had the authority to fire Bragg.

Giuliani, who was the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York in the 1980s and New York City mayor from 1994-2001, recently worked as one of Trump's attorneys.

The video in the post shows Giuliani telling Newsmax host Eric Bolling the grand jury case is a "political use of the awesome power of the criminal justice system."

But there is nothing in the clip about firing Bragg.

Columbia Law School professor Richard Briffault told The Associated Press that New York law permits only the governor to fire a district attorney.

"The governor may remove a district attorney, but before doing so, the governor has to give to him or her a copy of the charges against him/her and an opportunity of being heard in his/her defense," he said.

'The Simpsons' didn't predict bank collapse

Silicon Valley Bank failed earlier this month, marking the largest major bank collapse in the U.S. since 2008.

Recent social media posts make it appear the collapse was predicted by the animated TV show "The Simpsons."

A clip from a 1995 episode of the show, titled "The PTA Disbands," shows a run on the bank with crowds of people rushing to get their money out. In the posted video, the run is on the Silicon Valley Bank.

"The Simpson's predicted a bank run at Silicon Valley Bank that will Collapse and then it happened few days ago," read a Facebook post that included the clip.

But that video has been altered, according to USA Today. In the original clip, the bank is named the "First Bank of Springfield."

The name digitally was changed to read "Silicon Valley Bank."

Other claims that "The Simpsons" predicted the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol, the monkeypox outbreak and the death of Queen Elizabeth II all have been debunked.

• Bob Oswald is a veteran Chicago-area journalist and former news editor of the Elgin Courier-News. Contact him at boboswald33@gmail.com.