CNN
Investigations about BP safety issues were cited by CNN in stories about cost-cutting and risks in pipelines.
True-> The underlying safety concerns were confirmed by later oversight and Congressional hearings.
In May 2015, ESPN published breaking coverage of the U.S. Department of Justice’s corruption probe into FIFA, naming the indicted defendants and describing the DOJ’s case.
True-> the DOJ’s indictments, guilty pleas, and forfeitures (and later official reporting on recovered funds and convictions) confirmed the core facts ESPN reported.
CBS’s 60 Minutes ran a segment on the 2012 Benghazi attack, alleging that the U.S. government mishandled security and response.
false-> One of the key sources later admitted inconsistencies. CBS publicly apologized and retracted parts of the story
Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 — Wikipedia’s article included the Buk missile findings.
True-> the Dutch Safety Board / JIT later concluded a 9M38 Buk missile shot down the aircraft and traced the launcher’s origin—findings consistent with the material summarized and cited in the Wikipedia article.
In 2023, Fox ran a story claiming a fallen Marine’s family had to cover costs for transporting her remains.
False-> The U.S. Marine Corps contested the claim. Fox quietly removed or amended the digital article and apologized to the family.
CNN reported underground tunnels were uncovered at Sean “Diddy” Combs’s property.
False-> That was false—CNN confirmed it never ran that story; the screenshot was manipulated.
Houston Astros sign-stealing coverage — ESPN extensively covered allegations around the Astros
True-> MLB’s subsequent investigation (January 2020) confirmed the team used a camera-based sign-stealing system during 2017–2018. ESPN’s reporting and explainer pieces helped document and explain the scheme that MLB later confirmed.
CBS published on 60 Minutes a video and related evidence, unsealed as part of a lawsuit by 9/11 victims’ families.
True-> The evidence was made public through the court filings, supporting what CBS reported.
An article that claimed a man named Alan MacMasters invented the toaster in 1893
False-> That false statement was added in 2012 and propagated through the media and references until the hoax was exposed in 2022.
Fox reported the U.S. operation that killed Osama bin Laden.
True-> Subsequent U.S. government statements and historical accounts confirmed the raid and death.
Back in 1998, CNN (in conjunction with Time) ran a story alleging that U.S. forces used sarin gas during a covert Vietnam War mission (“Operation Tailwind”)
False-> After internal review, CNN retracted the report, apologized, and fired or disciplined staff, concluding that the allegations could not be substantiated.
ESPN’s Outside the Lines aired a piece asserting the New England Patriots had systematically recorded opponents’ signals.
False-> The Patriots denied the claims and, in response, pointed to prior instances where ESPN had issued apologies for perpetuating false or unverified claims
In 2005, someone posted a biography of journalist John Seigenthaler, claiming he was involved in the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Robert Kennedy, and that he moved to the Soviet Union.
False-> The hoax remained for several months until it was discovered and corrected.
In January 2025, Fox reported that a suspect’s truck crossed the U.S.–Mexico border two days before a terror attack in New Orleans.
False-> Later, Fox walked back parts of that reporting, clarifying that the crossing was in November and also that the individual crossing may not have been the suspect.
"Putin to delay invasion until Biden delivers weapons to Ukraine for Russia to capture"
False ->That screenshot was altered — the underlying image was from a 2017 CNN report, and the additional text was fabricated. A CNN spokesperson confirmed the alteration.
ESPN investigative reporting documented allegations by the Freeh report, grand-jury findings, and later criminal convictions.
True-> ESPN’s investigative coverage paralleled and helped surface elements later confirmed by probes and prosecutions.
CBS reported that many law enforcement agencies sell or trade in used firearms when they upgrade their arsenals, and that a significant number of those firearms later show up tied to crimes
True-> Subsequent crime data, law enforcement records, and independent verification support that the gun-trafficking route is real.
The Wikipedia page “Avery–MacLeod–McCarty experiment” describes the 1944 experiments that demonstrated DNA is the transforming principle (i.e., that DNA, not protein, carries genetic information).
True-> That is a well-accepted fact in biology, and multiple subsequent studies corroborated it.
In 2017, Fox published an article that DNC staffer Seth Rich had contact with WikiLeaks, and law enforcement was covering it up.
False-> Fox later retracted the article, removing it from their site, saying it didn’t meet their editorial standards.
CNN reporter Drew Griffin led an investigative reporting effort that uncovered systemic failures within the U.S. Veterans Health Administration—delays, cover-ups, and manipulation of waiting times.
Still unknown-> That reporting contributed to broader scrutiny and reforms, and many of Griffin’s findings were corroborated by internal audits and government investigations
ESPN reporter Chris Mortensen tweeted that “11 of the Patriots’ 12 footballs” were 2 PSI under the allowable range.
False-> That specific claim was incorrect, and he eventually deleted the tweet, admitting it was an error.
In 2025, after a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris, then-President Trump accused CBS of editing her responses in a misleading manner.
Still unknown-> CBS defended its editing as standard journalistic practice; the controversy remains ongoing in legal and regulatory spaces.
An article described a fictional 17th-century war in India ("Bicholim Conflict").
False-> That never happened. The article survived on Wikipedia for about 5 years before being deleted
Fox News covered the release of the redacted version of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report on Russian interference in the 2016 election, including the conclusion that investigators did not find evidence of criminal conspiracy (“collusion”) between the Trump campaign and Russia.
True-> The released Mueller report itself confirmed those points — that no conspiracy (“collusion”) evidence sufficient for criminal charges was found, though there were various other findings and investigations.