AAP FactCheck Articles
‘The Rock’ unmoved by death hoax stories
AAP FactCheck examined multiple links shared on Facebook on November 14, 2019 by Australian users announcing the supposed death of Hollywood action film actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
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Did the NSW government cut $12.9 million from Fire and Rescue NSW’s funding in the 2019-20 budget?
"The 2019/20 budget cut of $12.9 million to recurrent expenditure on top of $21 million of savings to be found for the government's Labour Expense Cap is crippling FRNSW."
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Costco $75 coupon post is a scam
AAP FactCheck examined a link shared on Facebook on November 13, 2019 by Australian users featuring a purported offer of a free $75 Costco coupon in celebration of the company’s anniversary.
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Stories of his demise are greatly exaggerated: Clint Eastwood is not dead
AAP FactCheck examined a link shared on Facebook on November 7, 2019 by Australian users. The link goes to a web page featuring a video announcing the supposed death of Hollywood film star Clint Eastwood.
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‘Japan keeps Islam at bay’ post is partly false
AAP FactCheck examined a Facebook post from November 18, 2015 by an Australian user which lists how Japan purportedly puts “restrictions on Islam and ALL Muslims”.
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Winged spider ‘discovery’ claim doesn’t fly
AAP FactCheck examined a Facebook post from November 2, 2019 by Tumblr Made Me Do It featuring an image of a spider with wings and a caption beneath it stating, “Scientist discovers winged spider.”
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Onions don't become ‘highly poisonous’ if cut the day before cooking
The NSW Food Authority states on its website that most foodborne illness is caused by pathogenic bacteria or viruses in food. Other less common foodborne illness occurs from accidental chemical poisoning and natural contaminants.
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Politicians salaries vary and are not for life
Australian federal politicians have access to two pension systems when they retire based on when they were elected to parliament. Those who entered parliament before October 9, 2004 get access to the Parliamentary Contributory Superannuation Scheme (PCSS) after they retire.
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Coconut oil and apple cider vinegar are not proven remedies for lice
NSW Health lists head louse as a “parasitic insect that can be found on the head, eyebrows and eyelashes of people. Head lice feed on human blood several times a day and lives close to the human scalp, but are not known to spread disease”.
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Has the level of casual employment in the Australian workforce not changed for two decades?
“The claim that the workforce is now excessively casualised is simply not true. The level of casualisation hasn’t changed for about 20 years.”
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Car headrests not designed as glass-breakers
Head restraints are a regulatory requirement under Australian Design Rules for vehicle standards.
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No name change made to Age Pensions
The post features an image of another post, which contains the text. AAP FactCheck could not find the original post. However various versions of the same or similar claims - that the name of the aged pension is to be changed - have been shared by a number of Australian users and pages, including in the comments of posts on politicians and political party pages.
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"Biofortified" is not the new word for GMO foods
Genetic modification involves altering the genetic material in plants, animals or microorganisms in a way that does not naturally occur normally through mating or reproduction and allows “selected individual genes” to be transferred from one organism to another and inter-species, according to the World Health Organisation.
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Hyde Park climate protest aftermath post is misleading
A series of global protest marches were staged in 2019 to support stronger climate action. In March the School Strike for Climate event saw more than a million people rally while the Global Strike 4 Climate event in September drew millions.
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Fort Denison pics no indicator of sea level rise
The first photo of Fort Denison was taken prior to 1885, according to the State Library of NSW, which has the original image in its archives. The distinctive tower structure on the island was completed in 1857. The Bureau of Meteorology has sea level reading records dating back to 1914 for Fort Denison.
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No evidence of activists tampering with cattle trucks
The “URGENT WARNING” post has previously circulated on social media. In May 2019, news website 10 daily noticed the post trending and labelled its claim as “fake” in a report. The warning post was shared by the page Queensland Through Your Eyes before the content was removed.
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Australian Army emblem post is false
A Facebook post shows The Australian Army Badge and claims Facebook thinks military emblems are not appropriate.
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No evidence to link Marcus Aurelius to facts and truth quote
Marcus Aurelius was a Roman emperor and philosopher who ruled between 161 and 180 AD. He was one of the most prominent Stoic philosophers and is best known for the book Meditations, his personal writings and ideas on the Greek philosophy. Stoicism was a school of thought and ethics that helped one live a virtuous life by surmounting fears and false desires. The Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius looks over Rome from Capitoline Hill.
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Photo of sleeping ‘Syrian' boy is falsely captioned
A Facebook post purports to show a Syrian boy sleeping between the graves of his father and mother.
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Sea level images not taken 80 years apart
A Facebook post claims to show two pictures of one end of the Great Wall of China taken 80 years apart.
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