snopes.com Update: 24 August 2016

[snopes] snopes.com Update:24 August 2016 [facabook button] [twitter-button] Hello again from snopes, where we shed light on the wild tales you've heard! This e-mail gives information about new articles recently added to the [snopes.com] web site and provides pointers to older pieces about rumors and hoaxes still wandering into everyone's inboxes. If after this update you are left wondering about something newly arrived in your inbox, our [search engine] stands ready to assist you. Bookmark that URL — it's a keeper! And now to the legends, the mayhem, and the misinformation! --------------------------------------------------------------- New Articles: [More Bodies Under the Bed] A young couple reportedly slept in a foul-smelling Thai hotel room, unaware that the odor issued from a murder victim who had been stuffed under the bed. --------------------------------------------------------------- ['Stranger Things' Season Two to be Written by Stephen King?] An article that reported Stephen King would be writing the second season of the popular television show came from a satire news site. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Pledge of Allegiance Permission Slip] A photograph showing a school opt-out form for the Pledge of Allegiance was frequently misinterpreted to represent the opposite. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Huma Abedin Worked at a 'Radical Muslim Journal'] New York Post account reports Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin edited a 'radical Muslim publication' that opposed women’s rights and blamed the US for 9/11. --------------------------------------------------------------- [U.S. Army Memo Announces Preparations for Martial Law] U.S. Army officials say a memo announcing that martial law training exercises and preparation will begin at Fort Carson, CO, is a 'complete fabrication.' --------------------------------------------------------------- [Melania Trump Threatens Legal Action Over Reports She Was an Escort] The Daily Mail cited a Slovenian gossip magazine in reporting Donald Trump's wife had once worked as a call girl. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Dragon Falls from Sky in Tibet] A video showing a dragon sculpture is being shared along with the claim that a real dragon fell from the sky in Tibet. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Mark Zuckerberg Is David Rockefeller's Grandson] We look into the conspiracy theory that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's real name is Jacob Greenberg and he's the grandson of billionaire David Rockefeller. --------------------------------------------------------------- [FDA Investigates Complaints About WEN Hair Care Products] Claims of hair loss resulting from use of WEN products have dogged the company for years. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Donald Trump Donated $100k to Anti-Gay Hate Group Instead of Louisiana Flood Victims?] The GOP candidate reportedly donated money intended for a local church doing flood relief, but controversial Tony Perkins is interim pastor of that church. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Teacher's No-Homework Policy a Viral Sensation] A Fort Worth second-grade teacher's note informing parents there will be no homework for her students this year has gone viral on social media. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Step-Dad Pulls Out of Funding Daughter's Wedding at Last Minute] Several content-scraping sites spread a story about a step-dad who canceled his daughter's wedding, but the unverified tale was swiped from an old Reddit thread. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Lesbian 'Brokeback Mountain' Remake Starring Margot Robbie and Emma Watson Confirmed for 2017] A fake news article reported that the 2005 film 'Brokeback Mountain' is to be remade with Margot Robbie and Emma Watson in the lead roles. --------------------------------------------------------------- [KFC Extra Crispy Sunscreen] Many consumers were confused by KFC's Extra Crispy Sunscreen promotion, but it was (briefly) a real product. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Tornado Carries Mobile Home 130 Miles, Family Inside Unharmed] A fake news article reported that a tornado carried a mobile home for 130 miles and left the residents inside unharmed. --------------------------------------------------------------- [President Obama: 'Even Terrorists Have Rights and We Should Respect Them'] A clickbait web site is sucking in users by peddling a fake Obama quote stating that even terrorists have rights, and we should respect them. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Trump Family Photograph] A family portrait of Donald Trump, his wife Melania, and son Barron appeared in August 2016, but some viewers were skeptical of its authenticity. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Woman Gives Birth to a Human-Goat Hybrid] The story of a baby-seeking bride who turns to a goat for love comes from a viral web site that regularly runs factually-challenged stories. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Internaut Day: The Web's Birthday?] 23 August is supposed to be the anniversary of the World Wide Web's birth, but pinning down its actual start date is more difficult than it seems. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Clouds Over Geneva Show CERN Opening a Portal to a New Dimension?] Conspiracy theorists speculated that pictures of a storm over Switzerland were proof that the Large Hadron Collider had opened a portal to another dimension. --------------------------------------------------------------- [LBJ: 'Convince the Lowest White Man He's Better Than the Best Colored Man'] President Lyndon B. Johnson, who grew up in the South and understood the politics of racism from the inside, saw it in part as a ploy to divide and conquer. --------------------------------------------------------------- Admin Stuff: - Please note that the e-mail address [update@snopes.com] is an administrative address used only for mailing weekly updates to subscribers. All mail sent to this address is automatically deleted. - If you wish to change your subscription information or unsubscribe, please use the links provided at the bottom of every newsletter mailing. - If you wish to find information on a particular topic, please use the [search engine]. - Our [What's New] page and our [25 Hottest Urban Legends] page are also handy places to check whenever you receive something questionable in your inbox. - Other inquiries and comments may be submitted through the "Contact Us" form at [snopes.com]. - [Visit Web Version] - [Unsubscribe] © 1994-2016 by snopes.com. 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