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2 weeks ago | 
newsguardrealitycheck.com | McKenzie Sadeghi
By McKenzie SadeghiWhat happened: A Scottish blogger named John Dougan has found his hitchhiking trip from Scotland to Hong Kong repeatedly disrupted with border agents mistaking him for a former Florida deputy sheriff turned Russian propagandist with the same name — John Mark Dougan — who was named NewsGuard’s 2024 Disinformer of the Year.
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2 weeks ago | 
newsguardrealitycheck.com | John Gregory |Sara Badilini |McKenzie Sadeghi
Welcome to Reality Check, original reporting that’s your BS detector. Our work is more important than ever. Please support us by becoming a Premium Member. And forward this email to a friend to spread the word!Follow us on your social media platform of choice: X | LinkedIn | Instagram | BlueskyIn today’s edition, another false health claim ripped from the headlines: No, Joe Biden’s cancer diagnosis is not the result of COVID-19 vaccines.
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3 weeks ago | 
newsguardrealitycheck.com | Sarah Komar |Giulia Pozzi |McKenzie Sadeghi |Eva Maitland
Welcome to Reality Check, original reporting that’s your BS detector. Our work is more important than ever. Please support us by becoming a Premium Member.
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3 weeks ago | 
newsguardrealitycheck.com | McKenzie Sadeghi |Eva Maitland
By McKenzie Sadeghi and Eva MaitlandWhat happened: A low-resolution video supposedly showing French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer with a bag of cocaine and a coke spoon on a train ride to Kyiv spread widely among pro-Kremlin and far-right sources, in an apparent attempt to smear European leaders supporting Ukraine.
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1 month ago | 
newsguardrealitycheck.com | McKenzie Sadeghi
Welcome to Reality Check, original reporting that’s your BS detector. Our work is more important than ever. Please support us by becoming a Premium Member. And forward this email to a friend to spread the word!Follow us on your social media platform of choice: X | LinkedIn | Instagram | BlueskyToday’s newsletter was edited byEric Effron.
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1 month ago | 
newsguardrealitycheck.com | McKenzie Sadeghi
Welcome to Reality Check, original reporting that’s your BS detector. Our work is more important than ever. Please support us by becoming a Premium Member. And forward this email to a friend to spread the word!Follow us on your social media platform of choice: X | LinkedIn | Instagram|BlueskyEdited by Eric Effron and Sofia RubinsonBy McKenzie SadeghiThere was a time when Russia insisted it wasn’t attempting to meddle in U.S. democracy. Now, it’s flaunting its interference efforts. “It’s nonsense.
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1 month ago | 
newsguardrealitycheck.com | Macrina Wang |Sarah Komar |Eva Maitland |McKenzie Sadeghi
Welcome to Reality Check, original reporting that’s your BS detector. Our work is more important than ever. Please support us by becoming a Premium Member. And forward this email to a friend to spread the word!Follow us on your social media platform of choice: X | LinkedIn | Instagram | BlueskyIn today’s edition:After a mass shooting at Florida State University, pro-MAGA accounts rushed to falsely claim the alleged shooter was an anti-Trump leftist.
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1 month ago | 
newsguardrealitycheck.com | Eva Maitland |McKenzie Sadeghi
By Eva Maitland and McKenzie SadeghiWhat happened: Pro-Kremlin sources shared AI-generated photos of supposed action figure dolls to spread Russian propaganda, including posts depicting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as a drug addict and corrupt warmonger, NewsGuard found. Context: After OpenAI released its new image generator on March 25, many celebrities and politicians took part in a viral trend asking ChatGPT to create images of Barbie-style dolls in their likenesses.
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1 month ago | 
newsguardrealitycheck.com | Natalie Huet |McKenzie Sadeghi |Chine Labbé
By Natalie Huet, McKenzie Sadeghi, and Chine LabbeA Russian propaganda operation that previously took aim at elections in the U.S. and Germany has a new target: France. NewsGuard found that Storm-1516 — a Russian influence operation that includes the efforts of John Mark Dougan, a former Florida deputy sheriff granted asylum in Moscow turned Kremlin propagandist that uses AI to create and spread false claims — targeted France with five false narratives from December 2024 to March 2025.
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1 month ago | 
newsguardtech.com | Natalie Huet |McKenzie Sadeghi |Chine Labbé
A full version of this report is available through NewsGuard’s Reality Check. By Natalie Huet, McKenzie Sadeghi, and Chine Labbe | Published April 17, 2025A Russian propaganda operation that previously took aim at elections in the U.S. and Germany has a new target: France.
