Fox News Sparks False Claim That New Orleans Slaughter Was ‘Migrant Crime’
Plus: Faked Russian Claims that Ukraine Tried to Assassinate Trump; False Charges of Anti-Christian Bias by ESPN Spark Boycott Calls
Welcome to Reality Check, your inside look at how misinformation online is undermining trust — and who’s behind it.
“The burden now falls on you to find sources of information you trust for reliable truth. That means better scrutinizing not only the publications you choose, but the individuals you follow on social media. That’s a lot to ask — but it’s the new necessity.” — Mike Allen, Axios, Jan. 8, 2025
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Today:
Erroneous Fox News report sparks false allegations that New Orleans attacker was a migrant, even after Fox issued a correction
Staged Russian video claims Ukraine tried to assassinate Trump
Conservative accounts falsely blame ESPN for discriminating against Christian quarterback
NewsGuard’s 2024 Disinformer of the Year accepts title “with honor”
And More …
Today’s newsletter was edited by Eric Effron and Sofia Rubinson.
1. Pro-Trump Accounts Falsely Claim New Orleans Attacker Was a Migrant
What happened: Pro-Trump social media users, including President-elect Donald Trump, falsely claimed that Shamsud-Din Jabbar, the suspect authorities say drove a vehicle into a crowd on New Year’s Day, was not born in the United States, erroneously describing the deadly attack as an instance of “migrant crime.”
Context: In the early hours of Jan. 1, law enforcement officials say that Jabbar drove a pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, killing 14 people and injuring dozens of others.
A closer look: Approximately six hours later, Fox News (NewsGuard Trust Score: 69.5/100) incorrectly reported that the vehicle used in the attack crossed the U.S.-Mexico border into Eagle Pass, Texas, two days before the attack, leading some politicians and commentators to pin the attack on a migrant.
In a Jan. 1 post on Truth Social about the New Orleans attack, Donald Trump said that “the criminals coming in are far worse than the criminals we have in our country.” The post received 54,500 likes and 13,600 reposts on the platform.
Republican U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene posted on X the day of the attack: “New Orleans terrorist attacker is said to have come across the border in Eagle Pass TWO DAYS AGO!!! Shut the border down!!!” The post garnered 2.5 million views and 12,000 likes.
Actually: Two hours after its initial report, Fox News Digital issued a correction, citing “[f]ederal law enforcement sources” and stating that the truck had crossed into the U.S. more than a month before the attack, and that its driver “does not appear to be” the suspect. Indeed, law enforcement officials said Jabbar rented the vehicle on Dec. 30 and drove it from Houston, Texas, to New Orleans. (Trump’s and Greene’s posts were issued prior to the Fox correction.)
There is compelling evidence that Jabbar, who died in a shootout with police on the scene, was not a migrant to the U.S.
On the day of the attack, the FBI issued a statement describing Jabbar as a U.S. citizen from Texas.
Reputable outlets, including The Wall Street Journal (Trust Score: 100/100), characterized Jabbar as being “born and bred” in Texas.
In a now-deleted YouTube video, Jabbar himself said that he was “born and raised in Beaumont, Texas,” according to an excerpt from the video broadcast by CNN (Trust Score: 80/100) on Jan. 1.
NewsGuard found records from the North Carolina State Board of Elections that show Jabbar was a registered voter in the 2012 general election. Only U.S. citizens can vote in North Carolina.
Despite the Fox News correction and reports from authorities and the press, none of the social media posts describing Jabbar as a migrant or non-citizen had been corrected as of Jan. 9, 2025.
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2. Russian Video Falsely Links Would-Be Trump Assassin to Ukraine
What happened: Pro-Kremlin media is circulating a video purporting to show a U.S. Secret Service agent searching the home of Donald Trump alleged would-be assassin Ryan Wesley Routh and finding evidence of Ukrainian involvement in the assassination plot.
In fact, the video is a hoax linked to a Russian influence operation that regularly creates faked videos.
Context: Since Routh was arrested by authorities on Sept. 15, 2024, near Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach in the second apparent assassination attempt against Trump, Russian state media has used 58-year-old Routh’s documented support for Ukraine to claim that he was acting under the direction of the Ukrainian government.
A closer look: The elaborately detailed one-minute video shows several items supposedly found at Routh’s residence, including a Ukrainian identification card belonging to Routh and a certified “letter of appreciation” addressed to Routh from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office. In the video, a person whose face is not shown states: “Upon entering the suspect’s bedroom, we found a few items that caught our attention. … I’m special agent Dun ID 5596 United States Secret Service.”
You can watch the video here:
The video, first identified by the Gnida Project, an anonymous group of volunteers that tracks Russian influence operations, spread on X in both English and French.
The video appears to have originated with a Jan. 3 post from the anonymous X account @newsleakmonitor that included the caption: “New leaked court files reveal that Ryan Routh, the man who tried to assassinate Donald Trump, was cooperating with Ukrainian intelligence. Messages found on Routh’s phones suggest that he worked with Ukrainian handlers right up until his arrest.” The post generated 20,000 views.
A Jan. 3 X post from the pro-Kremlin account @DD_Geopolitics included the video and stated: “The man who tried to assassinate Trump in September 2024? A Ukrainian agent. Are we surprised?” The post generated 45,900 views and 800 likes and reposts in three days.
Actually: The video is staged, and the supposed evidence is fake.
NewsGuard found that Routh’s signature listed on the purported Ukrainian identification card does not match his signature that has appeared in legal documents.
The supposed “letter of appreciation” addressed to Routh is inconsistent with such letters that Zelensky’s office has handed out to members of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
The man in the video appears to have used a filter to lower the pitch of his voice in an apparent effort to mask his identity. NewsGuard, using an audio forensics tool, increased the pitch of the audio to remove the filter and found that the man’s voice strongly resembles that of John Mark Dougan, the former deputy Florida sheriff who fled to Moscow and has become a key player in the Kremlin’s disinformation campaigns.
Dougan was recently named NewsGuard’s 2024 Disinformer of the Year (more on this below).
Ukrainian officials have previously refuted claims that Routh had any links to the Ukrainian government or military.
“American citizen Ryan Routh has never served in the International Legion of the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine [and] has no relation to the unit,” Ukraine’s International Legion wrote in a Sept. 16, 2024, statement on X following Routh’s arrest. “Rumors disseminated in certain media are not true.”
More context: Routh has pleaded not guilty to five federal charges, including attempted assassination. His trial is scheduled to start on Sept. 8, 2025.
Click here to find out more about NewsGuard Trust Scores and our process for rating websites. You can download NewsGuard’s browser extension, which displays NewsGuard Trust Score icons next to links on search engines, social media feeds, and other platforms by clicking here.
3. No, Disney’s ESPN Did Not Exclude a Player Due to His Christian Faith
By Coalter Palmer and Natalie Adams
What happened: After Ohio State’s Rose Bowl win against the University of Oregon on New Year’s Day, conservative commentators took to X to falsely claim that ESPN had barred Ohio State quarterback Will Howard from celebrating on stage with his teammates because he is a devout Christian — with some calling for a boycott of the Disney-owned sports broadcaster.
A closer look: Conservative accounts claimed that Howard, who is a vocal Christian and has thanked Jesus in post-game interviews, was barred from the victory stage due to his faith.
Conservative commentator Nick Adams posted a video on X showing a security official telling Howard he could not go on stage, alongside the text: “ESPN blocked Ohio State QB Will Howard from joining his teammates on stage after their epic Rose Bowl. The woke network was afraid Howard would give glory to God and acknowledge Christ as his savior on live TV. Should Christians boycott ESPN?” The post gained 3.9 million views in one day.
In the comments section, dozens of users called for a boycott of ESPN. One reply that gained 26,000 views stated: “@espn are you kidding me? Apology needed immediately and airtime or boycott will commence.”
Actually: Howard was initially barred from the stage, but that was due to the stage’s weight limit, video footage of the incident shows. And it wasn’t ESPN that blocked him. See below:
In the video, Howard is shown speaking with a Rose Bowl security official on the stage and then turning around and telling people gathered around him: “Guys, there’s a weight limit, apparently. … They’re literally blocking me out.” Ohio State sports reporter Chase Brown posted on X that Howard said: “I guess [the official] said there was a weight limit, and there were too many people on it. … That’s all it was.”
The footage also shows Ohio State running back TreVeyon Henderson in the background wearing eye black under his eyes inscribed with the bible verse “Romans 3:22” — evidence that security officials were not denying players access to the stage due to their Christian beliefs.
Additionally, the security official who told Howard he could not go on the platform was an employee of the Rose Bowl stadium, not ESPN, according to a report in Sports Illustrated (Trust Score: 82.5/100).
In a statement posted to the organization’s Instagram account, Rose Bowl officials said: “While Will was able to eventually get on the stage, this came down to the weight limit of the stage, and the safety of everyone involved in the postgame awards ceremony.” Reached by email in January 2025, ESPN director of communications Amanda Brooks pointed NewsGuard to the Rose Bowl’s statement.
NewsGuard sent a message to Howard on X seeking comment in January 2025 but did not receive a response.
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4. In Case You Missed It … John Mark Dougan Welcomes “Disinformer of the Year” Award
In response to NewsGuard’s recent publication of its report naming John Mark Dougan the 2024 Disinformer of the Year, Dougan — the Florida fugitive who gained asylum in Russia — welcomed his recognition in a post on Russian social media platform VK. Here’s a translation:
“I’ve won a very prestigious award. Disinformation Agent of 2024. They’re talking about stories published about me in The New York Times, Washington Post and the BBC as well as about research by universities and Microsoft. If the West really hates me so strongly, that means I’m doing something right and destroying their evil plans. They consider this award an insult, but I accept it with honor. Fighting for Russia in any capacity is an honor.”
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