View this email in your browser ([link removed])
An update from FactCheck.org
Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images


** Q&A on Updated COVID-19 Vaccines
------------------------------------------------------------

The updated COVID-19 vaccines that target the latest, prevalent variants of the disease are being rolled out in the U.S.

The release comes as the U.S. has seen an uptick in new COVID-19 hospitalizations in recent weeks. There were nearly 19,000 new hospital admissions for the week of Sept. 2 — up about 9% from the prior week, according to the CDC ([link removed]) . The figures, though, are half the peak numbers for the COVID-19 surge late last year.

Everyone 6 months of age and older is eligible for the updated vaccines.

To help answer your questions, FactCheck.org Managing Editor Lori Robertson and SciCheck Staff Writer Catalina Jaramillo reviewed the data and talked to experts for their article, "Q&A on the Updated COVID-19 Vaccines ([link removed]) ."

Lori and Catalina answer questions about the safety and effectiveness of the vaccines, the evidence that supports the use of the vaccines, how they are different from the bivalent boosters, and what experts say about who should get the vaccines and when.
HOW WE KNOW
When President Joe Biden said he was at ground zero in New York a day after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Deputy Managing Editor Rob Farley went to Biden's book, "Promises to Keep," the Congressional Record and C-SPAN to find out where Biden was on Sept. 12, 2001. All showed that he was in Washington, D.C., that day. Rob asked the White House for clarification, and it sent him a photo of Biden at ground zero on Sept. 20, 2001. Rob located the photo in Getty Images. Read more ([link removed]) .
FEATURED FACT
As president, Donald Trump secured $16.4 billion to expand border barrier construction along the U.S. southern border with Mexico — including $10 billion in redirected military funds. However, $4.75 billion of the military funds were not disbursed before he left office, according to the Congressional Research Service. Over the course of his four-year term, Trump constructed 85 miles of new and 373 miles of replacement barriers along the border. Read more ([link removed]) .
WORTHY OF NOTE
Our parent organization, the Annenberg Public Policy Center, released its annual civics knowledge survey, and the results are "worrisome," as APPC Director Kathleen Hall Jamieson put it.

“It is worrisome that one in six U.S. adults cannot name any of the branches of government and that only 1 in 20 can name all five freedoms protected by the First Amendment,” Jamieson said. “One is unlikely to cherish or work to protect freedoms one does not know one has and will have trouble holding elected and unelected leaders accountable if one does not understand the nature and prerogatives of each branch and the ways in which the power of each is kept in check.”

The survey is conducted annually to celebrate Constitution Day, which is Sept. 17 -- the day that the U.S. Constitution was signed ([link removed]) in Philadelphia in 1787.

For more about this year's survey results, read the APPC press release ([link removed]) .
REPLY ALL

Reader: Is Bill Gates dropping GMO mosquitoes on Florida allowed by [Florida Gov.] Ron DeSantis?

FactCheck.org Director Eugene Kiely: The short answer is no.

But I can understand why you may have heard otherwise. We addressed the confusion in a July 18 article, "U.S.-Acquired Malaria Cases Spark False Claims of Links to Gates-Funded Research ([link removed]) ."

In our article, we wrote that the Gates Foundation has provided funding to a British biotech company, Oxitec, to release genetically modified mosquitoes in Africa in an attempt to fight the spread of malaria. These GM mosquitoes -- all males -- are incapable of transmitting diseases because males don’t bite. Only female mosquitoes bite people. After they are released, the GM male mosquitoes mate with wild females. But Oxitec researchers inserted a gene that leads to developmental problems in the GM mosquitoes’ offspring. The idea is to ultimately have fewer biting mosquitoes in subsequent generations, leading to fewer cases of mosquito-borne diseases like malaria.

What does this have to do with Florida? Well, the Environmental Protection Agency and Food and Drug Administration have cleared Oxitec to conduct pilot projects in the U.S., and the company has released GM mosquitoes in the Florida Keys to combat dengue, Zika and yellow fever. But the Gates Foundation “does not fund any work involving mosquito release in the United States,” a spokesperson for the foundation told us in an email.


** Wrapping Up
------------------------------------------------------------

Here's what else we've got for you this week:
* "FactChecking McCarthy’s Impeachment Inquiry Claims ([link removed]) ": Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced on Sept. 12 that he would direct the House to open a formal impeachment inquiry against President Joe Biden. We review specific allegations that McCarthy made and where those allegations fall short of the evidence so far.
* "Trump Walked Back Abortion Statement Misleadingly Used in Biden-Harris Ad ([link removed]) ": As a presidential candidate seven years ago, Donald Trump said women needed to face “some form” of punishment for violating abortion bans — a position he quickly retracted after being criticized. But the former president’s original remark about punishing women is misleadingly featured in an ad from the campaign to reelect President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
* "Video Falsely Claims 850 People Died of Myocarditis in Mexico ([link removed]) ": Cases of myocarditis have been reported following mRNA COVID-19 vaccination, but they are rare and usually mild. Yet, a viral video distorts news reports to falsely claim 850 people died in Monterrey, Mexico, in June due to myocarditis. The figure comes from a false report of heat-related deaths.
* "Biden Wrongly Claims to Have Visited New York City a Day After 9/11 ([link removed]) ": Speaking at a military base in Alaska on the anniversary of 9/11, President Joe Biden wrongly said that he visited ground zero in New York City the day after the attack. Biden first visited the site nine days after terrorists flew planes into the twin towers at the World Trade Center.
* "Posts Misrepresent Use of Floodgates at Southern Border ([link removed]) ": To avoid damage from heavy rains, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials have opened floodgates along Arizona’s border fencing during monsoon season since 2009. But social media users, including Sen. Ted Cruz, shared posts with the misleading claim that the Biden administration opened the gates “by design” to allow illegal immigration.

Y lo que publicamos en español ([link removed]) (English versions are accessible in each story):
* "Video afirma falsamente que 850 personas murieron de miocarditis en México ([link removed]) ": Se han notificado casos de miocarditis después de las vacunas de ARNm contra el COVID-19, pero son muy poco frecuentes y generalmente leves. Sin embargo, un video viral distorsiona notas de prensa para afirmar falsamente que 850 personas murieron en Monterrey, México, por miocarditis en junio. La cifra proviene de información falsa sobre muertes causadas por el calor.

Do you like FactCheck.Weekly? Share it with a friend! They can subscribe here ([link removed]) .
Donate to Support Our Work ([link removed])

============================================================
** Twitter ([link removed])
** Facebook ([link removed])
** Instagram ([link removed])
We'll show up in your inbox every Friday with this fact-focused rundown. But you can message us any day of the week with questions or comments: [email protected].
Copyright © 2023 FactCheck.org, All rights reserved.

Our mailing address is:
FactCheck.org
Annenberg Public Policy Center
202 S. 36th St.
Philadelphia, PA 19104-3806

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed][UNIQID]&c=ff9a7620f9&utm_source=FactCheck.org&utm_campaign=373af197ab-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2023_09_12_08_52&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-373af197ab-%5BLIST_EMAIL_ID%5D)
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed][UNIQID]&c=ff9a7620f9&utm_source=FactCheck.org&utm_campaign=373af197ab-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2023_09_12_08_52&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-373af197ab-%5BLIST_EMAIL_ID%5D)
.

This email was sent to [email protected] (mailto:[email protected])
why did I get this? ([link removed]) unsubscribe from this list ([link removed]) update subscription preferences ([link removed])
FactCheck.org: A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania . 202 S 36th St. . Philadelphia, Pa 19104 . USA