We explained what we know about gain-of-function research after another heated argument between Anthony Fauci and Rand Paul. 

View this email in your browser ([link removed])
An update from FactCheck.org


** Untangling that Fiery Fauci-Paul Exchange
------------------------------------------------------------

Anthony Fauci. Rand Paul. Round 2.

This week, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the Republican senator from Kentucky squared off once again ([link removed]) during a public hearing — each accusing the other of lying about "gain-of function" research and whether the U.S. government ever funded it in Wuhan, China.

Managing Editor Lori Robertson and Science Editor Jessica McDonald looked at the exchange and explained ([link removed]) what we know about gain-of-function research — a type of research the U.S. generally defined in 2014 as aiming to "increase the ability of infectious agents to cause disease by enhancing its pathogenicity or by increasing its transmissibility" — as well as the origins of SARS-CoV-2.

In short, there's quite a bit in dispute.

The Wuhan Institute of Virology did receive some money from a National Institutes of Health grant ($600,000), but the NIH and Fauci maintain the research done wasn't gain-of-function. Paul disagrees, and cited one scientist who is a critic of the research. There are differing opinions on what counts as gain-of-function research, and which experiments can yield valuable information on pathogens and which are too risky.

Paul also claimed that "all the evidence is pointing" to SARS-CoV-2 coming "from the lab." But as we've explained ([link removed]) , there is no evidence linking the virus to the lab, just speculation. Many scientists with expertise in coronaviruses consider a lab escape unlikely and a natural spillover of the virus from an animal to a human the most likely scenario, based on the data we have so far.

Read the full story, "Fauci and Paul, Round 2 ([link removed]) ."
HOW WE KNOW
Democrat Julián Castro recently claimed that Texas has the "highest COVID positivity rate and case count in the nation." COVID-19 cases in the state are going up, but CDC data ([link removed]) as of July 15 showed other states had higher seven-day test positivity and case rates. Read more ([link removed]) .
FEATURED FACT
Public trust in the government was 24% in April, the same as the moving average back in August under then-President Trump, according to the Pew Research Center ([link removed]) . We dug up that statistic when President Biden mentioned it during a town hall event — one of several claims we checked ([link removed]) .
FROM THE TOOLKIT
Spot an image going viral on social media and want to check if it's being represented accurately? Try a reverse image search. Use Google Images ([link removed]) or TinEye ([link removed]) to search by image to try to track down where else it's been published — and when.
REPLY ALL

Reader: Instead of just answering a question or stating what you believe to be true, why don’t you state your source so we can do our own research? I never take what anyone says as truth. I like to do my own research and fact checking.

FactCheck.org Director Eugene Kiely: You ask, “why don’t you state your source so we can do our own research?” We do! It’s great that you want to do your own research and fact-checking. That’s why we provide hyperlinks to all the sources that we use in fact-checking. It allows our staff to fact-check our stories prior to publication, and it allows readers to do their own fact-checking of our report.

It’s true that our fact-checking articles — most of them, anyway — reach a conclusion on whether a claim is false, misleading or otherwise wrong. But we provide the information so you can draw your own conclusions.


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

Here's what else we've got for you this week:
* "FactChecking Biden’s CNN Town Hall ([link removed]) ": President Joe Biden got some facts wrong and overstated others — including on the COVID-19 vaccines and automobile prices — during a CNN town hall event.

* "Debunking Trump’s Latest Arizona Election Claims ([link removed]) ": After a contractor hired by state Senate Republicans to look into the results of the 2020 Arizona election provided an update on its findings at a legislative hearing, former President Donald Trump issued a series of false and misleading statements about what it has uncovered.

* "Businessman’s Social Media Post Distorts Facts on Definition of a Pandemic ([link removed]) ": A businessman’s post on Instagram and Facebook wrongly claims that the U.S. government “changed the definition of pandemic” in 2004, suggesting that COVID-19 would not have qualified under the old definition. There’s no evidence for those claims — and COVID-19 is by all means a pandemic.

* "Photo Shows 2018 France World Cup Celebration, Not Vaccine Protest ([link removed]) ": Social media posts are misrepresenting an old photo from France by suggesting the sea of people in the streets shows “[p]eople are waking up against vaccine tyranny.” The photo actually shows a celebration in Paris after France won the 2018 World Cup.

* "CDC Data Contradict Julián Castro’s Texas COVID-19 Claims ([link removed]) ": Cases of COVID-19 are increasing in Texas, but it doesn’t have the "highest COVID positivity rate and case count in the nation" — contrary to what Democrat Julián Castro recently tweeted.

* "Mayim Bialik and Sons Got COVID-19 Vaccine ([link removed]) ": Actress and neuroscientist Mayim Bialik has expressed skepticism about vaccines in the past, but she says she and her two teenage children have received the COVID-19 vaccine. A Facebook post says Bialik “refuses to vaccinate,” leaving the false impression that she opposes COVID-19 vaccines.

* "Viral Posts Lift Bogus ‘Quarantine’ Story from Satire Site ([link removed]) ": A satire site a month ago published a joke about the Biden administration creating “quarantine camps” for the unvaccinated. Now that fabricated story is circulating online, presented as if it’s real.

* "More Trump Election Distortions ([link removed]) ": Former President Donald Trump offered two new distortions of the facts about election results in Georgia, a state where recounts showed he narrowly lost by 12,670 votes.

Y lo que publicamos en español (English versions are accessible in each story):
* "Afirmaciones infundadas surgen tras muertes de pilotos de aerolíneas inglesas e indias ([link removed]) ": Luego de las muertes de cuatro pilotos de British Airways y cinco de Air India, publicaciones en las redes sociales afirman sin pruebas que los pilotos murieron como resultado de recibir las vacunas contra el COVID-19. Air India dijo que sus pilotos fallecieron de COVID-19. British Airways dijo “no hay nada de cierto en las afirmaciones en las redes sociales que especulan que las cuatro muertes están vinculadas”.

* "Meme divulga falsedad sobre la variante delta ([link removed]) ": La variante delta del virus que causa el COVID-19 se propaga más rápido que el virus original y ha sido clasificada como una “variante preocupante” por la Organización Mundial de la Salud. Delta es ahora la variante dominante en Estados Unidos, pero un meme que ha es.

* "No hay nuevas revelaciones sobre la hidroxicloroquina y el COVID-19 ([link removed]) ": Según conclusiones de ensayos controlados aleatorios, considerados como la evidencia más fidedigna, la hidroxicloroquina no es beneficiosa para tratar a pacientes hospitalizados por COVID-19. Sin embargo, mensajes en las redes sociales afirman que el medicamento funciona y medios conservadores promocionan un estudio observacional, no publicado aún y muy criticado, como evidencia de su efectividad.

Have a question about COVID-19 and the vaccines? Visit our SciCheck page ([link removed]) for answers. It's available in Spanish ([link removed]) , too.
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 © 2021 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=9475b60e9f-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2021_07_22_03_23&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_3294bba774-9475b60e9f-48392213)
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed][UNIQID]&c=ff9a7620f9&utm_source=FactCheck.org&utm_campaign=9475b60e9f-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2021_07_22_03_23&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_3294bba774-9475b60e9f-48392213)
.

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