Analysis: Viral post misleadingly links sunscreen use to higher cancer risk
Researchers tied the apparent link to behavioral factors, such as higher UV exposure and insufficient sunscreen use, not sunscreen itself
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annie lab
@HKU School of Future Media
Analysis
A shorter investigation story with a narrower scope.
Analysis: Overlapping EU regulations fueled confusion over smartphone batteries
The European Union does not require smartphones to return to a classic user-replaceable-battery design by 2027. Major models qualify for the professional-repairer-only exemption.
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Analysis: Viral video’s ‘human leg’ meat likely shows beef or other hoofed animal flesh
The Instagram user who shot the original clip says it is “a beef leg.” An anatomy expert says it has features typical of hoofed animals such as cows, sheep, goats, camels, or horses.
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Analysis: Viral ‘broken-leg women’ video falsely links charity footage to fake ‘marriage custom’
Widely shared clips repurpose charity videos on rural poverty and disability, not marriage customs or domestic abuse
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Analysis: No new Chinese law on influencers; livestream regulations took effect in 2022
Viral claims about China’s “new law” requiring influencers to prove their qualifications in medicine, law, finance, and education is misleading. It conflated an existing 2022 regulation for livestreamers.
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Analysis: Most German Christmas markets to open as planned in 2025
There is no credible evidence to support claims that due to security concerns, a large number of Christmas markets in Germany have been canceled. City officials and local tourism boards have confirmed most markets will go ahead as planned.
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Analysis: Narratives on ‘botched’ suicide prevention messages at Seoul’s Mapo Bridge
Internet users occasionally bring up the decade-old “Bridge of Life” campaign in South Korea even now, claiming that the suicide prevention measures in 2012 unintuitively contributed to more people jumping off the bridge. Annie Lab looked into what really happened.
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六年回顧：Annie Lab事實查核報告分析
正值Annie Lab成立六周年之際，我們檢視成立至今的事實查核報告，並回顧學生記者迄今打擊不實資訊的成果。
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Six years on: Our stories so far
This year marks the sixth anniversary of our fact-checking newsroom. We analyzed our reports and reflected on the students’ work so far.
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Analysis: No evidence supports viral story of US soldier’s assault in South Korea
Chinese social media posts claim a U.S. soldier recently live-streamed himself attacking South Koreans to gain followers on Xiaohongshu (RedNote). However, there is no evidence of such an incident; some screenshots were taken from news reports in 2022.
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