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Altered image appears to show President Joe Biden with a diaper
President Joe Biden fell during the June 1 graduation ceremony at the U.S. Air Force Academy outside of Colorado Springs, Colorado, but what could have been an embarrassing event was not made more so by the unexpected appearance of a presidential diaper.
Images appearing to show such an exposure were altered.
But plenty of social media posts passed the pictures off as authentic.
"The current state of the U.S. in one photo," a June 4 Facebook post said, using the hashtag #DementiaJoe.
"Biden’s diaper is coming out of his pants," a June 16 tweet said. "The end of #America has begun."
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"BIden wear diapers," read another from a few days earlier.
This post was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram.)
The original image, taken by Agence France-Presse photographer Brendan Smialowski, shows three people helping Biden up after he fell, and no diaper is visible.
Video footage of the event from other news outlets, such as ABC News, confirms that no diaper was revealed. Rather, Biden got up and walked back to his seat.
We rate claims that this image is authentic … Diaper Pants on Fire!
Our Sources
Facebook post, June 4, 2023
Tweet, June 16, 2023
Tweet, June 13, 2023
Agence France-Presse photo, June 1, 2023
ABC News, Biden falls on stage at US Air Force Academy commencement, June 1, 2023
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Altered image appears to show President Joe Biden with a diaper
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