Did the grim reaper make an appearance at King Charles' Coronation? No, that's not true: the mysterious figure in a black cloak seen walking at the back of the altar was actually a staff member assisting in the coronation. The claim appeared on TikTok (archived here) on May 9, 2023. The video shows footage taken from a Japanese news channel…
Is Heizo Takenaka ethnically Korean? Did he embezzle money for Soka Gakkai? No, that's not true: Heizo Takenaka was born on March 3, 1951, in Wakayama City, Wakayama Prefecture. He is the second of three brothers and his family owns a small footwear store. He did not embezzle taxpayers' money to Soka Gakkai. Heizo Takenaka is an influential economist, businessman…
Is Prime Minister Kishida related to former PM Shinzo Abe? No, that's not true: The politicians' family trees are different. The claim appeared on TikTok (archived here) on May 20, 2023. The video shows PM Kishida's genealogy, tracing his grandfather, Masaki Kishida, towards Nobusuke Kishi, who is Abe's grandfather and the former Prime Minister of Japan. The video then talks…
Was a strange cloud resembling a UFO seen in the sky close to the Ishikawa earthquake on May 5, 2023, and was it similar to the one spotted in Turkey before the devastating earthquake of February 6, 2023? No, that's not true: the disk-shaped cloud, called lenticular cloud, was reported in the Kanto region at the time, hours away from…
Are Chinese and Korean media outlets spying Japanese media since they share the same office address? No, that's not true: Many foreign media have local news bureaus in buildings where Japanese media are based and there's nothing secret or furtive about that. The claim appeared on a TikTok video (archived here) on April, 13, 2023. The text on the video,…
Is it true that the Nippon Telegraph and Telephone East Corporation (NTT) and Gryllus are using crickets as a way to control humans via 5G and graphene oxide? No, that's not true: NTT is merely funding Gryllus' efforts to create smart crickets to solve the potential protein shortage in the future. The claim initially appeared on TikTok (archived here) on…
Is it true that taking a 6th vaccine dose will cause cancer because COVID vaccines contain cancer-inducing gene mutations? No, that's not true: 5 or 6 doses (including booster shots) are recommended to people who are immunocompromised or at risk, and there is no evidence that the COVID vaccine causes cancer. The claim originally appeared on TikTok (archived here) on…
Is this a picture of protesters against the G7 summit in Hiroshima? No, that's not true: These protesters in Shibuya are demonstrating against the revision of immigration law. Intentionally or not, the video has led many people to believe that this photo depicts protesters against the G7 summit in Hiroshima. As of May 26, 2023, there have been 710 comments,…
Are patients undergoing cancer treatment likely to die twice as fast from cancer compared to patients who choose not to be treated? No, that's not true: a video circulating on social media refers to a series of scientific studies very popular in Japan in the early '90s whose results have been misrepresented. The claim appeared in a video (archived here)…
Did a Ukrainian government official say her country would return the Russian held Northern Territories to Japan if Ukraine wins the war? No, she did not say that: Deputy Prime Minister and Reunification Minister of Ukraine Irina Bereschuk said during an interview that Ukraine supports Japan's territorial integrity and its sovereignty over the northern territories. The claim appeared on TikTok…
Is there currently a zombie outbreak in China? No, that's not true: the video showing the zombie outbreak was taken from an Indonesian zombie-themed event inspired by a South Korean film "Train to Busan." According to an Instagram post, the Jakarta LRT organized a paid event in collaboration with Pandora Box, an Indonesian escape room organizer, inspired by the 2016…
Is Japan unable to produce batteries for electric vehicles? No, that's not true: Japanese company Panasonic produces EV batteries and is ranked as a major player in the EV batteries global market. The claim appeared in a TikTok video (archived here) posted on November 9, 2022. The person making the claim is Sohei Kamiya, a member of the House of…
Do earthquakes frequently occur at 10km hypocenter depths in Japan and is this because of DUMBs? No, that's not true: earthquakes do not occur frequently at at this depth and there is no such thing as DUMBs. According to Anti Defamation League (ADL), DUMBs is short for Deep Underground Military Bases. This conspiracy theory suggests that children, trafficked by the…
Is Japan occupied by the U.S. because it has military bases in the country? No, that's not true: There are U.S. bases in many countries worldwide. This does not mean that they are occupied. The U.S. currently does not occupy other countries. According to Politico, the United States still maintain nearly 800 military bases in more than 70 countries and…
Were the Ishikawa earthquakes caused artificially? No, that's not true: the seismic waves of the Ishikawa earthquakes follow the same pattern as a natural earthquake. According to the Human-Induced Earthquake Database, there was no sign of an artificial earthquake in the region. The claim originally appeared on TikTok (archived here) on May 6, 2023. The video is a still image…
Are pharmaceutical companies deliberately hiding the benefits of citric acid in order to sell cancer therapy drugs? No, that's not true: Citric acid remains an essential ingredient in drugs sold by many pharmaceutical companies. The claim initially appeared in a TikTok video (archived here) which was published by @sakurasaku116 on April 27, 2023. The video opens with a brief explanation…
Does the Yamasa Corporation contain mRNA in its soy sauce? No, it does not: there is no mRNA in Yamasa soy sauce. The claim appeared on a TikTok video (archived here) on May 1st, 2023. The video, with the sound effect of an emergency alarm, shows an article from The Chemical Daily which reads: Yamasa Soy Sauce Increases Production of…
Is Japanese Empress Michiko of Korean origin and the daughter of organized crime figure, Kakuji Inagawa? No, that's not true: Empress Michiko is Japanese and the daughter of Hidesaburo Shouda, who was a Japanese businessman. The claim originated from TikTok video (archived here) on March 7th, 2023. At 0:29 seconds in the video, the speaker says: The person who does…
Is Japan's post-war occupation power referred to as the General Headquarters (GHQ) a prohibited topic of study in Japanese Universities? No, that's not true: Japanese university research papers and archives are widely available on the subject of the six-year post-war occupation policy carried out under the GHQ. The claim appeared on TikTok video (archived here) on May 19th, 2022. The…
Do people need to exchange Japanese banknotes once the new notes are issued in May 2023? No, that's not true: People can continuously use their old notes. The claim appeared on TikTok (archived here) on April 27th 2023. The man in the video is introduced as Professor Toshio Nishi of Stanford University, Hoover Institution. One of the on-screen titles is…
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