Bulldozing through Trump's most-watched YouTube video The Trump campaign's YouTube channel is a minefield of misinformation, with more than 900 videos posted to date. The most-watched video, with more than 21.5 million views, is all about former vice president Joe Biden and his relationship with China. In what has become a signature move, President Trump's ad-makers relied on deceptive editing to twist Biden's words and policy stances. The video combines images of closed factories, old Biden quotes and misleading claims about Hunter Biden and his involvement with a Chinese investment fund. Our video fact check shows why the blockbuster YouTube ad got Four Pinocchios. We compared the two videos side-by-side — the Trump ad and Biden's full remarks — showing how Trump's ad takes snippets from Biden out of context. We also show how Biden's answers about his son's dealings in Ukraine are presented misleadingly as responses about China. Enjoy this newsletter? Forward it to someone else who'd like it! If this email was forwarded to you, sign up here. Did you hear something fact-checkable? Send it here; we'll check it out. Biden cuts corners in covid ad A new video ad from Biden's campaign makes the case that Trump played down the novel coronavirus to the American public during critical early months when the virus was spreading, even though he understood its seriousness. That's not why we decided to fact-check the ad. Washington Post associate editor Bob Woodward, in his recent book, "Rage," reports that Trump privately acknowledged the coronavirus pandemic was a far more dire situation than what he publicly admitted. We gave the Biden campaign Two Pinocchios because the specific Trump quotes they chose to illustrate this point are questionable. In one case, we found use of manipulated video. In other cases, Trump quotes are taken out of context. For example, the video shows Trump at a June 20 rally saying, "Many call it a virus, which it is. Many call it a flu, what difference?" But in that instance, Trump wasn't questioning the severity of the coronavirus disease. He was remarking on the variety of names for covid-19 (in terms that readers may find puzzling for separate reasons). "It's a disease, without question, has more names than any disease in history. I can name Kung Flu. I can name 19 different versions of names. Many call it a virus, which it is. Many call it a flu. What difference? I think we have 19 or 20 different versions of the name." We're always looking for fact-check suggestions. You can reach us via email, Twitter (@GlennKesslerWP, @rizzoTK, @mmkelly22, @SarahCahlan) or Facebook. Read about our process and rating scale here, and sign up for the newsletter here. You can order our book, "Donald Trump and His Assault on Truth," in paperback, e-book and audiobook via Amazon, Barnes & Noble, independent booksellers or directly from the publisher. Scroll down for this week's Pinocchio roundup. | 
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