Announcement of Jimmy Carter's death is fabricated, but fooled many | Fact check
The claim: President Jimmy Carter died July 23, 2024
A July 23 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) shared a screenshot of a purported statement from the office of former President Jimmy Carter.
“Former President Jimmy Carter – James Earl Carter, Jr. – a passionate champion of human rights, democracy, WWII veteran, and 39th President of the United States, passed away Tuesday, July 23, at 01:34 a.m. at his home in Plains, Georgia, at the age of 99,” the purported statement began.
The post was shared more than 1,000 times in a few hours.
More from the Fact-Check Team: How we pick and research claims | Email newsletter | Facebook page
Our rating: False
Carter was still alive at the time of publication. The claim is based on a fabricated news release, and his charitable organization confirmed he was still alive.
Carter in hospice care for past 17 months
Carter, the oldest living former president at 99 years, entered hospice care Feb. 18, 2023, opting to forgo medical treatments after cancer had spread to his brain. His grandson Jason said in June that the former president was “experiencing the world as best he can as he continues through this process.”
A spokesperson for the Carter Center, a global charity founded by Carter and his late wife, Rosalynn, told USA TODAY on July 23 that Carter was still alive.
“This is false. There has been no change or announcement,” the spokesperson, who declined to be named, wrote in response to an email inquiring about the claim.
The images in the post contain several clues that it was a fabrication. The document is highly critical in places of Carter’s tenure in the White House. It also uses vulgar language and slang that would not be found in such a document.
Fact check: Jimmy Carter put his peanut farm into a blind trust during presidency
Those red flags did not stop some from being fooled.
Utah Sen. Mike Lee shared the fabricated press release on X and reacted to Carter's supposed death before quickly deleting it. Lee has shared false information through social media in the past. He promoted the false claim that a Jan. 6 rioter shown in Capitol security videos was actually an undercover FBI agent and wrongly claimed Joe Biden had a medical emergency on Air Force One. Lee's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The New York Post also published and then removed an obituary for Jimmy Carter, a Bing search result shows. The link now redirects to the homepage of the Post.
In addition, at least one Montana TV station erroneously published a pre-written obituary for Carter. The station took down the piece, then posted a new story calling the release a fake and attributing the earlier publication to a “Scripps News publishing error.” Conservative commentator Laura Loomer also acknowledged posting and then removing the statement from her X account.
USA TODAY reached out to the Facebook user who shared the claim for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Reuters and Snopes also debunked the claim.
Our fact-check sources:
Carter Center, July 23, Email exchange with USA TODAY
USA TODAY, June 9, 'Experiencing the world as best he can': Jimmy Carter's grandson shares update on his grandfather's health
Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or e-newspaper here.
USA TODAY is a verified signatory of the International Fact-Checking Network, which requires a demonstrated commitment to nonpartisanship, fairness and transparency. Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Meta.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jimmy Carter death announcement is a fabrication | Fact check