An image of a newspaper article says 'True Bethel Baptist Church becomes the first church in NYS to receive a liquor license.
Have you ever wanted to sip on a few cocktails during Sunday church? Well, an image of a newspaper headline being shared online would have you believe you could do just that in upstate New York. 'True Bethel Baptist Church becomes the first church in NYS to receive a Liquor License: Rev. Darius Pridgen thanks Mayor Brown,' reads what appears to be the lead headline on the front page of the Buffalo News newspaper. But, perhaps sadly for some, the news report is fake. The church did not receive or apply for a liquor license. There are several online tools people can use to generate fake news articles.
The post was flagged as part of Facebook's efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.) Featured Fact-check Facebook posts stated on November 3, 2021 in a Facebook post 'Trash bins discovered outside the Gloucester County Board of Elections containing blank ballots as well as bags of shredded ballots from Tuesday's election!' By Samantha Putterman • November 5, 2021 We could find no credible reports, from Buffalo News or any other news organization, that the church was granted a liquor license. A query on the New York State Liquor Authority website also showed no results. True Bethel Baptist Church told PolitiFact that it does not have a liquor license and that the image reflects a fake report. We rate this Pants on Fire!
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