Stand up for the facts!
Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy.
We need your help.
I would like to contribute
Altered video appears to show Fox News host Sean Hannity discussing Dr. Mehmet Oz fight
If Your Time is short
- This video was doctored. The fight happened on the set of a Polish TV show in 2017 and didn’t include Dr. Mehmet Oz.
A video showing a fight on a TV set before cutting to Fox News host Sean Hannity might look like a segment about — as the chyron reads — "a revolutionary new remedy."
But it’s yet another scam featuring celebrity doctor and former U.S. Senate candidate Mehmet Oz.
"An attempt on the life of a doctor on the air," Hannity appears to say in a May 1 Facebook post. "The Dr. Oz came to tell about a new innovative tool that always you to clean blood vessels and normalize blood pressure in a few days. Who is against this medical progress and why?"
The video then shows Oz standing before a microphone with what looks like a bruised face and discussing blood pressure.
"Dr. Oz is sure that absolutely everyone can cleanse their own vessels and in this way improve their health and well-being," a caption on the video said.
Sign up for PolitiFact texts
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.)
This video is a deepfake. The audio does not match the movement of Hannity’s or Oz’s lips, Fox News never reported on a supposed fight, and the clip of the fight comes from a Polish TV show that didn’t feature Oz. The clip showed two journalists who fought after one called the other’s ancestors communist fascists, the Mirror reported in 2017.
Featured Fact-check
The clip of Oz speaking at the microphone, meanwhile, was also altered. In the original, from 2014, he testified before Congress about misleading advertisements for weight loss supplements. His face wasn’t bruised as it appears in the Facebook video.
This post is similar to one PolitiFact checked in February and another we checked in March, both of which claimed to show Fox News host Laura Ingraham reporting on an attempt on Oz’s life. Both used unrelated video of televised brawls that did not involve Oz. Both employed AI to make it appear as if Ingraham said something she did not.
Those videos were fake, and so is this one. We rate it False.
Our Sources
Facebook post, May 1, 2024
PolitiFact, Dr. Oz wasn’t attacked on TV for diabetes cure; fight video is from Ukraine talk show, Feb. 26, 2024
Instagram post, Feb. 26, 2024
Mirror, Journalist punched in the face during TV debate after calling fellow guest's granddads "red fascists," April 27, 2017
CNN, Researchers retract study supporting diet pills promoted by Dr. Oz, Oct. 24, 2014
CNN, Dr. Oz: I'm not selling magic diet pills, June 17, 2014
Browse the Truth-O-Meter
More by Ciara O'Rourke
Altered video appears to show Fox News host Sean Hannity discussing Dr. Mehmet Oz fight
Support independent fact-checking.
Become a member!
In a world of wild talk and fake news, help us stand up for the facts.