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  • Snopes Digest #118: Minneapolis ICE shooting, executive editor farewell — and more

Snopes Digest #118: Minneapolis ICE shooting, executive editor farewell — and more

Here's what's happening inside the Snopes newsroom

Author

Izz LaMagdeleine
January 14, 2026

Jan. 14, 2025・Issue #118

1. Fact-checking highlight: Minneapolis ICE shooting

Let's talk about what's going on with Snopes: the newsroom, the products, the people, and everything and anything that makes Snopes, Snopes. This month, web producer/production editor Izz Scott LaMagdeleine rounded up some claims we’ve investigated related to the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis.

Since the fatal shooting of Renee Good by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Minneapolis last week, the internet has exploded with rumors about her and the circumstances surrounding her death.

For instance, we’ve debunked a fake photo allegedly showing the ICE agent who shot Good, as well as investigated a suspicious image supposedly showing her car at the time of the incident (also fake).

Here are six claims we've fact-checked related to the shooting:

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2. Meet the Snopes Staffer: Caroline Wazer

Meet the journalists behind Snopes. In this Q&A, assignments editor Caroline Wazer shares insights into her work and who she is.

Q: What does a typical day look like for you at Snopes and which part do you enjoy the most?

A: A normal day starts with me logging on before our first reporters (which means — this time of year, at least — before the sun rises) to get caught up on the day’s headlines and scan our tips inbox and website searches to see what our readers expressed interest in overnight. As reporters’ shifts begin, I then greet them and set them up with a topic to work on for the day. In the afternoon, I shift to line editing, which entails carefully reading story drafts to make sure our evidence and conclusions are sound and support our ratings, if applicable.

Throughout the day, I also field questions of all types from reporters and web producers. While these questions change from day to day, helping our staff track down an elusive piece of evidence or brainstorm alternative ways to solve a problem is often my favorite part of the job.

Q: What’s the biggest challenge that you currently see for fact-checkers?

A: A difficult reality of the internet today is how siloed internet users are within their own media bubbles, whether by choice or because of what algorithms are feeding them. This means many people susceptible to consuming and (often unintentionally) spreading online misinformation will never read our fact checks setting the record straight. Fortunately, there are still many people who do genuinely want to learn whether a claim they saw online is true or not. Knowing those readers are out there is great motivation to keep digging for the truth.

Q: What’s one of the most surprising or memorable claims you’ve edited?

A: There are many! A recent one that comes to mind is reporter Rae Deng’s juicy (sorry) investigation into the claim that the bones of Santa Claus have been leaking liquid for 1,700 years.

Q: What book, movie or show are you loving right now?

Now that “Pluribus” is on hiatus, I’ve been enjoying “Fallout.” I’m a longtime fan of the “Fallout” video game series (especially 2010’s “Fallout: New Vegas”), and it’s fun to see it adapted for TV.

Q: Do you have a pet? If so, tell us about them.

I have two rescue cats: a fluffy black one named Beau and a calico named Mama. They didn’t meet until they were both adults, but they became best friends and partners in crime almost instantly.

A black cat is shown lying below a calico cat, who is looking at the camera.

3. Overheard at Snopes

We look into a lot of weird stuff at Snopes. We imagine it's very interesting to be a fly on the wall, so we wanted to give you a look at some of the things we have to say when fact-checking.

Overheard:

“You can't baah serious”

— Reporter Laerke Christensen

4. Since we last met: Farewell from our executive editor

From former executive editor/managing editor Doreen Marchionni:

Friends, a quick note to let you know I retired on Jan. 2. I dodged a couple of health bullets in recent years that made me think hard about my mortality and health. Turning 60 in October did the same. I think I'm ready to live a quiet life outside of professional journalism for the first time in nearly 40 years.

No big plans for my retirement other than to do more of what I love — cooking (thank you NYT recipes!), reading classic novels (I'm coming for ya "Moby Dick") and staring out at the wildlife in my yard (the deer will be getting even more tossed apples).

This work of journalism and particularly fact-checking has been a rare privilege. I never could have imagined I'd end my career at a place whose internet cachet exceeds my dreams. The standards are astonishingly high, and I had a steep learning curve. I'm grateful the company took a chance on me seven years ago.

Now, as I leave and look back, I feel indebted to everyone here. Our CEO Chris Richmond understands the business side of news unlike anything I've ever experienced.

And our newsroom? Everyone here — from Senior Assignments Editor Jessica Lee, who's taking over as acting editor-in-chief, to our most recent hires, Reporter Emery Winter and Web Producer/Reporter Megan Loe — embraces a culture of collaboration and affection that leaves me in peace. Snopes' readers are in superb hands going forward. Thanks for giving us all a chance to be heard through our work.

See you on the other side. Truthfully yours,

Doreen

A white woman smiles while looking at the camera. Her desktop laptop shows a Slack workspace. A TV airing CNN is shown in the corner of the room, while the sweeatshirt hanging on her chair says WE NEED GOOD JOURNALISTS.

Mental Health Break

Snopes investigates some grim and depressing claims, so we know how important it is to your mental health to see something silly, funny, or just plain heartwarming. Here are some links that made us smile.

5. Snopes-worthy Media

What Snopes is paying attention to across the web.

— César López Linares, LatAmJournalism Review

— Jay Caspian Kang, The New Yorker

— Stephen Starr, The Guardian

Thanks for reading this edition of the Snopes Digest. We send new issues of the newsletter every month, so please add this email address to your white list and keep an eye out for the next issue.

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