Fact Check

No, Object Shot Down Over Alaska Airspace Wasn't PR Stunt

The claim comes from a satire website.

Published Feb 15, 2023

 (Lance King / Stringer via Getty)
Image Via Lance King / Stringer via Getty
Claim:
The U.S. government shot down an "aerial target drone" over Alaska for PR purposes.

On Feb. 14, 2023, Real Raw News published an article claiming that the U.S. government shot down a drone over Alaska to make President Joe Biden look good:

Alaska Shootdown Was PR Stunt

The "object" shot down over Alaskan Airspace on Friday was a USAF "aerial target drone," not a balloon or extraterrestrial spacecraft, sources in General Eric M. Smith's office told Real Raw News.

The last week has seen a spate of so-called shootdowns of unidentified objects over North America.

The "story" isn't real. Real Raw News is a satire website. The website describes its content as satire on its about page:

"Information on this website is for informational and educational and entertainment purposes. This website contains humor, parody, and satire. We have included this disclaimer for our protection, on the advice on legal counsel."

On Feb. 10, an unidentified object was shot down over Alaskan airspace. White House officials are still working on identifying what the object was, according to a press conference held on Feb. 13.

For background, here is why we sometimes write about satire/humor.

 

Sources

Alaska Shootdown Was PR Stunt | Real Raw News. https://realrawnews.com/2023/02/alaska-shootdown-was-pr-stunt/. Accessed 15 Feb. 2023.

Britzky et. all. "What We Know about the Unidentified Object Shot down over Alaska." CNN, 11 Feb. 2023, https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/11/politics/unidentified-object-alaska-military-latest/index.html.

The White House. "Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby, February 13, 2023." The White House, 13 Feb. 2023, https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/press-briefings/2023/02/13/press-briefing-by-press-secretary-karine-jean-pierre-and-national-security-council-coordinator-for-strategic-communications-john-kirby-february-13-2023/.

Izz Scott LaMagdeleine is a fact-checker for Snopes.