15 major global pandemics all originated in China.
The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on Twitter by @SHARKSURVIVOR1 on April 11, 2020. It opened:, This is what the post looked like on Twitter at the time of writing:, , The original infographic was published online by Visual Capitalist, a site that creates data-driven visuals to tell stories., However, another Internet user applied computer drawing tools over the original graphic to add circles along with the caption, "O=Originated in China." The new claim is that 15 of the deadliest pandemics in world history started in China., This is not entirely true. Lead Stories will break down each outbreak that was circled on the graphic:, As our reporting demonstrates, the post is partly false in suggesting that all 15 of the global pandemics circled on the infographic originated from China. At least seven, possibly more, of the outbreaks can be traced to other parts of the world., Also, it is worth noting that hate crimes against people of Asian descent have increased since the term "Chinese virus" started being used, including by President Trump, to describe the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19. The president received much backlash for use of the term, and it has resulted in charges of racism against him and others., , Lead Stories is working with the CoronaVirusFacts/DatosCoronaVirus Alliance, a coalition of more than 100 fact-checkers who are fighting misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn more about the alliance here., "Ryan Cooper, a staff writer and fact-checker for Lead Stories, is the former Director of Programming at CNN International, where he helped shape the networks daily newscasts broadcast to more than 280 million households around the world. He was based at the networks Los Angeles Bureau. There, he managed the team responsible for a three-hour nightly program,\xa0Newsroom LA.", "Formerly, he worked at the headquarters in Atlanta, and he spent four years at the London bureau. An award-winning producer, Cooper oversaw the networks Emmy Award-winning coverage of the uprising in Egypt in 2011. He also served as a supervising producer during much of the networks live reporting on the Israel-Hezbollah conflict in 2006, for which CNN received an Edward R. Murrow Award.", Lead Stories is a fact checking website that is always looking for the latest false, deceptive or\n      inaccurate stories (or media) making the rounds on the internet.\n      \n      Spotted something? Let us know!., Lead Stories is a fact checking website that is always looking for the latest false, deceptive or\n        inaccurate stories (or media) making the rounds on the internet.\n        \n        Spotted something? Let us know!.
Fact Check: 15 Global Pandemics Did NOT All Originate In China | Lead Stories