Video shows Garland being questioned during hearing, no mention of jail | Fact check

Kate S. Petersen, USA TODAY
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The claim: Video shows Chuck Grassley receiving a standing ovation after criticizing Merrick Garland

A June 28 Facebook video (direct link, archive link) shows Sen. Chuck Grassley and Sen. Amy Klobuchar questioning U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland. In a second clip, the video shows Casey Mulligan, a University of Chicago professor, speaking.

"'YOU SCARE WITNESS' Grassley Blasts Garland with JAILTIME after Hunter's witness mess ... gets OVATION," reads the video's caption.

The video was shared more than 700 times in less than a week.

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Our rating: False

While the video does show Grassley questioning Garland, at no point does he receive a standing ovation. No one in the video says anything about "jailtime" for Garland, nor does anyone say, "You scare witness."

Video is example of 'false framing' misinformation

The first clip in the video shows Garland being questioned at a March 1 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.

Grassley, an Iowa Republican, asks Garland about legal protections for whistleblowers and then questions him about the president's son Hunter Biden, who recently agreed to plead guilty to two tax-related offenses and participate in a pretrial program for a firearm offense. Grassley also asks about national security issues.

Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat, then asks Garland about violent crime in the U.S.

The second clip included in the Facebook video shows Mulligan testifying at a June 14 House Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing about the potential household cost of Biden administration regulations.

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At no point in the video does Grassley receive a standing ovation, nor does anyone threaten Garland with jail or say, "you scare witness."

The Facebook post is an example of a type of misinformation known as "false framing," Mike Caulfield, a research scientist at the University of Washington’s Center for an Informed Public, previously told USA TODAY.

The technique can be effective because users tend to trust a post that features authentic footage from what they recognize as a credible source, he said. Additionally, users may scroll past the video with the sound off, never realizing the caption doesn’t match what the video shows.

USA TODAY has debunked numerous such miscaptioned videos.

USA TODAY reached out to the Facebook user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Garland questioned in video, no mention of jail time | Fact check