Fact Check

Did a Defunded Police Department Sell Off Its Nuclear Submarine?

A routine review of content labeled satire.

Published June 17, 2020

Claim:
A defunded police department in Montana was forced to sell their nuclear submarine.

On June 16, 2020, The Hard Times published an article saying that a defunded police department in Montana was forced to sell their nuclear submarine:

Defunded Police Department Forced to Sell Off Nuclear Submarine

The Kalispell Police Department was directed by city officials yesterday to sell its Seawolf-class nuclear attack submarine amidst nationwide protests to defund law enforcement, sorrowful sources confirmed.

This item was not a factual recounting of real-life events. The article originated from a website that describes its output as being humorous or satirical in nature, as follows:

The Hard Times is a very real punk news site that you should not question. Just absorb the information as truth and move on. The historic satire site was founded in December 1976. It’s made by a group of punk and hardcore kids from all the different sub-genres of the DIY hardcore scene. Any resemblance to actual persons or band names is coincidental.

This satirical article was illustrated with an image showing a submarine on the back of a truck. This image was fake, however, and was created by digitally inserting a submarine into the bed of an empty truck:

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

Sources

HardTimes.net.   "Defunded Police Department Forced to Sell Off Nuclear Submarine."     16 June 2020.