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[Facebook posts](
stated on September 16, 2020 in a Facebook post:
“This Is Real: Biden Waves To An Empty Field.”
[Facebook Fact-checks]( posts](
This claim rates False.
[](
By[Noah Y. Kim](
September 21, 2020
# No, Biden didn’t wave to an empty field in Florida
#### If your time is short
• Biden was waving to firefighters and ground personnel out of frame.
• Two videos more clearly show Biden waving toward a firetruck at the other end of the field.
[See the sources for this fact-check](
On Sept. 15, Joe Biden arrived in Tampa, Fla., for a campaign event, and as he descended the stairs of the airplane, he waved.
One video capturing the moment spread quickly on social media as Facebook users shared it with [derisive]( suggesting Biden was waving to an empty field. However, the video truly took off when Fox News host Sean Hannity [posted]( it to his account with the title, “This Is Real: Biden Waves To An Empty Field.”
Yes, the video is real — but the field wasn’t empty.
This Facebook post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our [partnership with Facebook](
According to an [Associated Press]( reporter who was there with Biden as he left the plane, the Democratic nominee was waving to a group of firefighters and personnel who were out of the frame due to the camera angle.
Another [video]( of Biden descending the stairs clearly shows him waving in the direction of a firetruck at the other end of the field. And in yet [another video]( shared by Bloomberg News reporter Tyler Pager, four people are seen standing near the fire truck facing him.
We rate this post False.
_This fact check is available at IFCN’s 2020 US Elections FactChat #Chatbot on WhatsApp. Click [here]( for more._
##### **Our Sources**
AP, "[Video does not show Biden waving to an empty field,]( Sep. 16, 2020
Facebook [post]( Sep. 15, 2020
Facebook [post]( Sep. 15, 2020
Facebook [post]( Sep. 16, 2020
[Tweet]( Sep. 15, 2020
[Tweet]( Sep. 15, 2020
#### Read About Our Process
[The Principles of the Truth-O-Meter](
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