LAST MONTH. THE FACTS TONIGHT, OUR PARTNERS AT POLITIFACT ARE LOOKING INTO A CLAIM SPREADING ONLINE THAT VIDEO OF CROWDS AT THE NO KINGS PROTEST IN BOSTON WAS ACTUALLY FOOTAGE FROM A SEPARATE PROTEST BACK IN 2017. AMONG THOSE MAKING THIS CLAIM, TEXAS SENATOR TED CRUZ, WHO RESHARED THE VIDEO AND WROTE THIS QUOTE, WHY ARE DEMS DISHONESTLY SENDING AROUND A VIDEO FROM 2017 CLAIMING IT WAS THIS PAST WEEKEND WHEN POLITIFACT TELLS US THEY FOUND NEWS FOOTAGE FROM FOUR SEPARATE TV STATIONS IN THE BOSTON AREA, INCLUDING FROM WMUR. ALL AIRING SIMILAR VIEWS FROM SATURDAY, SHOWING LARGE NUMBERS OF PEOPLE FILLING THE PARK AND MATCHING TEMPORARY STRUCTURES BUILT FOR THOSE GUEST SPEAKERS. NO, HE’S NOT RIGHT ABOUT THIS. BOTTOM LINE THE FOOTAGE MSNBC AIRED IS REAL, AND IT SHOWED THE NO KINGS RALLY LAST SATURDAY IN BOSTON. THE BEST CROWD ESTIMATE I’VE SEEN SAYS 125,000 PEOPLE SHOWED UP AT THE RALLY IN BOSTON COMMON. THAT WOULD MAKE THE BOSTON RALLY THE NATION’S FOURTH LARGEST OF THE DAY, WHICH INCLUDED A TOTAL OF ABOUT 5 TO 8 MILLION PEOPLE ACROSS THE COUNTRY. CRUZ’S OFFICE NEVER RETURNED POLITIFACT’S REQUEST FOR COMMENT. BU
PolitiFact: Is the footage from the ‘No Kings’ rally in Boston from a 2017 protest?
Updated: 12:50 AM EDT Oct 23, 2025
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WMUR’s partners at PolitiFact are looking into a claim circulating online that video of crowds at the “No Kings” protest in Boston was actually from a separate 2017 protest.Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is among those sharing this claim. He re-shared the video on social media, writing: “Why are Dems dishonestly sending around a video from 2017, claiming it was this past weekend?” PolitiFact said footage from four Boston-area TV stations, including WMUR, aired similar views Saturday, showing large crowds at the park and temporary structures built for guest speakers.>> Download the free WMUR app to get updates on the go: Apple | Google Play << “No, he’s not right about this,” PolitiFact Chief Correspondent Lou Jacobson said. “So, bottom line, the footage MSNBC aired is real, and it showed the ‘No Kings’ rally Saturday in Boston. The best crowd estimate I’ve seen says that 125,000 people showed up at the rally at Boston Common. That would make the Boston rally the nation’s fourth largest of the day, which included a total of between five and eight million people across the country.”Cruz’s office did not respond to PolitiFact’s request for comment, but his post was removed within 24 hours.>> Subscribe to WMUR’s YouTube channel <<
WMUR’s partners at PolitiFact are looking into a claim circulating online that video of crowds at the “No Kings” protest in Boston was actually from a separate 2017 protest.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is among those sharing this claim. He re-shared the video on social media, writing: “Why are Dems dishonestly sending around a video from 2017, claiming it was this past weekend?”
PolitiFact said footage from four Boston-area TV stations, including WMUR, aired similar views Saturday, showing large crowds at the park and temporary structures built for guest speakers.
>> Download the free WMUR app to get updates on the go: Apple | Google Play <<
“No, he’s not right about this,” PolitiFact Chief Correspondent Lou Jacobson said. “So, bottom line, the footage MSNBC aired is real, and it showed the ‘No Kings’ rally Saturday in Boston. The best crowd estimate I’ve seen says that 125,000 people showed up at the rally at Boston Common. That would make the Boston rally the nation’s fourth largest of the day, which included a total of between five and eight million people across the country.”
Cruz’s office did not respond to PolitiFact’s request for comment, but his post was removed within 24 hours.
>> Subscribe to WMUR’s YouTube channel <<
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