WHAT WAS CLAIMED
Chris Hipkins is suing TVNZ for defamation.
OUR VERDICT
False. Mr Hipkins has not claimed he was defamed by TVNZ and the legal dispute has been fabricated by a disinformation operation.
AAP FACTCHECK - A foreign-run disinformation operation is concocting fake stories about New Zealand's opposition leader Chris Hipkins three months out from the country's elections.
False claims include that he accused an NZ TV station of defaming him, that he has a Netflix show and that he's feuding with Donald Trump's press secretary.
His personal life is also being targeted, with false claims that he and fiancée Toni Grace have just had twins and other suggestions that Ms Grace is seriously ill.
A Facebook page called 'Pozitif Yolculuk' - which means 'positive journey' in Turkish in one translation - is behind the posts, some of which have attracted thousands of views in recent weeks.
Despite the Turkish name, Meta's page transparency data shows it is run from Vietnam and Canada.
One post claims Mr Hipkins has dropped "a NZ$250 million legal bomb" on public broadcaster TVNZ.
The post links to a spam website that expands on the claim by alleging Mr Hipkins said he was defamed by presenter Melissa Stokes in an interview.
"You defamed me on live TV - now pay the price!" he is quoted as saying in the article.
No credible reports suggest this is true.
Another post on the page claims he had a televised exchange with outgoing White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
"American social policy is a little outside your lane. Worry about Wellington and leave Washington to us," Ms Leavitt is quoted in the post as saying.
That quote and others in the post are fabricated. No credible reports show that Leavitt said this or that the pair traded words live on TV.
Another post claims Mr Hipkins is the subject of a Netflix documentary called "Till The End", which is billed as a limited series telling the "Chris Hipkins Story" and directed by American crime documentary director Joe Berlinger.
"Behind the politics was a story no one expected. What 'Till the End' reveals about Chris Hipkins has viewers talking," the post claims.
There's no record of such a documentary being published or slated for release, and it doesn't appear in any Netflix promotional materials.
An analysis using OpenAI's verification tool reveals the image in the post contains an invisible watermark, called Synth ID, confirming that it's AI-generated.
Disinformation actors have also targeted his personal life, with multiple fake stories about his fiancée Toni Grace.
One such post claims the pair have just had twin babies.
"Chris Hipkins and Toni Grace Have Just Dropped a DOUBLE BOMBSHELL Baby Announcement — Welcoming Twin Babies — and It's the TWINS' NAMES That Are Breaking the Internet!" the post claims.
An image attached to the post appears to show Ms Grace sitting in a hospital bed beside Mr Hipkins, with both holding a baby.
OpenAI's verification tool reveals the image is also AI-generated.
An hour later, the page posted that Ms Grace is going through a "serious health struggle".
"Just in: Chris Hipkins puts family first - Toni Grace facing her hardest moment," the post claims.
It includes an image purporting to show Ms Grace completely bald in a hospital gown on a hospital bed with Mr Hipkins.
OpenAI's verification tool reveals the image is AI-generated.
The page's claims have become more absurd over time, with an August 22 post even suggesting the former prime minister had died.
"Chris Hipkins has received an overwhelming outpouring of support and appreciation from people across New Zealand," the post reads.
It's accompanied by an image that states: "Chris Hipkins RIP 1978-2026."
At the time of writing, Mr Hipkins was still very much alive.
Voters in New Zealand are scheduled to head to the polls on November 7.
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