Stand up for the facts!
Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy.
We need your help.
I would like to contribute
Photo shows Obama’s 2011 Ireland crowd, not Trump’s in New York City in 2024
If Your Time is short
- This image was taken in 2011 and showed people waiting to get into a Dublin event featuring then-President Barack Obama.
As crowds formed outside New York City’s Madison Square Garden arena for former President Donald Trump’s Oct. 27 campaign rally, some social media users shared a photo they said showed the scene.
"I took this photo 3 hours ago of people lined up at Madison square garden," a user posted on X, formerly Twitter, at 11:38 a.m. alongside a picture of a crowd of thousands of people gathered on a street behind metal barriers. The post had more than 17,000 likes and 1.3 million views as of Oct. 28.
Although Trump drew a large crowd that gathered hours before he was scheduled to speak, this photo wasn’t taken at Madison Square Garden. As a community note soon pointed out on X, it was taken in the Irish capital in May 2011, outside an event where then-President Barack Obama was to appear.
"People line up at a security check in Dublin before a concert to be attended by the US president," read a caption on the image as it appeared in a May 23, 2011, article in The Guardian. Photojournalist Peter Macdiarmid captured the image; it appears on the Getty Images website, albeit with a typo in the date.
Photos, videos and news stories documented Obama’s visit to Ireland, including the May 23, 2011, speech he gave to crowds at Dublin’s College Green.
Featured Fact-check
Trump’s Madison Square Garden campaign rally drew thousands and filled the 19,500-seat venue, with people lining up for blocks hours before the event’s scheduled start. Video and photos captured that scene, but the photograph in this post did not.
We rate claims that it did False.
Sign up for PolitiFact texts
Our Sources
The Guardian, "Barack Obama visits Ireland – in pictures," May 23, 2011
Madison Square Garden, "Rent Madison Square Garden," accessed Oct. 28, 2024
New York Post, "What you missed at Trump’s NYC MSG rally: Hulk Hogan, Elon Musk, Tucker Carlson and more," Oct. 28, 2024
The New York Times, "Trump Supporters Line Up Early to Fill Madison Square Garden," Oct. 27, 2024
Newsweek, "Donald Trump Announces New Policy as Melania Makes Rare Appearance at MSG," Oct. 27, 2024
Obama White House Archives, "President Obama in Dublin: "Never Has a Nation So Small Inspired So Much in Another," May 23, 2011
Peter Macdiarmid, Getty Images, "US President Barack Obama Visits Ireland," May 23, 2011
WPIX-TV, "Crowd waits outside Madison Square Garden hours ahead of Donald Trump rally," Oct. 27, 2024
Reuters, "Trump headlines Madison Square Garden rally after vulgar, racist remarks from allies," Oct. 28, 2024
YouTube, The Obama White House, accessed Oct. 28, 2024
X, Sniper64286433, accessed Oct. 28, 2024
Browse the Truth-O-Meter
More by Gideon Hess
Photo shows Obama’s 2011 Ireland crowd, not Trump’s in New York City in 2024
Support independent fact-checking.
Become a member!
In a world of wild talk and fake news, help us stand up for the facts.