New Delhi, April 26 -- On the evening of Saturday, 26 April, as Washington prepared for its most glamorous annual media ritual, a rumour exploded across social media claiming that Donald Trump had been rushed to hospital in a medical emergency. It was attention-grabbing, it spread rapidly - and it was not true. Here is what actually happened, what sparked the speculation, and what the President was really doing on Saturday night.

The claim originated from a YouTube channel called MediasTouch, which alleged that Trump had been rushed to Walter Reed hospital after falling ill upon returning to the White House from Palm Beach, Florida, earlier that day. The report spread quickly across social media platforms, amplified by users already prim...