Fact Check: This '70s photo really shows young Jill Biden
Claim:
A photograph authentically shows former first lady Jill Biden as a young woman.
Rating:
A black-and-white photograph supposedly showing a young Jill Biden has circulated online for years, often with the claim that it was taken in the 1970s.
The photo of the former U.S. first lady spread on social media platforms including Facebook, X, Instagram and 9GAG.
In short, the image is authentic. It was taken in 1974 by artist and professional photographer Tom Stiltz, who posted the image on his Instagram account in 2020.
Apart from Stiltz's, the earliest known post featuring the image was shared on Aug. 19, 2020, with the caption: "Jill Biden, 1970s."
However, the original poster later clarified in the comments: "I should mention that 1970s is an estimate. I wasn't able to find a source image online to confirm. This is pulled from the DNC's coverage." Another user commented, "I knew someone would post this picture here the moment it aired," suggesting the image was shown during the 2020 Democratic National Convention, which took place from Aug. 17-19, 2020.
The photograph was indeed broadcast on Aug. 18, 2020, during the second day of the Democratic National Convention (around the 1:57:52 mark).
It also appeared in a YouTube video titled "Get to Know Jill Biden | Joe Biden For President 2020," uploaded on Aug. 30, 2020 (around the 1:17 mark):
The photo was aired after then-presidential candidate Joe Biden said, "When I met Jill, I fell in love with her when I saw her," suggesting it was taken in the 1970s, as they met in 1975 and married in 1977. However, the videos did not provide further details on the origin or context of the photo.
We have reached out to Joe Biden's press team for comment and will update this story if we receive a response.
Stiltz wrote the following about the photograph when he shared it on Instagram in 2020:
I took this photo of Jill Biden in 1974. I used it as part of display for New Castle County Parks and Rec. Sen. Biden saw the photo in Wilmington Airport and his brother got her phone# and the rest is history. Her staff tracked me and the photo down a month ago and used it in her video bio.
For comparison, here is a photograph of Jill Biden from a 1977 newspaper. The image was published in The Morning News of Wilmington, Delaware, on July 17, 1977:
Son told Joe to marry Jill
Article from Jul 17, 1977 The Morning News (Wilmington, Delaware)
Other rumors about Jill Biden that we have fact-checked in the past include the claim that she is not a medical doctor and is therefore wrongly using the title "Dr." We have also examined claims that she did not agree to marry Joe Biden until his fifth proposal, as well as a false rumor that she was a teenager working as the Biden family's babysitter when she began dating him.
- YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jqPFssWDd4. Accessed 13 Feb. 2025.
---. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsZhsnHqIXA. Accessed 13 Feb. 2025.
---. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jqPFssWDd4. Accessed 13 Feb. 2025.
Dapcevich, Madison. "Is Jill Biden a Doctor?" Snopes, 13 Dec. 2020, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/is-jill-biden-a-doctor/.
"Democratic National Convention, 2020." Ballotpedia, https://ballotpedia.org/Democratic_National_Convention,_2020. Accessed 13 Feb. 2025.
Evon, Dan. "Was Jill Biden Joe Biden's Babysitter?" Snopes, 22 Feb. 2021, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/jill-biden-babysitter-joe-biden/.
Ibrahim, Nur. "Did Joe Biden Ask Jill Biden To Marry Him 5 Times?" Snopes, 1 May 2021, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/jill-biden-marriage-proposals/.
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