Admiral's Fox News Appearance Sparks Questions About Possible Mask

A Vice Admiral's recent interview on Fox News has caused the internet to go into a full-blown meltdown ... with many insisting he wore a mask on TV for some reason -- and now the network's weighing in.

Here's the deal ... Vice Admiral Robert Harward -- a retired Navy SEAL and the former Deputy Commander of the United States Central Command -- appeared on the network earlier this week to discuss the ongoing war in Iran.

While he spoke, a dark shadow near the base of his throat drew audience members' eyes ... and people took to social media to question whether Harward wore a mask for the TV spot.

Users were quick to push the mask theory ... with some saying he probably wasn't available that day, and Fox News used a stand-in who threw on the mask -- which may seem like a small thing, but would certainly constitute a serious violation of journalistic ethics.

Others are arguing this is an issue of lighting ... with lights in front and above him creating a sinister double shadow effect.

And some are just trolling ... like Meghan McCain who wrote, "That motherf***er is NOT real" -- similar to what Tiffany Gomas yelled in her viral airplane freakout a few years ago.