Is there a real article written by "Barry Mdikkin" titled "Teen Tycoon: Young Black Entrepreneur Karmelo Anthony Nears Millionaire Status Before Graduation" on CNN's website? No, that's not true: A Google search for the article title limi
The Dispatch→ Trump Steps Up His Media Attacks
The administration has restricted access to some news outlets as the FCC pursues investigations of others.
Full Fact→ Quote wrongly attributed to Mexican president recirculates
The lengthy quote has been shared thousands of times on Facebook, but there’s no evidence Claudia Sheinbaum ever said it.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: AOC’s Brother Was NOT Caught With Fentanyl on a Boat — Story Started as Satire
Did the U.S. Coast Guard find a brother of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, named Matthew, on board a boat carrying $1.2 million worth of fentanyl? No, that's not true: Although shared widely in April 2025, the story originated from a websi
The Dispatch→ Judge v. (Unethical) Lawyer
‘This should be shocking not only to judges, but to the intuitive sense of liberty that Americans far removed from courthouses still hold dear.’
The Dispatch→ Will Pete Hegseth Be Trump’s First Cabinet Casualty?
A Pentagon in disarray may eventually spell the end for ‘the influencer secretary.’
The Dispatch→ The College of Cardinals, Explained
How will the next pope be chosen?
The Dispatch→ Parents, Put Down the Phones
Parental device use significantly impacts kids—even if those kids don’t have their own screens.
The Dispatch→ A Pope of Inclusion and Polarization
Francis widened divisions in the Catholic Church even as he strove to broaden its reach.
PolitiFact→ TikTok posts – No, ‘The Simpsons’ didn’t predict Pope Francis would die in 2025
“The Simpsons” predicted Pope Francis’ 2025 death.
The Dispatch→ Sobriety Test
Is Pete Hegseth too incompetent for Trump’s government?
PolitiFact→ RFK Jr. exaggerates share of autistic population with severe limitations
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said people with autism “will never pay taxes, they'll never hold a job, they'll never play baseball, they'll never write a poem, they'll never go out on a date.” This is a skewed view of the autistic population, data and expe
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Body Cam Video Of Cop Demanding ID From Black Lawyer Shopping Is Not Authentic — Actors Acting!
Does a police body cam video show an authentic incident in which an officer is demanding that a Black man in a business suit hand over his identification while shopping in a boutique store? No, that's not true: The video first appeared on
The Dispatch→ How Democracies Fall and Rise
‘Freedom is at existential risk right now.’
The Dispatch→ The Legacy of Pope Francis
A 'Maverick' Pope?
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: AOC Does NOT Have A Sister Who Vandalized Tesla Dealership In April 2025
Was U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's sister charged in the city of Yonkers in New York in April 2025 in connection with a supposed attack on a Tesla dealership? No, that's not true: She has no sister. The claim originated fr
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: FAKE Video Shows UK PM Keir Starmer ‘Kissing’ Labour Donor Waheed Alli
Did authentic security camera footage show U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer kissing Waheed Alli, a television entrepreneur and prominent supporter of the governing Labour Party? No, that's not true: The video, which was shared widely in A
PolitiFact→ PolitiFact readers’ feedback in the first 100 days of Trump presidency
Reader response in Trump’s first 100 days
The Dispatch→ A Terrible Solution to a Nonexistent Problem
On the inanity of Trump’s trade war.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Donald Trump DID Post an Easter Message to ‘Radical Left Lunatics’, Judges, Biden in 2025
Did President Donald Trump post a "Happy Easter" message to social media in which he attacked "Radical Left Lunatics," "WEAK and INEFFECTIVE judges", and former president Joe Biden? Yes, that's true: Widely shared screenshots of the post
The Dispatch→ Wishing You a Happy Easter
Catching you up on the weekend’s news.
Lead Stories→ Pope Francis Has Died At Age 88 After A Stroke, Coma And ‘Irreversible Cardiovascular Collapse’ — What Happens Next
By Raffaella Menichini, Lead Stories Deputy International Teams Manager (Rome) and Lead Stories staff A nine-day mourning period has begun with the death of Pope Francis, who died on Monday, April 21, 2025, at the age of 88, according to
The Dispatch→ The Cases That Could Stop Trump’s Tariffs
Will the courts do what Congress won’t?
The Dispatch→ Short Video Isn’t Just Rotting Our Brains. It’s Rewiring Them.
Short-form video is the logical outgrowth of an increasingly oral culture.
The Dispatch→ Water From Stone
Christianity’s proposition to humanity is most clearly seen in a puzzling image.
The Dispatch→ Our Best Stuff on Trump’s Executive Overreach
Plus, tiki bars are back.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: AI Video Falsely Claims Whoopi Goldberg Fled The Country After An $800M Lawsuit From Karoline Leavitt — Made Up Story
Did Whoopi Goldberg flee the country after an $800 million lawsuit from Karoline Leavitt had a "speed up"? No, that's not true: A viral video making that claim was largely AI generated. No actual news outlet has reported on such a lawsuit
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: ‘MS13’ Letters And Numbers Added To Photo Of Kilmar Abrego Garcia Knuckle Tattoos Held Up By Trump
Does a printout of a photo held up by President Trump in a picture on social media authentically show the characters "MS13" on the hand of Kilmar Abrego Garcia? No, that's not true: The letters and numbers appear to have been added to the
The Dispatch→ Conditional Logic for Dummies
The rant heard ‘round the world.
The Dispatch→ The Kilmar Abrego Garcia Case, Explained
A deportation has sparked a battle over immigration enforcement, court authority, and compliance with judicial orders.
The Dispatch→ What A Novel-Writing Organization’s Demise Teaches Us About AI
AI can be used for ill. But it can also help people express themselves.
The Dispatch→ The Wrong Kind of Abundance
Caution (and stupidity) in spades did us no favors during COVID.
The Dispatch→ The Eternal Badness of Bad Ideas
Misguided theories exist, but our liberal system gives voters the means to reject them.
The Dispatch→ The Gramsci Turn
Responding to Chris Rufo.
Health Feedback→ Influencer Gary Brecka spreads misinformation about water fluoridation in Instagram post
REVIEW In April 2025, U.S. health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that he would tell the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to cease recommending water fluoridation. This followed another announcement by the U.S. Environmental Prot
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Jimmy Kimmel Did NOT Kick Clint Eastwood Off His Show In April 2025
Did Jimmy Kimmel kick Clint Eastwood off his show in April 2025? No, that's not true: Searches across the website of ABC, which airs the Jimmy Kimmel Live! show, demonstrated that Eastwood was not a guest between January 1, and April 18,
The Dispatch→ Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Claims About Fluoride and IQ Are Unfounded
The HHS secretary made misleading claims in a Cabinet meeting and a press conference in Utah.
PolitiFact→ X posts – No, Arizona election officials aren’t removing ‘50,000 noncitizens from voter rolls’
Arizona Democrats “needed a lawsuit to force them to remove 50,000 noncitizens from voter rolls.”
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Satire Story Claimed Dr. Anthony Fauci Petitioned For Emergency Visa To Take Up Position At Wuhan Institute Of Virology In China
Did Dr. Anthony Fauci petition the State Department for an emergency travel visa to China so he can take up a position at the Wuhan Institute of Virology? No, that's not true: A Facebook post making that claim originated on a Facebook pag
PolitiFact→ Facebook posts – Liz Cheney didn’t pen a viral open letter to Democrats. It started in a Facebook group.
Former U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney wrote a viral letter to Democrats suggesting steps to take against the Trump administration.