President Donald Trump blitzed through a prime-time address to the nation on Dec. 17, but while short, Trump’s speech contained a number of inaccurate or misleading claims, many of which he has repeated in public speeches for months. Trump m
The Dispatch→ The Malaise Speech
The president’s crisis of confidence.
PolitiFact→ Donald Trump’s plaques for past presidents include falsehoods
Trump’s presidential plaques include falsehoods
The Dispatch→ Environmentalists and Affordability Duke It Out in New York
Gov. Kathy Hochul takes a different tack on energy.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Academy Award For Compassion Was NOT Awarded to Ann Wilson, Nancy Wilson, Coco Gauff, Danica Patrick, Or Any Other Celebrities — It’s Viet Spam
Was a special Academy Award given to an entertainer or celebrity "for the extraordinary impact of her compassion and sustained service to American communities"? No, that's not true: Nearly identical stories claim that Ann Wilson, Nancy Wi
Full Fact→ The Times corrects inaccurate headline about cost of ‘migrants’ partners’
A new figure from the Migration Advisory Committee estimates the total net lifetime fiscal cost of people who arrived in the UK in 2022/23 through the Partner route of the Family visa—which includes the partners of some UK-born British citizens.
Full Fact→ Edited Trump quote shared with misleading claims about teen beauty pageants
An edited quote that falsely suggests Donald Trump spoke about seeing teenage girls backstage at Miss Teen USA beauty pageant is being shared online again.
Full Fact→ Over-60s won’t be charged £5 for a GP appointment
A series of fake videos falsely claiming the NHS is “no longer free for over-60s” almost certainly uses AI audio of the PM.
Full Fact→ Video of soldier shouting at police officer is AI-generated
A video shared thousands of times on social media appears to show a British soldier confronting a police officer, but is AI-generated and not genuine.
FactCheck.org→ The Whoppers of 2025
Summary Since he entered politics, President Donald Trump has been a regular on our end-of-year list of the most egregious and noteworthy falsehoods and distortions. With Trump back in the White House in 2025, it’s no surprise that he dominat
Full Fact→ Resident doctors’ 29% pay rise was over a three-year period
Labour MP Oliver Ryan and some on social media have said resident doctors got a 29% rise “last year”, but the increase was actually over multiple years.
Full Fact→ Fake video of mass funeral recirculates on social media
Posts being shared on social media suggest a video shows a mass funeral taking place in Sudan, but the clip is almost certainly AI-generated.
Full Fact→ Have resident doctors really had a 21% real-terms pay cut?
The figure cited by the BMA is based on an unreliable measure of inflation. Other measures suggest the drop has been less. Our analysis using a measure backed by the Royal Statistical Society puts the fall since 2008/9 at more like 6-7%.
PolitiFact→ Year of the Lies: ‘Worst of the worst’? ICE deports brothers after years of check-ins, good conduct
‘Worst of the worst’? Data, personal accounts say otherwise
The Dispatch→ Are Electric Vehicles Finished?
American automakers are canceling EV plans while Chinese competitors continue to surge ahead globally.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: AI Video Of Giant ‘Eclipse Octopus’ In Gulf Of America Is NOT Real — Not From Gulf Of Mexico Either
Does actual drone footage show a giant "eclipse Octopus" in the Gulf of America (sometimes also called the Gulf of Mexico)? No, that's not true: The video originated on a TikTok channel with a disclaimer that says it publishes videos made
The Dispatch→ Political Distortions
Radicalize for severability!
The Dispatch→ The Logical End of ‘Reproductive Freedom’
Barring legislative change, surrogacy’s dystopian edge cases will keep happening.
PolitiFact→ Fact-check: President Trump’s speech on inflation, wages, military dividend
Fact-check: Trump speech on economy, military dividends
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Image Does NOT Prove Zelenskyy Received Israeli Passport In 2016
Does a viral picture of what looks like an Israeli passport confirm that Volodymyr Zelenskyy became an Israeli citizen before he became president of Ukraine? No, that's not true: The image got the spelling of his last name wrong. The mach
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: FAKE Video Of Venezuela Ship Commanded By Captain Yonaiker Bermúdez And US Destroyer USS Jason Durham
Is a video of a conversation between the Venezuelan ship Guaiquerí, commanded by Capt. Yonaiker Bermúdez, and the U.S. Navy destroyer USS Jason Durham legitimate? No, that's not true: The creator of the video said on social media that i
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Video Of ‘Operation Metro Freeze’ Deportation Flight From Minnesota Is NOT Real
Does a video titled "Operation Metro Freeze" show real footage of a deportation flight in Minnesota? No, that's not true: AI made that clip. Early versions of it showed a watermark pointing to a specific generative AI tool and it's unlike
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Arnold Schwarzenegger Did NOT Offer To Cover All Funeral Expenses For Rob Reiner And His Wife — Video Is AI Fakery
Did Arnold Schwarzenegger offer to "cover all funeral expenses for Rob Reiner and his wife"? No, that's not true: The original TikTok video was labeled AI-generated by the content creator. There has not been any reporting that Schwarzeneg
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: FAKE Story About Retired Charleston Detective Solving A 21-Year-Old Cold Case After Spotting a Wax Figure At A Gala Is Formulaic Clickbait
Did retired Charleston detective Vincent Hayes solve a cold case by recognizing missing woman Aaliyah Porter's face in a wax figure at a gala? No, that's not true: This story is just another fabricated tale from a YouTube channel that has
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Rob Reiner Did NOT Say He Wished The Butler, PA, Would-Be Trump Assassin Hadn’t Missed
Did Rob Reiner say he wished the would-be Donald Trump assassin "hadn't missed"? No, that's not true: A source close to the family told Lead Stories the claim is "nonsense." Lead Stories found no evidence that Reiner ever said he wished t
The Dispatch→ A Young Mob Is Still a Mob
Why the cult of youth represents the worst kind of identity politics and populism.
The Dispatch→ The Year America Went (Kinda) Socialist
Trump’s unprecedented ‘state corporatism’ could stay with us for a long time.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: ‘Obama Fraud Vault’ Was NOT ‘Just Unleashed On Fox Live’ By Candace Owens, Ben Shapiro, Jeanine Pirro, Greg Gutfeld, Or Anyone — It’s Viet Spam
Was the "Obama Fraud Vault" showing $4.5 billion stolen from Obama's foundation released on Fox News live in December 2025? No, that's not true: Nearly identical stories claiming that Candace Owens, Ben Shapiro, Jeanine Pirro, Greg Gutfel
PolitiFact→ Trump declares fentanyl a weapon of mass destruction. What does that mean?
Should fentanyl be considered a weapon of mass destruction?
PolitiFact→ Laura Loomer – No, this 2023 Rob Reiner tweet about Trump isn’t real; it was fabricated
Image shows Rob Reiner tweeted in 2023 that he would stop posting until “Trump goes to prison.”
PolitiFact→ Fact-checking falsehoods about Epstein’s client list, island and involvement with Trump
Fact-check: falsehoods about Jeffrey Epstein files, island
Full Fact→ Fake AI image of Bondi Beach victim having blood applied circulates online
The AI generated picture has been circulating widely on social media alongside completely false claims the man pictured was a ‘crisis actor’ and never really injured.
PolitiFact→ Year of the Lies: How Trump’s talk about Tylenol, autism and vaccines affected one pediatrician
Tylenol, vaccines, autism: Being a doctor in a year of lies
The Dispatch→ What’s Behind Gold’s Rally?
Gold and silver have posted their best yearly gains since the late 1970s.
Full Fact→ No evidence Donald Trump said he wanted to buy England
There’s no evidence to support posts being shared on Facebook claiming the US President said he would buy England and make it a US state.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: JOKE Post Said Roblox Was Shutting Down On January 1st — NO Actual Announcement
Did the company behind the Roblox video game announce it is "shutting down on January 1st"? No, that's not true: A viral screenshot of such a message appeared on an account labeled "parody" on X. It did not come from the official company
The Dispatch→ Shadows On the Wall of Twitter’s Cave | Interview: Jesse Arm
Trump fatigue is real.
The Dispatch→ A Race to the Bottom in Texas
Both parties are poised to nominate Senate candidates so flawed they have a chance of losing to the other.
The Dispatch→ The Sycophants Draw a Line
Donald Trump is, from time to time, ungracious on social media.
The Dispatch→ Who Should Regulate AI?
An executive order preempting state legislation raises as many questions as it answers.