A lot of things changed when President Donald Trump won his second term in November of 2024. One of those was the environment in which the mainstream networks and newspapers would have to operate going forward.
Had Kamala Harris won the election, the status quo would have been maintained, but Trump coming out victorious took so much air out of the balloon, and we are starting to see the effects of that. The firing of far-left late-night host Stephen Colbert was probably the most visible example, but papers like The Washington Post can no longer afford to keep bleeding money either.
That's led to the ouster of long-time "fact-checker" Glenn Kessler, who has been no stranger to RedState over the years. To be fair, he wasn't quite as bad as Politifact, but no one is quite as bad as Politifact.
Let me give the Post some advice. You don't need a replacement for Kessler. "Fact-checking" in the press context is a dumb trend whereby reporters with preconceived opinions cherry-pick statements they then "fact-check" only within the context they feel pushes their desired narrative. If you're telling the truth in your regular reporting, then what do you need a "fact-check" for? The entire point of slapping "fact-check" on something is to give it the false air of being completely nonpartisan when it essentially never is.
How do I know that? Because RedState has been covering this stuff since it originated, and the examples of "fact-checkers" getting it wrong, often purposely, are extensive.
SEE: Glenn Kessler Embarrassed After Biden 'Fact-Check' Gets Walked Back
Here are just a few of his greatest hits.
Yes, Kessler once "fact-checked" Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) by citing a "scientific animation" that turned out to be completely wrong. He also pushed the "cheapfakes" talking point in the summer of 2024, suggesting that people like me were lying about Joe Biden's cognitive condition. He even went so far as to "fact-check" Sen. Tim Scott's personal family history, downplaying the realities of the Jim Crow era while suggesting that because Scott's great-grandfather owned land, his grandfather couldn't have possibly had to drop out of school to pick cotton.
Honestly, though, the worst part of Kessler and the entire "fact-checking" industry has been what they don't cover. It's been said before, and it remains true. The biggest bias of the press comes from its selectiveness. How do you avoid having to say a Democrat lied? You just don't report on their lie. Kessler would often cover the most mundane, explained-by-context stuff from Republicans while simply not even bothering to look at obvious falsehoods told by Democrats.
One of my favorite examples involves Joe Biden making up a story about awarding his "Uncle Frank" a Purple Heart while serving as vice president. The problem? "Uncle Frank" died in 1999. Kessler didn't even bother with that one. I could keep going, but you get the point. The press shedding someone like Kessler is a good thing.
https://redstate.com/bonchie/2025/07/28/infamous-fact-check-glenn-kessler-gets-the-boot-from-wapo-and-a-trip-down-memory-lane-n2192167
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