
When the St. Petersburg Times first launched PolitiFact in 2007, its purpose was to assess the veracity of statements made by "members of Congress, the president, cabinet secretaries, lobbyists, people who testify before Congress and anyone else who speaks up in Washington."
Fast forward to September 2025, and the trailblazing fact-checker has been reduced to informing us that "President Donald Trump is alive." Yes, and the sky is blue, and the day ends in y, even if some online randos may be memeing to the contrary.