A headline for an article from the Miami Herald claims that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis “used [a] fake news site to raise cash.” A tweet promoting the article uses the same language.
The article details how DeSantis’ campaign committee and a political action committee associated with his campaign have paid The Babylon Bee for access to its list of subscribers. The Babylon Bee is a conservative satire website. The article itself describes The Babylon Bee correctly, reporting that the campaign and PAC “have sought help from a satire website with the tagline ‘Fake news you can trust.’”
After a New York Times article referred to the Bee as a “right-wing misinformation site,” the Bee threatened legal action, leading to the Times correcting its article and changing references to the Babylon Bee to make clear that it is satire. Other outlets, such as Snopes, have similarly gone from referring to Bee articles as “false” to “satire.”
While the Babylon Bee certainly has a partisan point of view, it both clearly labels itself as satire and has a reputation for being a satirical website.
If you have a claim you would like to see us fact check, please send us an email at factcheck@thedispatch.com. If you would like to suggest a correction to this piece or any other Dispatch article, please email corrections@thedispatch.com.
Please note that we at The Dispatch hold ourselves, our work, and our commenters to a higher standard than other places on the internet. We welcome comments that foster genuine debate or discussion—including comments critical of us or our work—but responses that include ad hominem attacks on fellow Dispatch members or are intended to stoke fear and anger may be moderated.
With your membership, you only have the ability to comment on The Morning Dispatch articles. Consider upgrading to join the conversation everywhere.