This story was first published on the Duke Reporters’ Lab website. Amid the political lies and misinformation that spread across the country throughout the 2022 midterm elections, statements by candidates […] The post Fact deserts leave sta
Publication: fact checking
Poynter→ PolitiFact: Is Elon Musk under federal investigation? Here’s what we know
This piece first appeared on PolitiFact.com, written by Contributing Writer Michael Majchrowicz. Elon Musk’s $44 billion takeover of Twitter has generated plenty of headlines. But one headline being shared on […] The post PolitiFact: Is Elon Mu
Poynter→ Why does the Justice Department monitor polling sites?
Justice Department election monitors traveled to voting sites in 24 states on Election Day to watch for violations of federal voting laws. Florida did not welcome them. State officials blocked federal […] The post Why does the Justice Department
Poynter→ False narratives failed to take hold ahead of U.S. midterms
Factually is a newsletter about fact-checking and misinformation from Poynter’s International Fact-Checking Network. Sign up here to receive it in your email every other Thursday. The foretold “red tsunami” on Election Day turned out […
Poynter→ Detroit voters were not told at polls that they had already voted
On the afternoon of Election Day, former President Donald Trump suggested that problems at polling places in Michigan’s largest city, a Democratic stronghold, were preventing voters from casting their ballots […] The post Detroit voters were no
Poynter→ No, Maricopa vote tabulators didn’t lead to ballots with ‘no chain of custody’
Soon after polls opened in Arizona’s Maricopa County, a number of automatic vote counting machines, called tabulators, stopped working smoothly. Twitter abounded with claims of election shenanigans. “Democrats running elections […] The po
Poynter→ PA Senate race features a lot of viral moments – many worthy of a fact-check
The 2022 midterms are high stakes for the Democratic and Republican parties, and that is especially apparent in the battleground state of Pennsylvania. The Keystone State has long been a […] The post PA Senate race features a lot of viral moments
Poynter→ Elon Musk keeps Birdwatch alive — under a new name
After tech billionaire Elon Musk bought Twitter, some thought Birdwatch was bound for extinction. However, despite being a frequent target of citizen fact-checkers — and sharing falsehoods himself — Musk […] The post Elon Musk keeps Birdwatch
Poynter→ Trump wrongly says Jimmy Carter said ‘don’t ever use’ mail ballots
Former President Donald Trump, who has long spread falsehoods about mail ballots, recently distorted what former President Jimmy Carter said about voting by mail. During an Oct. 31 interview on […] The post Trump wrongly says Jimmy Carter said
Poynter→ Media Literacy 2.0 with MediaWise and Noticias Telemundo
Disinformation travels fast! With that in mind, MediaWise and Noticias Telemundo have teamed up again to create a course specifically informing you about the dangers of misleading information, and how […] The post Media Literacy 2.0 with MediaWis
Poynter→ Trick or truth: Are drug dealers really targeting kids on Halloween?
“Watch your kids’ candy!” “Looks like SweeTarts!” Halloween’s coming, and you may be seeing social media posts like these about the dangers of brightly colored pills sometimes called “rainbow fentanyl.” […] The post Trick or tru
Poynter→ Is Disney really trying to lower the drinking age to 18 on its property?
Disney World is the most famous theme park in the world. Families come for its thrilling rides and delicious food. But could teens start lining up for … alcohol? A […] The post Is Disney really trying to lower the drinking age to 18 on its prop
Poynter→ California’s covid misinformation bill just dropped. And it’s dividing doctors.
Factually is a newsletter about fact-checking and misinformation from Poynter’s International Fact-Checking Network. Sign up here to receive it in your email every other Thursday. A COVID-19 misinformation bill in California, AB 2098, is […
Poynter→ CNN didn’t report that Uganda’s president said it would be ‘disgusting’ to support Ukraine
Lt. Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the son of Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni, came out as an early supporter of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, tweeting in February that the “majority of mankind (that are […] The post CNN didn’t re
Poynter→ CDC committee’s vote did not make COVID-19 vaccines mandatory for schoolchildren
A routine meeting of a group of vaccine experts who advise the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention became the target of a storm of misinformation after unfounded rumors […] The post CDC committee’s vote did not make COVID-19 vac
Poynter→ 5 media literacy tips to avoid election misinformation, from Carl Azuz and Hasley Pitman
Media Literacy Week starts Monday. Follow @MediaWise on TikTok, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for resources to make sure you go to the polls with the facts Nov. 8. Check out […] The post 5 media literacy tips to avoid election misinformation, fr
Poynter→ Marco Rubio said someone could blow up a ballot drop box, ignoring safe track record
Millions of Americans are casting mail ballots via drop boxes. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said that’s dangerous. “There’s danger involved in drop boxes,” Rubio said in the Oct. 18 debate with his […] The post Marco Rubio said som
Poynter→ Iran’s media blackout sets the stage for state violence
Right now, there is countrywide, ongoing unrest in Iran, spurred by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while she was in the custody of the “morality police,” a security force […] The post Iran’s media blackout sets the stage for state vio
Poynter→ No, Fauci didn’t say he was ‘unnecessarily forcing masks’
On Oct. 16, ABC News aired an interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci in which he reflected on his years of public service. He’s set to retire in December, nearly three years after the COVID-19 […] The post No, Fauci didn’t say he was ‘
Poynter→ ‘Journalistic meat or fraudulent filler’ – What is pink slime journalism?
An article from the West Cook News claims that a school near Chicago will give students different grades … based on their race? Can that be right? How could someone’s […] The post ‘Journalistic meat or fraudulent filler’ ̵
Poynter→ Fact checking Ye, who denied that George Floyd died from a knee on the neck
Soon after announcing he would acquire social media platform Parler and making antisemitic comments, Kanye West was back in the news — this time for claiming that George Floyd was not killed […] The post Fact checking Ye, who denied that Geor
Poynter→ The Jan. 6 Committee’s subpoena of Donald Trump: What does it mean?
The U.S. House Jan. 6 committee’s unanimous decision to subpoena former President Donald Trump is unusual. But presidential subpoenas are not unprecedented — and the outcomes of prior clashes between the executive […] The post The Jan. 6 Co
Poynter→ Why an analysis of COVID-19 vaccines from Florida’s surgeon general is flawed
If you’re a male Floridian between the ages of 18 and 39, recent news about the COVID-19 vaccines might have been alarming. Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo and the […] The post Why an analysis of COVID-19 vaccines from Florida’s sur
Poynter→ Brazil’s fact-checkers concerned with their impact ahead of Oct. 30 runoff
Factually is a newsletter about fact-checking and misinformation from Poynter’s International Fact-Checking Network. Sign up here to receive it in your email every other Thursday. Journalists and fact-checkers in Brazil are concerned about the [&
Poynter→ Election Integrity Partnership targeted election misinformation, not conservatives
A former congressional candidate claims that he and other conservatives were targeted on social media with the government’s help around the time of the 2020 election. “(The) Department of Homeland […] The post Election Integrity Partnersh
Poynter→ Are we closer to nuclear Armageddon than any time since 1962, as Biden suggested?
It’s not every day that an American president warns of nuclear disaster and draws on Biblical imagery to do so. But President Joe Biden did just that Oct. 6 when he […] The post Are we closer to nuclear Armageddon than any time since 1962, as
Poynter→ Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson is wrong to claim Jan. 6 was not an armed insurrection
The U.S. House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, has scheduled what could be its final public hearing for Oct. 13. It will be the committee’s first […] The post Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson is w
Poynter→ Greeks don’t trust their media. Fact-checkers are trying to help
ATHENS, Greece — Dubious news and online content is everywhere. Even here, in the birthplace of democracy. The challenges facing media outlets across the globe are many, including widespread public […] The post Greeks don’t trust their media.
Poynter→ Is it true weekly wages have decreased over the past 50 years, while cost of living skyrocketed?
President Joe Biden’s recent announcement about canceling thousands of dollars of student debt for many borrowers has sparked a national debate about the cost of attending college and making a […] The post Is it true weekly wages have decreased
Poynter→ A Jan. 6 committee hearing was postponed because of Hurricane Ian, not because of news networks
The U.S. House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol announced in September that its next hearing would be held Sept. 28. Just a day before it […] The post A Jan. 6 committee hearing was postponed because o
Poynter→ How fact-checkers are banding together to serve Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country
With more than 200 million inhabitants, Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa by a wide margin. But given the relatively few fact-checking organizations in the country, the ratio […] The post How fact-checkers are banding together to ser
Poynter→ Claims about Obama Foundation keeping classified records in an abandoned warehouse are wrong
In August, after the FBI seized documents from former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, Trump wrongly charged his predecessor with keeping “33 million pages of documents, much of […] The post Claims about Obama Founda
Poynter→ What appears to be a prescient PSA from the 1950s is actually satire from 2020
A black-and-white video circulating on social media includes a description that might surprise people who first learned about COVID-19 in, well, 2019, when the first cases were reported. “This video […] The post What appears to be a prescie
Poynter→ No, Kamala Harris didn’t say Hurricane Ian relief would be based on skin color
After Hurricane Ian made landfall in both southwest Florida and South Carolina, an interview with Vice President Kamala Harris stirred up its own storm. Harris was speaking with actress Priyanka […] The post No, Kamala Harris didn’t say Hurri
Poynter→ The 2022 election winners might not be clear for days. That’s normal.
In 2020, it took four days for enough votes to be counted in Pennsylvania for media outlets to declare with confidence that Joe Biden had won the presidential election. During […] The post The 2022 election winners might not be clear for days. Th
Poynter→ Climate change isn’t the sole cause of any hurricane, but it might affect them
Hurricane Ian was still churning toward Florida on Sept. 27 when CNN anchor Don Lemon asked one of the nation’s leading meteorologists a question about climate change. “Can you tell […] The post Climate change isn’t the sole cause of an
Poynter→ CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan sees firsthand how online mis- and disinformation affects people’s daily lives
CNN correspondent Donie O’Sullivan didn’t start his career in broadcasting. But he’s been fact-checking since he became a journalist. In the months leading up to the 2020 election, O’Sullivan crossed […] The post CNN’s Donie O’
Poynter→ What are the fact-checkers seeing?
Amid the devastation of Hurricane Ian, which brought record winds and record storm surges, one light moment stood out for fact checkers: Was there really a shark swimming in the […] The post What are the fact-checkers seeing? appeared first on Po
Poynter→ Spanish-language misinformation often goes unchecked, but individuals can help combat it
The threat of misinformation is ever present, and the fast-approaching midterm elections are a breeding ground for misleading narratives to spread on social media. That’s especially true for Latinos in […] The post Spanish-language misinformati
Poynter→ United Facts of America: Woodruff, Stirewalt discuss media’s role in fighting disinformation
Judy Woodruff and Chris Stirewalt approach news delivery differently. Woodruff, the longtime “PBS NewsHour” anchor and managing editor, emphasizes neutrality and keeping her personal opinions to herself. Stirewalt, the former […] The