Using Fact-Checking Tools
Next, watch this video:
Sometimes a single search can Break the Fake if a professional fact-checker has already done the work for you.
You can use a specific fact-checker website, or our custom search engine: https://mediasmarts.ca/fact-checker
It’s a custom search engine that lets you search several fact-checkers at once, including: Snopes.com, Agence France Presse Canada, FactCheck.org, Politifact, Washington Post Fact Checker, Associated Press Fact Check, HoaxEye and Les Decrypteurs.
If you want to use a different fact-checker, make sure it’s signed on to the International Fact-Checking Network’s code of principles (see https://ifcncodeofprinciples.poynter.org/signatories).
Some of those principles are:
- A commitment to non-partisanship (not favoring any group or political party) and fairness
- A commitment to standards and transparency of sources (showing the evidence behind a judgment)
- A commitment to transparency of funding and organization (where their money comes from)
- A commitment to open and honest corrections policy (posting corrections quickly and clearly when thy make a mistake
To look at a broader range of sources, do a search for the story with the word “hoax” or “fake” added.
Because anyone can call themselves a fact-checker, you need to double-check if your search leads to sources you don’t already know are reliable. Find the Source for more info.
Remember that just because a fact-checker hasn’t debunked something doesn’t mean it’s true. It can take a while for fact-checkers to verify a story, and not every one will verify every story.
If no reliable fact-checkers has covered it yet, move on to other steps like Find the source or Check other sources.