An independent experimental fact-checking site, exploring and advocating ways to make fact-checking better.
“TRUE: Mike Pence advocated for ‘conversion therapy’” —Headline of a PolitiFact California fact check of a statement by California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, July 27, 2016 Summary PolitiFact’s California franchise somehow mistakes no evidence at all for clear evidence, apparently conflating “sexual behavior” with “sexual orientation.” The Facts On July 27 at the 2016 Democratic National Convention, California Lt….
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“Cheney wrongly claimed that the U.S. prosecuted Japanese soldiers ‘for a lot of stuff’ but ‘not for waterboarding.’ While they weren’t solely prosecuted for waterboarding, Japanese soldiers were prosecuted for torturing American prisoners, including the use of ‘water torture.’” —Annenberg Fact Check Editor Eugene Kiely, from the FactCheck.org article “Cheney’s Tortured Facts” Overview Why pick solely on PolitiFact and…
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Quote Check: Attributed to former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger: “Depopulation should be the highest priority of foreign policy towards the third world, because the US economy will require large and increasing amounts of minerals from abroad, especially from less developed countries.” Overview We found no good evidence to support attributing the above quotation to Kissinger. The Facts…
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Will Kraus “Says Missouri needs a voter I.D. law because ‘there’s over 16 people in the state of Missouri who have been convicted of some type of voter fraud.’” —PolitiFact Missouri Overview We don’t see the evidence supporting PolitiFact Missouri’s interpretation of Kraus’ remarks. We judge PolitiFact Missouri ruled “Half True” on a distorted version of Kraus’ claim. The…
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“[Becky] Quick’s math is sound, based on what’s publicly known about Carson’s plan. Carson’s 15 percent flat tax would generate a $1.1 trillion hole. By his own math, his plan would create a $1 trillion hole.” —PolitiFact, from a Nov. 4, 2015 fact check of GOP presidential contender Ben Carson Overview PolitiFact’s omissions and misrepresentations leave behind a misleading…
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Trey Gowdy vs. PolitiFact “Gowdy has a point that he’s still waiting on quite a few documents, but it goes too far to say he hasn’t received a “single, solitary scrap of paper.” We rate his claim Mostly False.” —PolitiFact, from a May 21, 2015 fact check of Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.). Overview PolitiFact takes Rep. Gowdy out of…
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“(T)he Koch brothers, the second wealthiest family in America, are going to spend $900 million in the coming election cycle.” —Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on March 31, 2015, at an Austin, Texas town hall meeting Overview Multiple methods of exaggeration lead to a wildly overblown claim. The Facts On March 31, 2015, Sen. Bernie Sanders gave a speech at…
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“Sanders said that “in this last election in November, … 63 percent of the American people chose not to vote, … 80 percent of young people, (and) 75 percent of low-income workers chose not to vote.” … We rate the claim Half True.” —PolitiFact, from an April 2, 2015 fact check of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) Overview PolitiFact burns…
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“(Erek) Culbreath said, ‘According to the state of Florida, you are almost twice as likely to get attacked by an alligator than by someone with a conceal-and-carry permit.’” … We find the statement has an element of truth but ignores other information that would give a different impression. So we rate it Mostly False.” —PolitiFact Florida, from a March 23,…
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“These numbers show that Webb is definitely right for the NASDAQ Composite (in fact, he underestimates a bit) and that he’s just about on target for the S&P 500 and the Wilshire 5000 if you round the figures upwards.” —PolitiFact, from a March 17, 2015 fact check of former Democratic Senator Jim Webb Overview PolitiFact’s claim massages the facts…
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