When to use
- Pre-publication fact-checking of articles
- Dedicated fact-check stories (rating claims)
- Verifying source statements during reporting
- Building fact-checking protocols for a newsroom
- Training staff on verification standards
What's included
Claim extraction
Templates for logging claims, prioritizing by importance, and distinguishing facts from opinions.
Evidence gathering
Checklists for documentary, human, and data sources. Evidence strength ratings.
Rating scales
Binary (verified/false) and graduated scales (true to pants on fire) with clear criteria.
Correction protocols
Templates for corrections, updates, and maintaining correction logs.
The fact-check process
Rating scale
| Rating | Criteria |
|---|---|
| True | Accurate and complete, nothing significant omitted |
| Mostly true | Accurate but needs context or minor clarification |
| Half true | Partially accurate but leaves out critical context |
| Mostly false | Contains some truth but overall misleading |
| False | Not accurate; contradicted by evidence |
Evidence strength
Official documents
Court records, government reports, official filings, peer-reviewed research.
On-record sources
Named sources with direct knowledge, contemporary news accounts.
Off-record and social media
Use to guide reporting only. Posts can be deleted, context matters.
Installation
# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/jamditis/claude-skills-journalism.git
# Copy the skill to your Claude config
cp -r claude-skills-journalism/fact-check-workflow ~/.claude/skills/
Or download just this skill from the GitHub repository.
Related skills
The goal is truth, not points
Fact-checking is systematic, not intuitive. Get the structure right.
View on GitHub