PolitiFact at 15: Lessons about innovation, the Truth-O-Meter and pirates
Yes, the Truth-O-Meter is a gimmick. But 15 years later, it's still effective. Just don't look for "Barely True."
By Bill Adair – August 22, 2022
Articles by Author
Bill Adair
Bill Adair is the Knight Professor for the Practice of Journalism and Public Policy at Duke University and the director of the Duke Reporters' Lab. He is the creator of Pulitzer Prize-winning website PolitiFact and worked for 24 years as a reporter and editor at the Tampa Bay Times. He is the author of The Mystery of Flight 427: Inside a Crash Investigation.
Keeping a sense of community in the IFCN
For Global Fact 8, a reminder of the IFCN's important role bringing fact-checkers together.
By Bill Adair – October 20, 2021
The lessons of Squash, our groundbreaking automated fact-checking platform
Squash fulfilled our dream of instant checks on speeches and debates. But to work at scale, we need more fact-checks.
By Bill Adair – June 28, 2021
‘It’s great to be here in Norway!’
For the kickoff of Global Fact 7, a celebration of the IFCN's community.
By Bill Adair – June 22, 2020
We want your feedback on the MediaReview tagging system
The new tagging system will allow fact-checkers to alert tech platforms about false videos and fake images.
By Bill Adair – June 9, 2020
Squash report card: Improvements during State of the Union … and how humans will make our AI smarter
We've had some encouraging improvements in the AI powering our experimental fact-checking technology. But to make Squash smarter, we're calling in a human.
By Bill Adair – February 23, 2020
A broken promise about a tattoo and the need to fact-check everyone
"When we put together the IFCN code of principles three years ago, we said that fact-checkers 'do not concentrate their fact-checking on any one side.'"
By Bill Adair – June 19, 2019
Fact-Checking News | Tech & Check Cooperative
During State of the Union, a failure…and a glimpse of Squash
Our app crashed under unusual traffic. But our tests of a new automated tool were a success.
By Bill Adair – February 6, 2019
Fact-Checking News | Tech & Check Cooperative
Live fact-checking of the State of the Union address with our FactStream app
We're partnering with FactCheck.org, PolitiFact and Washington Post Fact Checker Glenn Kessler to provide real-time checks.
By Bill Adair – February 3, 2019
“We need to disrupt the lies”
At the Simón Bolívar National Journalism Awards, a call for a more aggressive approach to fact-checking
By Bill Adair – November 16, 2018