The week in fact-checking: How to get away with murdering the facts

The American Press Institute presents a roundup from the world of fact-checking, debunking and truth-telling — just in case you haven’t been paying as much attention as we do.

Quote of the week

“This all surprised me: the notion that journalism and fact-finding are demonstrably unrelated enterprises. I’m a chump that way.”  Dahlia Lithwick, writing for Slate on fact-checking and the GOP debates

Fact-check of the week
If you watch ABC-TV’s “How to Get Away with Murder,” you might be wondering, among many other things, is it really legal to kidnap a witness? Real-life law student Kim Miller fact-checks the show for Refinery29. Read it.

Tips for better fact-checking
How do political fact-checkers do what they do? You can ask them during a webinar sponsored by the National Press Foundation on Monday, Oct. 5.  Angie Holan of PolitiFact and Glenn Kessler of the Washington Post’s Fact Checker will talk about their work and 2016 elections. Sign up.

Fact-checking Hollywood
Which one of these things is not like the other?
“Stinging” — Hollywood Reporter
“Damning” — Vanity Fair
“Scorching” — Entertainment Weekly
“Totally off base” — Fortune Magazine
When screenwriter Aaron Sorkin publicly accused Apple of using child labor to make its iPhones, the Hollywood press seemed to consider it “a fact too good to check,” said Fortune writer Philip Elmer-DeWitt. So he tackled the fact-checking himself.How’d he do?

Beware the faux check
Grab your Ray-Bans for this installment of “how to spot a faux check.”  If, for instance, a sea life amusement park posts “facts” on social media explaining/defending its practices, you might think twice about their motivations. And if those facts are fact-checked by an organization that says it’s purely scientific, yet calls the amusement park part of the “captivity industry,” well, you know the drill.Read it.

Fact-checking science
You know that Martian sandstorm that stranded Matt Damon at the beginning of “The Martian” movie? (Oh, sorry, belated spoiler alert.) Author Andy Weir tells NPR about “the biggest scientific inaccuracy in the movie.” Read it.

Fact-checking fail
Writing for Al Jazeera America, Larry Beinhart criticizes reporters who robotically regurgitate what candidates say on the campaign trail and fail to question or examine even the most bizarre statements. “By reiterating and repeating such assertions, they normalize the surreal,” Beinhart says of campaign journalists. “If it happens enough without challenge, lunacy becomes reality.” Read it.

What? Something is fake on the internet?
Returning for a second run to a tiny screen near you: the Facebook “privacy policy” hoax is back! If you’re getting those “legal disclaimer” notices that appear to give away your rights to your photos, friends and vital organs to Facebook, you can ignore it. Or read this CBS News fact check.

For media organizations: Our research shows that fact-checking/accountability stories have significantly higher engagement among readers. Contact us for help in determining the impact of your content.

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