How we fact-check
Every card in Fake News or Fact? is reviewed by an editor before it is published. Players may guess wrong; we work hard never to be wrong.
Where cards come from
- Fake, exaggerated or misleading cards are claims that really circulated in the past week (or long-running urban legends) and were rated false by professional fact-checkers or authoritative sources, or, for a claim flagged by readers rather than by a fact-checker, are contradicted by two independent reputable sources that establish the fact the claim gets wrong. We never invent fake claims.
- Real cards are surprising true stories backed by a fact-check, a primary source (an agency, a study, an official record), or at least two independent reputable news outlets.
Verdicts
| Label | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Real | The claim, as worded, is true. |
| Fake | False or fabricated, including AI-generated images or video presented as real. |
| Exaggerated | A real event, inflated beyond what happened. |
| Misleading | True elements arranged to suggest something false. |
| Satire | A joke or satire story shared as real news. |
If a claim is only partly true, or experts disagree, it does not become a card.
How a card is made
- We collect the week's fact-checks and news from reputable sources.
- An AI model drafts the card in plain words anyone can follow, using only facts stated by those sources, and a second automated check confirms every fact against the source pages.
- An editor reviews every card, its sources, and its wording before it is published.
What we leave out
Politics (politicians, governments, elections and protests), war and terrorism, deaths, accidents and violence, sexual violence, religion, extremism and hate, medical and health claims, climate-science disputes, and anything about private individuals or children.
Corrections
Spotted a mistake? Tap Report a mistake on the card. We review reports quickly. If a card is wrong, we remove it from the game (it no longer counts in anyone's score) and list the correction on our public corrections page.
Contact: support.datadrivendecisions@gmail.com