Where are all the fact-checkers?

At NPR, it’s a process, not a person [View this email online]( [NPR Public Editor by Poynter's Kelly McBride]( Walk into any modern newsroom (or search the staff directory) and you would be hard-pressed to find a specific person with the title of “fact-checker.” Magazines may be the exception (lower in this newsletter, editorial researcher Kayla Randall has a lovely description of how she did that job in a past life). For all the attention paid by the modern media to fact-checking, very few people have the explicit role of only checking facts. Instead of being an individual pursuit, fact-checking is a team sport at NPR. The original creator is the person primarily responsible for accuracy of the facts. But every writer, correspondent, reporter, podcaster, newscaster, host, editor and producer gets some backup. At NPR, it’s a process, not a person. When listeners and readers ask us questions, we often find ourselves stepping behind the scenes to see what happens before, during and after the story is created. This week, three NPR audience members ask for clarifications that get into this process. One person just wants to know exactly what a fact-checker is and does. Unfortunately, there’s no clear answer. A listener was alarmed by a short equivocation in a newscast item about a long-dead Klansman in Tennessee. Turns out the words were added by an editor. And a reader wondered if a story about the K-pop band BTS’ new McDonald’s deal was too fluffy. That story had a clear purpose, at least two audiences, but lacked a bit of context. All of these questions point to the process: How did the story originate? What was the purpose or goal of the story? What should be added for context? What words should come out because they are unnecessary? What happens behind the scenes shows up in the stories. [McDonald's BTS meal shown in Seoul, South Korea.]( McDonald's BTS meal shown in Seoul, South Korea. Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images From the Inbox Here are a few quotes from the Public Editor's inbox that resonated with us. You can share your questions and concerns with us through the [NPR Contact page](. What does a fact-checker do? Freddy Cisneros writes: I have a quick question that came up during a conversation with my housemates. The question is: What exactly does a "fact-checker" do? Specifically, what do NPR "fact-checkers" do? This all started when I pondered why the person's job title is a "fact-checker" rather than a "statement-checker." One housemate agreed that it seemed odd, but my brother said that I may have a misunderstanding of what a fact-checker does. My understanding was that if Donald Trump claims he paid $1 million in taxes, and NPR wanted to report on this then the NPR fact-checker would go ahead and determine if Donald Trump did in fact pay $1 million in taxes or not. But my brother said that is not what the fact-checker does. On the other hand, my brother believes that the fact-checker only reads into facts or scientific literature. So an NPR reporter references an experiment in a scientific paper, then the fact-checker makes sure that the reporter's interpretation of the paper is correct. Are either of these two interpretations of a fact-checker correct or are we misunderstanding the "fact-checker’s" job? While fact-checker can be a job title in journalism, fact-checking is an activity that all journalists engage in. Both of the scenarios you describe are forms of fact-checking. Though, the tax payment example you use in your first understanding might be checked via other reputable news outlets that reported it and provided supporting documents. No one at NPR has the official title of fact-checker, even though reporters, producers, editors and copy editors are all at times explicitly fact-checking a piece of journalism. NPR’s science podcast [Short Wave]( even credits these individuals at the end of each episode. As someone who spent nearly nine months as a magazine fact-checker, I’m thrilled you’re asking these questions. They’re questions I considered then and now, because despite the concept being ubiquitous in our internet disinformation age, fact-checking still seems rather opaque to the public. What does it mean to “fact-check” in a journalistic sense? In my magazine job, it meant reading a story and verifying every proper noun, and every detail that could be confirmed. My supervisor would underline in blue everything that needed to be checked in a story. Often, nearly the entire story was underlined. Some stories were thousands of words, others were a couple of paragraphs. If the story said a restaurant served fish and chips, I called the restaurant and asked. If a story said a source named Sarah was a dentist with a 2-year-old son, I emailed or called her to confirm those details were correct: her name, her occupation, her son and his age. I also did online research, and in some cases referred back to books and other articles, particularly if a story involved dates, statistics and other numbers. But fact-checking is more than confirming name spellings, ages and job titles. Fact-checkers can find truths that lack context and incomplete truths, and give suggestions for how to make the writing more accurate. The second understanding of fact-checking you mention — a “reporter references an experiment in a scientific paper, then the fact-checker makes sure that the reporter's interpretation of the paper is correct” — gets at that idea. A distortion of science in a story is a serious flaw that could spread misleading information. Fact-checking gained renewed attention in the 2010s as social media became a central method for news consumption. Outfits like PolitiFact and Snopes popped up even before then to take on politicians and urban legends. Although, there’s been [a recent slowdown of new]( fact-checking projects. But whether it’s a job title or a dedicated site is less important than the activity itself. Fact-checking in journalism is a team sport, a critical part of the process of a story coming together. — Kayla Randall Why equivocate on a KKK leader? Cassandra Good [tweeted]( Any particular reason your story tonight on the removal of Nathan Bedford Forrest's remains included the line "some say" he was associated with the KKK? On the afternoon of June 1, NPR newscaster Jack Speer wrote this copy: Workers in Memphis, Tennessee have started the process of digging up the remains of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest. The remains of the former slave trader and his wife are being moved to a museum hundreds of miles away. A park in Memphis used to bear the name of the early Ku Klux Klan leader. Before he spoke the newscast into a microphone, an editor changed that last sentence to read: A park in Memphis used to bear the name of the Confederate leader who some say was an early leader of the Ku Klux Klan. Elizabeth Johnson, an editor in the newscast unit, told me via email that she was attempting to make the copy more accurate. “It is my understanding that there is some dispute regarding the extent of his leadership role, hence the change of wording,” she said. “In retrospect, we could have said simply ‘who was also associated w/ the KKK’ — however, even with the hedge, I think referencing a more significant role was germane to the story.” Indeed, Forrest was recognized in 1867 as the Grand Wizard, meaning the executive in charge, at the KKK’s annual convention, according to the [Mississippi Civil Rights Project]( which our Twitter friend linked to in her tweet. While some scholars argue about Forrest’s true [influence]( over the KKK, his title role is not in dispute. Johnson said that in hindsight, she would make a different edit if she had to do it over again. “I’m sorry if even one person was left with the impression that we were downplaying or misrepresenting anything,” she said. — Kelly McBride Valid topic or merely promotional? Jan Kopitz writes: I am very concerned [about the article referenced]( being essentially an advertisement for McDonald's and the referenced music group. The story has no apparent news value. On top of that McDonald's is known to produce unhealthy food. How is this possible in a publicly funded news medium like NPR? Some people argue that anything BTS does is news. The purpose of this story depends on whether you’re a fan of the South Korean boy band or not, but it serves two different audiences. If you’re in the BTS army, seeing NPR acknowledge a new business partnership involving your favorite band communicates that public radio is aware of the cultural relevance of K-pop and its biggest stars. For the rest of the audience, the story serves as an explanation that keeps you up to date. In an email, NPR Engagement Editor Suzanne Nuyen told me she was assigned to write about the collaboration as a “moment of joy” story to round out NPR’s home-page offerings. “The Hallyu Wave/Korean Wave is here to stay, and is a subject of interest globally,” Nuyen told me, in reference to the international [fascination with Korean pop culture](. “BTS in particular has broken countless records in the U.S. and across the world and even at NPR, which I mentioned in the story when I linked to their Tiny Desk [concert].” We in the Public Editor’s office even [wrote about the BTS Army crushing Tiny Desk viewership]( records last fall. After that video dropped, fans of the boy band began donating to NPR and member stations. Nuyen said the McDonald’s artist collaboration is the first of its kind to go global, and the first to have branded packaging and merchandise to go with the meal. The other two were only offered domestically, she noted. She considers this another milestone in BTS’ career. “BTS is the biggest K-pop group globally right now. Everything they do is scrutinized and they are the blueprint of how to make it globally despite the language barrier,” Nuyen said. “The Hallyu/Korean wave dates back to the ’90s but we haven’t really seen any group have the scope of success that BTS has yet. I think if you are not familiar with the group or with KPop in general, it may seem baffling, but fans of the band or those interested in Korean pop culture’s success globally in general would find it fascinating.” This story offers a few examples of what sets BTS apart, but I would have loved to see more of the context Nuyen shared with me via email — especially of the Korean wave — in the piece. Perhaps a subject expert commenting on the significance of the collaboration would have helped. That said, Nuyen was working overnight when it was assigned to her and bringing that additional level of reporting is hard to do on the graveyard shift. Even without that missing element, telling NPR readers that BTS and McDonald’s are teaming up is worth the effort. In case you’re interested and don’t want to fall down a BTS rabbit hole, here are some helpful links: Back in December, Pop Culture Happy Hour [produced a review]( of BTS’ new album called “BE.” And in late May, the podcast widened its lens with [a guide to Korean pop](. Nuyen also shared a few resources with me, one of which was [this explainer]( on the Hallyu wave, from Vox. — Amaris Castillo Spotlight On The Public Editor spends a lot of time examining moments where NPR fell short. Yet we also learn a lot about NPR by looking at work that we find to be compelling and excellent journalism. Here we share a line or two about the pieces where NPR shines. In Those Genes [Population geneticist Dr. Janina Jeff is the host and executive producer of "In Those Genes."]( Jas Thomas/Janina Jeff SHORT WAVE [Scientific Sankofa And The Complexities Of Genetic Ancestry]( Short Wave’s [recent episode]( on genetic ancestry and [scientific Sankofa]( introduces us to population geneticist Janina Jeff, the host and executive producer of In Those Genes, an independent science and culture podcast. Through the lens of Black culture, In Those Genes “uses genetics to decode the lost histories of African descendants.” I appreciate Short Wave spotlighting a podcast outside of the NPR family that I might not have discovered otherwise. Jeff examines our genes — how they’re alike, how they’re different and how biology was misused and manipulated to create a human hierarchy. It’ll make you think long after you’ve listened. — Kayla Randall The military-civilian divide [Home/Front Illustration]( Jamiel Law for NPR ROUGH TRANSLATION [Home/Front: Conversations Across The Civilian-Military Divide]( In a new season called Home/Front, the Rough Translation podcast brings listeners into what’s called the civilian-military (“civ-mil”) divide. In the [first episode]( we hear from people on both sides of the aisle. Veterans share uncomfortable stories about their interactions with civilians, such as being asked if they’ve been shot at (one man who served in Afghanistan with the 82nd Airborne said he has prepackaged jokes in response). We also hear from a civilian physician with the VA who is sometimes met with disappointment when a patient asks: Are you a veteran? Through a rich tapestry of voices, host Gregory Warner and NPR Veterans Correspondent Quil Lawrence (who pitched this series) take us into mostly private misunderstandings that we don’t have the words for, and offer some insight into crossing the divide. A bonus: As a civilian myself with a Navy veteran sibling, I’m thinking about my own past interactions with those in the military. — Amaris Castillo The Office of the Public Editor is a team. Researchers Amaris Castillo and Kayla Randall make this newsletter possible. We are still reading all of your messages on [Facebook]( [Twitter]( and [from our inbox](. As always, keep them coming. Kelly McBride NPR Public Editor Chair, [Craig Newmark Center for Ethics & Leadership at the Poynter Institute]( Kelly McBride, Public Editor Kayla Randall, NPR Amaris Castillo, Poynter Institute The Public Editor stands as a source of independent accountability. Created by NPR's board of directors, the Public Editor serves as a bridge between the newsroom and the audience, striving to both listen to the audience's concerns and explain the newsroom's work and ambitions. The office ensures NPR remains steadfast in its mission to present fair, accurate and comprehensive information in service of democracy. [Read more]( from the NPR Public Editor, [contact us]( or follow us on [Twitter](. You received this message because you're subscribed to Public Editor emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 [Unsubscribe]( | [Privacy Policy]( [NPR logo]