Fact checking

Promise to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth

Did someone on your city council, school board, or even student council say something that sounds crazy? Feel free to write a fact check. As Journalists, our job is to give the public the full truth. 

Fact checks are articles that talk to experts and researchers about a topic that some figure (city councilperson, board member, etc) made a claim about. Some fact checks are long-form in-depth stories while others are simple, yes, this is correct or no, this is false. 

Statistics are always good to fact check especially when the speaker may be trying to push priorities or political agenda. 

Here’s how to localize it:

Some common statements that can be fact checked: 

• Last fiscal year’s budget made it so that new public buildings could be constructed and our employees could get a raise. 
  • Talk to the city planner as well as various local government employees to find out if this statement is correct. The planner’s information will be readily available online but the others may take some asking around. 
• More homework leads to higher test scores. 
  • Talk to physicians and educators who specialize in testing and ask what are the factors to good test scores. 
• Our school district has the highest average GPA in the state. 
  • Find out what that GPA is and find out about the rest of the districts in the state. This might take a while, and if the statement is true turn the story into one about what the school does in order to achieve this. 

Childcare crisis

More than just a lack of babysitters

Ask any working parent and you will find that there is a serious crisis when it comes to finding affordable childcare. While many governments have put forward legislation to improve conditions, there is still a long way to go. 

Members of the Biden Administration on Wednesday urged Congress to support proposed spending to help fund childcare services. This funding would be covered under the $3.5 trillion plan. 

Here’s how to localize it:

• Talk to local daycare centers and find out what problems they are experiencing. What would they do with excess funding and how many children do they care for a day? 
• Talk to parents and guardians who use childcare services and what problems they find and ask them a very important question— how much do they spend on childcare annually. It’s probably more than you think. Remember to get names of parents and children, as well as the children’s ages because these are all details to include in your story. 
• If you live in a place where there is no child care crisis, tell us the story of why. What does your national or state government do to help support childcare services and how do local daycares and providers compare to those without funding. 

Pope questions vaccine skeptics

Catholic secular leader in support of vaccinations

Pope Francis released a statement Wednesday in support of COVID-19 vaccinations — and confusion as to why people are refusing to get vaccinated.

“It’s a bit strange, because humanity has a history of friendship with vaccines,” Francis said.

Of course, this comes with longstanding views that some populations are citing religious reasons as to why they are not receiving a COVID-19 vaccination. However, Francis did not cite religious beliefs as a reason he found for hesitation. The Vatican’s doctrine office has found receiving the vaccine to be “morally” acceptable for Catholics.

Francis stated it would be “suicide” not to receive the vaccine. Both Francis and Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI are fully vaccinated with Pfizer-BioNTech.

Here’s how to localize it:

Whether we like it or not, vaccines have developed into a state AND secular issue – even though they’re related to medical science.

Here, we have a secular giant confirming his support for vaccinations and misunderstanding for those who refuse to receive a vaccination. However, there are also political and secular figures who are NOT in support of vaccinations for a variety of reasons.

No matter your religious affiliation, interview students and community members of various political and religious affiliations on their stance on vaccines in relation to their identities. Once you’ve collected a variety of responses, create an infographic detailing the metrics of these interviews. This is a great way to publicize information for widespread consumption.

Additionally, reach out to community political and secular leaders for their stance on vaccinations. How do they feel about a secular figure speaking out in support of vaccines? In contrast, how do they feel about political figures speaking out on vaccines?