The Fact Check ledger is where LiveTrue News World records the claims it examines, what kind of evidence settled each one and how well the claim stands up. It is meant to be read the way you would read a lab notebook: for what was asked, what was found and how sure we are.
How to read an entry
- The claim is quoted as it was made, in a single sentence.
- The verdict label tells you the kind of finding: Verified True, Context Required, Misleading Context, Debunked, or Synthetic AI Origin.
- The Veracity Meter is five segments, filled in proportion to how well the claim holds up, from one for contradicted to five for fully supported.
- Inspect Evidence opens the evidence note, which names the type of source that settles the question and explains the reasoning.
The entries here are fictional
This is the launch edition, so there is no real ledger yet. The six entries below are illustrative samples that demonstrate the format. The claims in them are invented and do not refer to real videos, regulators, products, companies or events. They are included so that you can see how verdicts, scores and evidence notes would look once the newsroom begins checking real claims.
Why a public ledger
A verdict is only as trustworthy as the reasoning behind it. Keeping the claim, the evidence and the score together lets readers disagree intelligently: you can see where a judgment rests on a document and where it rests on a reading of context. A ledger also makes it harder to quietly forget mistakes, since changes to an entry are logged.
What the ledger will not do
It will not rate people, only claims. It will not settle questions of opinion or values. And it will not claim an accuracy rate or a count of checks completed until there is a real record to count, because a statistic we invent would be exactly the kind of thing the ledger exists to catch.
Learn the method
The Fact-Checking Scoring Scale explains how each step on the meter is defined, and the Fact-Checking Policy describes the process from intake to publication. If you want a claim checked, send it with the exact wording and where you saw it to [email protected].
cancelDEBUNKEDSample check
Viral video alleges a total breakdown of an automated deep-sea power grid in the South Pacific.
The footage is an old simulation, not a live feed; the grid reports normal operation.
Inspect Evidenceexpand_more
Source type: Grid telemetry and video provenance records
In this scenario, the check begins with where the clip first appeared. Its earliest upload predates the supposed outage by several years, and frame details match a published engineering simulation rather than any real installation. The operator's own telemetry, the kind of primary record that settles a question like this, shows all cable segments reporting normally for the period in question. Two checkers reached the same conclusion independently, and the original simulation's creators confirmed the footage came from them. The claim is therefore contradicted by primary evidence. This is an illustrative sample entry.
check_circleVERIFIED TRUESample check
A regulator has passed a mandatory 25-year recycling lifecycle for domestic solar storage.
The legislative register shows the rule was adopted as described.
Inspect Evidenceexpand_more
Source type: Legislative voting register
Here the claim is checked against the official voting register, the document that records whether a rule passed and in what form. In this scenario the register shows the measure approved, with the lifecycle requirement matching the claim's wording and the effective date stated. A second checker located the published text of the final rule and confirmed that the 25-year recycling provision applies to domestic storage units. No amendment or later repeal was found. Because primary documents confirm each element of the claim, it earns the top score. This is an illustrative sample entry.
infoCONTEXT REQUIREDSample check
Global aviation fuel has been replaced by 50 percent synthetic hydrogen blends.
True only for experimental test corridors; fleet-wide adoption is years away.
Inspect Evidenceexpand_more
Source type: Airline trial reports and fuel supply records
This claim mixes a real trial with a sweeping conclusion. In the scenario, trial reports describe blends of that proportion on two experimental corridors operated by a small number of aircraft. Fuel supply records show that the overwhelming majority of flights still use conventional fuel, and the publicly stated timeline for fleet-wide adoption is well over a decade away. The statement is therefore accurate in a narrow setting but false as a description of global aviation. The verdict, Context Required, signals that the missing context changes the meaning. This is an illustrative sample entry.
check_circleVERIFIED TRUESample check
A new solid-state sodium battery has entered mass production on a line in Germany.
Inspection records confirm a production line is running; output volume is still ramping.
Inspect Evidenceexpand_more
Source type: Manufacturing inspection records
To check a manufacturing claim, the most useful primary evidence is the inspection record from the production site. In this scenario, an inspection report dated within the relevant period shows the line operating and units passing quality checks, and a patent registry entry matches the cell chemistry described. One open question is volume: records show the line is still ramping, so calling it mass production is slightly generous. Both checkers scored it four of five and noted the caveat. The chemistry and the existence of the line are supported, while the scale remains unproven. This is an illustrative sample entry.
warningMISLEADING CONTEXTSample check
Mediterranean-style shipping lanes were closed entirely because of thermal atmospheric pressure.
Only two small ferry routes paused during strong winds; commercial traffic continued.
Inspect Evidenceexpand_more
Source type: Maritime traffic and safety records
A real event sits underneath this claim, which is what makes it misleading rather than simply false. In the scenario, maritime safety bulletins show two short ferry routes suspended for several hours during strong gusts. Vessel tracking records, meanwhile, show cargo and passenger traffic on the main lanes continuing at normal levels throughout. The phrase closed entirely transforms a local pause into a regional shutdown. Because the framing leads readers to a conclusion the evidence does not support, the claim receives a low score and the Misleading Context label. This is an illustrative sample entry.
smart_toySYNTHETIC AI ORIGINSample check
Viral footage shows a floating arctic bio-dome habitat collapsing after an unexpected wave.
Forensic review finds signs of generated imagery; no such facility reported damage.
Inspect Evidenceexpand_more
Source type: Image provenance and forensic analysis
Checking footage starts with provenance: where it was first posted and whether the original file can be found. In this scenario no original exists, and the earliest copy has no capture metadata. A forensic review of the frames finds pixel-level noise patterns, inconsistent water physics and repeated textures typical of generated video. No research facility is known to operate a structure like the one shown, and operators of nearby installations reported no damage. The footage is judged to be synthetic in origin, so the claim that a real structure collapsed is contradicted. This is an illustrative sample entry.
