I’m a trusting sort, but skeptical. When I hear something that doesn’t ring true, I check it out, do some research. The internet makes that easy. You still need to use discretion in your sources of “truth,” and that’s a subjective thing (some people would look to Ann Coulter or Oprah as a reliable source, for heaven’s sake). But seeking verification, like Doubting Thomas, is a good thing.

Politifact.com to the rescue! This site, which won a Pulitzer Prize for its fact-checking during the 2008 presidential campaign, does an excellent job of verifying and debunking. I’ve found it very helpful.

Politifact’s Truth-O-Meter takes statements made by politicians, pundits, and others in the public arena and gives them a rating:

• True: The statement is accurate and there’s nothing significant missing.
• Mostly True: The statement is accurate but needs clarification or additional information.
• Half True: The statement is accurate but leaves out important details or takes things out of context.



• Barely True: The statement contains some element of truth but ignores critical facts that would give a different impression.
• False: The statement is not accurate.
• Pants on Fire: The statement is not accurate and makes a ridiculous claim.

Hundreds of statements are in the Truth-O-Meter. They have them categorized by subject, and each one includes an article explaining the true story. A useful category right now is “Health.” It shows that most of the statements being made against the proposed health care bill are false. So are some of the statements being made by health-care proponents.

Politifact also publishes the Obameter, which tracks 500 promises Barack Obama made during the campaign. A screenshot from the current Obameter reading is up above.

Politifact is a project of the St. Petersburg Times, one of the country’s premiere newspapers.

Another good source is FactCheck.org, run by the Anneburg Foundation. They are more academic in their approach–not nearly as fun as Politifact–but do a credible job. They were given physical access to Obama’s birth certificate last August and did a thorough analysis.