Code of Principles
HaqCheck follows the best practices in fact-checking, recognized by the world’s leading nonpartisan fact-checking organizations. We adhere to the International Fact-Checking Network’s code of principles of commitment to impartiality, transparency, and accuracy.
How We Fact Check
Every report we produce is different, but we ensure we fact-check all claims fairly and to the same standard. The process we follow is always the same. This ensures that our findings can be replicated and verified.
- Select the claim to check
Our fact-checkers monitor the media contents and identify a claim based on who is the source of information when it is published and what the information is about. After identifying it, a decision is made whether to check it depending on its nature, impact, distribution and engagement, and other factors.
- Check for evidence
We look for the best publicly available data or evidence and then draw a conclusion based on the proof.
- Contact experts
Based on the nature of the claim, we contact an expert in the field.
- Draft and Review
While drafting the article, we explain the claim, give context about the issue, put down the evidence, and give the verdict that is reached based on the available data.
- Publish and monitor feedback
We publish our fact-checked articles on our website and then share them on our social media accounts.
How We Rate Our Fact Checks
After the fact-checkers are done with their research and get the best publicly available evidence, they will decide the rating the claim should have. The research editor will then cross-check the rating. If they don’t all agree, they will discuss it in a team and take a vote.
Below, We Explain the Meaning of the Ratings We Use:
False: The claim is inaccurate according to the best publicly available evidence. This includes conspiracy theories, the false context of an image or video, and Fabricated content.
True: According to the best publicly available evidence, the claim is correct and accurate.
Misleading: There might be elements that are accurate but presented misleadingly. This includes False connections.
Satire: The claim is satirical and intended to be taken as a joke.
Altered: The content has been manipulated, faked, or transformed into audio, video, or photos.
Partly False: The content has factual inaccuracies—a mix of True and False claims.
Scam: When the claim is a dishonest scheme fraud and uses a trick to deceive. They often have “too good to be true” offers and impersonate a genuine source.
On the Use of Primary and Secondary Sources
Use primary sources whenever possible: HaqCheck uses primary sources (we have an internal contact directory) to fact-check claims whenever possible.
Explain the use of secondary sources: when primary sources are unavailable, HaqCheck will explain why and use secondary sources instead.
Provide additional information and context for images: most of HaqCheck’s fact-checks are related to images, so HaqCheck will provide additional information and context about where the original images were captured and what they show.
Identifying and Citing Sources
HaqCheck lists all important sources of evidence used in its fact-checks and provides links to those sources whenever possible, allowing users to verify the accuracy of its work. If identifying a source would put the source’s safety at risk, HaqCheck will provide as much detail about the source as possible without compromising their safety.
Disclosing the Interest of Sources
HaqCheck transparently discloses the relevant interests of sources in its fact-checks, significantly when those interests could reasonably influence the accuracy of the evidence provided.
Contacting Claimants
HaqCheck tries to contact the person who made a claim whenever possible to get supporting evidence. However, this may only sometimes be possible, and we may not be able to contact the claimant, or the claimant may not respond on time. Thus, we could still fact-check the claim without contacting the claimant.
Users Can Send Us Claims
HaqCheck encourages social media users to send us claims to check. We decide which claims to fact-check based on our policy and guidelines.
Non-partisan Policy
HaqCheck is a non-partisan initiative. Our fact-checkers and other staff are not members of any political party or organized movement and do not get involved in advocacy or publicize their views on policy issues HaqCheck might debunk, verify, or analyze in such a way as might lead a reasonable member of the public to see the organization’s work as biased.
Correction Policy
Sometimes mistakes happen, and while some errors are a weakness, some are inevitable, and we are fully open to correcting them promptly in whatever material we publish on our platforms. Feedback is always welcomed, and our audiences can comment on our social media channels, contact us on our website, or email info@haqcheck.org. We will be responsive to any of them and have a further look into the content.
In promoting transparency, an explanation will be offered on why a change is made, what the changes are, and when it is made:
We will label it a Correction if the fact check has a factual error.
If there is a new update or recent evidence, we will label it as an Update.