The Role of PolitiFact in the 2012 Election

Martin Center, University of Akron
105 Fir Hill, Akron

 Thursday, November 29, 2012
 

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People still care about the facts in our political campaigns, according to Robert Higgs, editor of Politifact Ohio at the Cleveland Plain Dealer. As an example, he noted that the Politifact website received over 20,000 hits in an hour and a half after the second presidential debate, with people fact-checking Mitt Romney’s statement that oil production had declined on public lands.

At a meeting on November 29 at the University of Akron’s Martin Center, co-sponsored by the Akron Press Club, the Bliss Institute of Applied Politics, and LWVAA, Higgs explained how the process works. Statements are chosen by reporters and editors based on what is interesting to them, or that may sound implausible. In a process that may take several days, reporters go to the source of the statement and get their references, and then cross check with unbiased sources such as the Census Bureau or the Bureau of Labor Statistics. A panel of three editors then reviews this information and grades the statement anywhere from “True” to “Pants on Fire.”

In the past election, the Senate race between Josh Mandel and Sherrod Brown provided a good deal of fodder for Politifact, with both campaigns—and the groups that supported them — earning ratings of “pants on fire.”

Asked by an audience member who would do such political fact checking if newspapers don't, Higgs responded that he didn’t know. This was an especially relevant question considering the cloud of uncertainty hanging over the future of the Plain Dealer as an “everyday” daily paper. He didn’t believe the average person would have the training, knowledge or time to do the research themselves.

Considering how fast and loose political campaigns, and especially the shadowy SuperPacs, have become with the facts, let’s hope Politifact is around for a long time to come!