International networks

Full Fact is part of the wider fact checking community and collaborates on a variety of levels with other fact checkers around the world both on individual projects and via formal networks.

European Fact Checking Standards Network

Principally, we are actively involved in the European Fact Checking Standards Network as a member of the network and as part of its governance body.

This means that Full Fact meets all the requirements of the European Code of Standards for Independent Fact-Checking Organisations. The code was approved in September 2022 by more than 40 fact-checking organisations from more than 30 European countries. Recognition as a verified member of the network aims to enable the public to know which European based fact-checking organisations operate independently, ethically, transparently and with a commitment to serving the public interest.

When an organisation like Full Fact becomes a verified member of the EFCSN it means that we meet standards including:

• Methodological, such as providing at least two sources, although preferably more, to verify the central claim of a check, except in cases where there is only one relevant source and select what we verify based on prioritising claims that have the most potential to cause harm to people’s lives.
• Ethical, such as being editorially free and politically independent and including in our corrections policy a detailed description of how correction requests are evaluated, and making it available and easily accessible on our website.
• Organisational transparency, such as having a statement available and easily accessible on our website that establishes our organisational structure and clarifies how and who exercises editorial control. We also ensure our financial transparency is maintained by having easily accessible information on our total annual income.

Who certifies that Full Fact meets the standards required by the Code?

In accordance with the European Code of Standards, two independent assessors assess each organisation’s compliance with the requirements of the Code. This evaluation is done blindly. Once evaluated, applications are reviewed by the EFCSN Governance Body, which has the final decision. Approved organisations are reviewed every two years to check that they continue to comply with the Code of Standards.

International Fact Checking Network

In addition, Full Fact is a member of the The International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN). The IFCN is an organisation that monitors trends in fact checking, provides training resources and hosts a yearly conference on fact checking called #GlobalFact. It aims to promote best practice in fact checking and provide a place for collaboration between fact checkers worldwide.

IFCN have a Code of Principles that Full Fact helped develop in 2016.

We are verified signatories of the code.

You can see our applications and assessments since 2017 on the IFCN Code of Principles website.

The Code of Principles are:

1. A COMMITMENT TO NONPARTISANSHIP AND FAIRNESS
   We fact-check claims using the same standard for every fact check. We do not concentrate our fact-checking on any one side. We follow the same process for every fact check and let the evidence dictate our conclusions. We do not advocate or take policy positions on the issues we fact-check.
2. A COMMITMENT TO TRANSPARENCY OF SOURCES
   We want our readers to be able to verify our findings themselves. We provide all sources in enough detail that readers can replicate our work, except in cases where a source’s personal security could be compromised. In such cases, we provide as much detail as possible.
3. A COMMITMENT TO TRANSPARENCY OF FUNDING & ORGANIZATION
   We are transparent about our funding sources. If we accept funding from other organizations, we ensure that funders have no influence over the conclusions we reach in our reports. We detail the professional background of all key figures in our organization and explain our organizational structure and legal status. We clearly indicate a way for readers to communicate with us.
4. A COMMITMENT TO TRANSPARENCY OF METHODOLOGY
   We explain the methodology we use to select, research, write, edit, publish and correct our fact checks. We encourage readers to send us claims to fact-check and are transparent on why and how we fact-check.
5. A COMMITMENT TO OPEN AND HONEST CORRECTIONS
   We publish our corrections policy and follow it scrupulously. We correct clearly and transparently in line with our corrections policy, seeking so far as possible to ensure that readers see the corrected version.

These five commitments are important to us and other reputable fact checkers. The IFCN has its own complaints function which you can read about here.