Today Howard Kurtz, media reporter for The Washington Post and host of CNN’s Reliable Sources, added a segment to said show where he fact checks statements made on the previous Sunday’s political show circuit. Here were his comments on the new feature (video then below):
You watch them on Sunday mornings, here and on the other networks, the politicians armed with their talking points that don’t always reflect the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. There’s been a lot of chatter lately about whether the programs should fact-check their guests after the interviews, an idea that began with NYU journalism professor Jay Rosen.
I think this is a terrific idea, the actual fact- checking, not the part about Colbert’s gut. And today we’re stepping up to fact-check all five Sunday programs. Were the politicians saying things that were true, partially true, or just plain not true?
Now, this sort of fact-checking takes time and sometimes gets bogged down in details. I bet this isn’t the most exciting television segment you have ever watched. But we all ought to do more of it, especially online, as a way of holding politicians accountable. Maybe that will make them more cautious about what they say on Sunday morning.
On the segment Kurtz basically chose one statement from each show to fact check (incl. CNN’s State of the Union and Fox News Sunday).
UPDATE 5:06pm :
Another comment regarding the feature from Kurtz via Twitter:
Reliable Sources fact-checking popular on Twitter. Should ideally be done during the wk; I’d be happy to help. Viewers seem hungry for it.