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Loyola University Chicago Libraries

Public Health & Health Sciences

For use by faculty and students in the undergraduate Public Health, Exercise Science, and Healthcare Administration programs

Overview

Headshots of Trump on the left and Harris on the right

            This research guide is designed to help PUBH 307 students fact-check the policy proposals of the 2024 Presidential Candidates, as well as research the potential efficacy and costs of those proposals.

Navigating the range and complexity of public health policies can be challenging for any researcher.  It may be helpful to begin with secondary sources, which provide background  information and ultimately guide you to the most relevant statutes, regulations and cases.

 

Start by identifying the adjectives, verbs, and numbers used in the campaign statement. 

Adjectives

Are the descriptors factual, or opinion based? Campaign statements are typically grounded in ethical, social, and/or religious beliefs. This can lead to strong language that must be fact-checked.

Do they define their terms? What do they consider "affordable", "safe", "free of pollution"?

Verbs

What are they claiming to have done? What are they promising to do? Does that match their voting and policy record? Are their promises achievable?

  • eg. protect, strengthen, fight, eliminate, establish

Numbers

Data are stories that can be retold in countless ways. Do the candidates identify their data sources? Do they share how it was analyzed?

  • Dates
  • Costs
  • Percentage of the population
  • Voting records

Fact-Checking

AllSides
"We display the day’s top news stories from the Left, Center and Right of the political spectrum — side-by-side so you can decide the truth for yourself."

Politifact
"PolitiFact is an independent fact-checking journalism website aimed at bringing you the truth in politics. PolitiFact's reporters and editors fact-check statements from the White House, Congress, candidates, advocacy groups and more, rating claims for accuracy on our Truth-O-Meter."

FactCheck.org
A nonpartisan, nonprofit 'consumer advocate' for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics. Monitors the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews and news releases. 

Vote Smart
Vote Smart is a non-partisan, non-profit organization that provides factual information on candidates, including bios, voting records, positions, ratings, speeches, and funding.

Politico
Politico is a journalism organization focusing on political news. The organization aggregates results from various polls and allow users to filter poll results by state, office, category/issue, date, and source.

New York Times
Fact-checking by the New York Times.

The Washington Post's Fact Checker
Fact-checking by the Washington Post.

SciCheck
"SciCheck feature focuses exclusively on false and misleading scientific claims that are made by partisans to influence public policy."

Snopes
"When misinformation obscures the truth and readers don’t know what to trust, Snopes.com’s fact checking and original, investigative reporting lights the way to evidence-based and contextualized analysis. We always document our sources so readers are empowered to do independent research and make up their own minds."

Scholarly Databases

News and Periodicals

Money in Politics