New York Focus to Begin Including Factual Verifications in Their Publications
In the current times marked by the rise of AI, the fall of local newspapers, and the rapid spread of falsehoods on social media, a new partnership is aiming to combat misinformation in New York City and New York state.
New York Focus, a nonprofit newsroom covering state government and its impact on communities, has partnered with Gigafact, a nonpartisan nonprofit that assists local newsrooms in responding swiftly and accurately to misinformation. Together, they create accessible, timely fact-check content to help local audiences discern verified information from falsehoods circulating in public discourse.
Ferdi Ferhat Özsoy, an experienced fact-checker, will produce weekly briefs for New York Focus. Özsoy has spent over a decade combating misinformation in both Turkey and the US, most recently serving as the deputy director of the International Fact-Checking Network, where he led strategic initiatives supporting over 170 fact-checkers across more than 80 countries.
The first fact brief investigates whether working-class residents in New York City are fleeing faster than wealthy residents. Robyn Sundlee, Gigafact's co-founder and head of operations, expressed pleasure about New York Focus's new fact brief program, which will provide New York residents with quick access to important and useful facts about their state.
This partnership is focused on combating misinformation by combining New York Focus's reporting reach with Gigafact's fact-checking expertise to deliver rapid, reliable fact checks on trending claims in the region. The claims for the fact briefs will be sourced from social media, readers, and other avenues.
Akash Mehta, editor-in-chief of New York Focus, stated that they launched the publication due to repeated untrue statements by New York politicians, with no one holding them accountable. Now, with the addition of fact briefs to their methods, they aim to hold power accountable and help New Yorkers navigate the sea of information.
[1] New York Focus, "New York Focus and Gigafact Partner to Combat Misinformation," [link to the article], accessed on [date].
[2] Gigafact, "Gigafact Partners with New York Focus to Combat Misinformation," [link to the article], accessed on [date].
[3] Poynter, "New York Focus Launches Fact Briefs to Combat Misinformation," [link to the article], accessed on [date].
[4] Columbia Journalism Review, "New York Focus Launches Fact Briefs to Combat Misinformation," [link to the article], accessed on [date].
- The state government of New York will soon see increased scrutiny as a new partnership between New York Focus, a nonprofit newsroom, and Gigafact, a nonpartisan fact-checking organization, aims to combat misinformation in both New York City and the state.
- Recognizing the need for reliable information in the current political and general-news landscape, New York Focus has partnered with Gigafact to produce weekly fact briefs, the first of which investigates whether working-class residents in New York City are fleeing faster than wealthy ones.
- As part of this collaboration, Ferdi Ferhat Özsoy, an experienced fact-checker who has spent over a decade combatting misinformation in Turkey and the US, will be producing these fact briefs for New York Focus.
