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A political post is not reliable just because it looks familiar, sounds certain, or includes a convincing photo. To assess it, identify the specific factual claim, trace it to evidence, check its date and context, and look for independent corroboration. If you cannot verify it, do not share it as fact.
Start by separating fact from opinion
A factual claim can be checked against evidence—for example, whether an election office changed a polling place or whether a public official made a particular statement. An opinion expresses a judgment, preference, or interpretation. People can disagree about policy or argue from a partisan perspective without making a false factual claim. Assess testable assertions on their evidence; do not treat political viewpoint or forceful language alone as proof of misinformation.
Check the source before trusting the post
Look up the author and outlet independently rather than relying on the name, logo, or profile presented in the post. Check whether the account or website is genuinely connected to the person or organization it claims to represent. The FBI and CISA have warned about inauthentic sites posing as local news organizations in their October 18, 2024 advisory on foreign influence operations targeting the U.S. general election.
Consider whether the outlet names its authors, links to evidence, explains ownership or sponsorship, and corrects errors. Sponsorship and political perspective can help you understand context, but neither by itself proves a claim false. North Carolina’s State Board of Elections offers a useful checklist for evaluating online content; its election information and contacts are specific to North Carolina, not a substitute for another jurisdiction’s election authority: North Carolina State Board of Elections guidance on spotting online misinformation.
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Check the date, place, and full context
Old material can circulate with a new caption that makes it seem current. Find when the post and any linked material first appeared. For a photo or video, ask whether it shows the event, place, and time claimed—and whether it may be staged, edited, or taken from another context.
UNESCO’s journalism education handbook recommends examining visual clues and available metadata when verifying social-media content. A reverse-image search may reveal earlier appearances of a picture, but a match is a lead to investigate, not a verdict about what the image proves. See UNESCO’s Journalism, “Fake News” & Disinformation: Handbook for Journalism Education and Training.
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Read past the caption and trace the evidence
A social caption or headline may not accurately describe the linked material. Open the original document, full quotation, recording, study, or official notice and compare it with the post’s claim. Look for a specific assertion that can be tested, not just a dramatic image card or emotionally charged wording. North Carolina election officials likewise advise readers to check whether content matches its headline.
Follow links back to the underlying records or named sources. Ask what evidence would support the claim—and what evidence would count against it. A post that cites no source, or points only to another post repeating the same assertion, has not established its claim.
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Verify election claims with the responsible authority
For voting procedures, polling-place locations, election administration, and official results, consult the election authority responsible for the relevant place. In the United States, that generally means the appropriate state or local election office; outside the U.S., use the official authority for your jurisdiction. The FBI and CISA’s October 2024 advisory recommends relying on trusted official sources and verifying reported claims before sharing. It concerns the 2024 U.S. general-election cycle, so it is not a real-time account of the 2026 election environment.
For other consequential claims, find reliable reporting or primary records that address the same specific fact. Check whether sources have reached their conclusions independently or are all repeating one post, press release, or unattributed assertion. No corroboration is a reason to wait, not automatic proof that a claim is false.
Treat AI labels as a clue, not a truth test
The FBI and CISA advisory recommends learning relevant platform disclosure rules and watching for labels on content created or altered with generative AI. A label can tell you something about how content was made, but it does not establish whether the caption or accompanying factual claim is accurate. Nor does the guidance establish a universal, reliable AI detector. Check the claim, source, and context separately.
Decide whether to share, wait, or report
If you have not verified the source or evidence, do not forward the claim as established fact. You can wait while checking it, or simply choose not to amplify it. UNESCO’s advice on spotting disinformation online supports responsible handling of unverified social content; that page dates to 2020 and reports an update in April 2023, so it should not be read as a guide to current platform features.
If a post appears to involve election-specific or harmful material, consider using the relevant election authority’s guidance or the platform’s current help or reporting control. Reporting options change, and a platform’s decision to moderate a post is not, by itself, an independent finding that every claim in it is inaccurate. UNESCO’s Guidelines for the Governance of Digital Platforms frame platform responsibilities around transparency and accountability alongside freedom of expression and access to information.
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