Aims

What are the project aims?
In this guide, we focus on data publishing by national statistical offices (NSOs). Showing how the quality of national statistics data affects fact checking.

In doing so, we aim to help fact checkers in three ways:

Improve data literacy skills
Fact checkers may see data publishing as something for “tech people”. However, the basics of what is well-published data can be learned by anyone. If fact checkers improve their knowledge of data publishing, and look at examples from other NSOs, they can better evaluate the statistics data in their country.

Learn about national statistical offices
National statistical offices vary a lot throughout the world. Some NSOs are large, some are small, some are well-funded, others less so. By understanding more about national statistical offices, fact checkers can put their own country’s NSO in better context.

Advocate for better statistics
Building on their knowledge of data publishing and NSO’s elsewhere, fact checkers can then advocate for better national statistics. They can better describe to NSOs what they would like to see and use examples from statistical data elsewhere. They can also show NSOs the impact of national statistical data in fact checks.

Speed up fact checking
Good data means that fact checkers can work faster. Identify the right underlying data as quickly as possible means that the process of fact checking is easier, the data being published in such a way that fact checkers can automate parts of the information retrieval and process mean they can work even faster again.