Organization: franceinfo.fr
Applicant: pascal Doucet-Bon
Assessor: Laurent Bigot
Edits made by the organization after this assessment
IFCN Staff wrote:
The requested informations are in the new section « vrai ou fake »
// fact checker list and contents they produce :
"Le vrai du faux" d'Antoine Krempf, produit par Radio France et diffusé sur franceinfo, qui part chaque jour à la chasse aux approximations et aux contre-vérités.
- "L'instant détox" de Julien Pain, produit par France Télévisions et diffusé sur franceinfo, qui descend dans la rue pour tester en direct des intox et des idées reçues.
- "L'Oeil du 20 heures", produit par France Télévisions et diffusé sur France 2, qui enquête sur les pouvoirs publics et démonte les coups de com' des politiques.
- "Les Observateurs", produits par France 24 et conduits par Derek Thompson, qui vérifient des images, des vidéos diffusées sur le Web partout dans le monde.
-"Contre-faits", produits par France 24 et conduits par Caroline de Camaret, décrypte les fausses nouvelles et rumeurs concernant l’Union européenne dans l’émission "Ici l’Europe".
-"Data culte" et "Retour vers l’Info", produits par l’INA, qui éclairent le présent avec le passé, analysent des mensonges et propagandes historiques, confrontent les idées reçues à la réalité des chiffres, des paroles et des images d’archives.
- "Désintox", produit par Arte, Libération et 2P2L, qui décrypte l'actualité dans des vidéos d'animation diffusées chaque soir dans "28 minutes".
//Methodology
Qu'y trouve-t-on ? Franceinfo démonte les fausses informations dans son Live permanent et répond en continu aux questions posées par ses télespectateurs, auditeurs ou lecteurs. Franceinfo propose dans "vrai ou fake" des rebonds sur l'actualité chaude et tous les rendez-vous des acteurs de l'audiovisuel public, parmi lesquels :
Ces équipes travaillent de façon méthodique : s'il s'agit de vérifier le propos d'un politique, les journalistes confrontent les paroles aux données et aux lois ; s'il s'agit de vérifier une image ou une vidéo, les journalistes identifient notamment sa source, sa localisation, sa datation ; s'il s'agit de vérifier une rumeur, les journalistes lui opposent des faits et cherchent à remonter à sa source. Ils veillent à appuyer leurs démonstrations avec des preuves tangibles, documents, liens hypertextes.
// the way readers can send claims to fact-check
Comment nous contacter ? Pour signaler des informations non vérifiées ou échanger avec nos journalistes, vous pouvez poster des questions ou des remarques dans le Live ou sur les comptes Twitter et Facebook de franceinfo.
From the assessor:
FranceInfo made interesting edits. It’s clearer for the readers to find a unique and specific fact-checking section on Franceinfo.fr.
But this text is not visible enough and there are still some fuzzy notions, especially because of the lack of hypertext links:
- the list and the biography of the fact-checkers or, failing that, the France Info media list with their hypertext links (the list exists, but without hypertext links)
- the hypertext link for the live part of the website, so that readers can call or contact journalists more easily
- France Info's Twitter and Facebook accounts are not presented with their hypertext links
- And, moreover, France Info still does not show how it makes corrections in its articles ...
From the assessor (12/2018):
FranceInfo made additional edits, with more hypertext links and France Info's Twitter and Facebook accounts.
But the list and the biography of the fact-checkers is still missing, as is the page that lists the corrections made by the authors of the articles.
It is up to the IFCN to decide whether France Info should make these additional corrections.
From the organization
We eventualy published the requested edits in the fact checking dedicated section : https://www.francetvinfo.fr/vrai-ou-fake/
As asked by the assessor, you can now find all the fact checkers working on fact checking :
Conclusion and recommendations
Laurent Bigot wrote:
There’s a specific difficulty to assess Franceinfo.fr, cause it’s a digital platform founded by four public media partners: France Télévisions (public TV company), Radio France (public radio company), INA (public media archives service) and France Médias Monde (public radio and TV company). It produces fact-checking through two distinct fact-checking sections (Le Vrai du Faux and L’Oeil du 20 Heures) and also through its main section…
So the journalists involved in the fact-checking work of Franceinfo.fr don’t have the same way to proceed: some of them produce TV fact-checking, some of them produce radio fact-checking and some of them web fact-checking. Franceinfo.fr gathers all their contents.
That’s probably why some necessary pages are missing.
According to my assessment, I think Franceinfo.fr should be accepted as a reliable fact-checking partner. This media is compliant with the large majority of the principles enacted by the IFCN.
But edits should be required regarding fact-checkers’ list and biographies, fact-checking methodology, the way readers can send claims to fact-check and which ones, corrections policy…
This could be clearer for the readers to find a unique and specific fact-checking section on Franceinfo.fr
Laurent Bigot recommended Accept with edits
on 20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago)
Laurent Bigot wrote:
There’s a specific difficulty to assess Franceinfo.fr, cause it’s a digital platform founded by four public media partners: France Télévisions (public TV company), Radio France (public radio company), INA (public media archives service) and France Médias Monde (public radio and TV company). It produces fact-checking through two distinct fact-checking sections (Le Vrai du Faux and L’Oeil du 20 Heures) and also through its main section…
So the journalists involved in the fact-checking work of Franceinfo.fr don’t have the same way to proceed: some of them produce TV fact-checking, some of them produce radio fact-checking and some of them web fact-checking. Franceinfo.fr gathers all their contents.
That’s probably why some necessary pages are missing.
According to my assessment, I think Franceinfo.fr should be accepted as a reliable fact-checking partner. This media is compliant with the large majority of the principles enacted by the IFCN.
But edits should be required regarding fact-checkers’ list and biographies, fact-checking methodology, the way readers can send claims to fact-check and which ones, corrections policy…
This could be clearer for the readers to find a unique and specific fact-checking section on Franceinfo.fr
Laurent Bigot recommended Accept with edits
Section 1: Organization
Criterion 1a
Proof of registration
Evidence required: Please provide evidence that the signatory is a legally-registered organization set up exclusively for the purpose of fact-checking or the distinct fact-checking project of a recognized media house or research institution.
franceinfo.fr
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
We publish daily fact-checking contents under the brand france info, without any specific branding. But we also have a specific fact-checking segments : every morning on the radio (http://www.francetvinfo.fr/replay-radio/le-vrai-du-faux/) every night on tv (http://blog.francetvinfo.fr/oeil-20h/)
Laurent Bigot Assessor
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
Le Vrai du Faux and L’Oeil du 20 Heures are two distinct fact-checking sections of Franceinfo.fr, a legally registered French website. All the evidences of Franceinfo.fr’s legal registration are presented in the “Mentions légales” through its RCS number, here: http://www.francetvinfo.fr/cgu/
Indeed, Franceinfo.fr is a digital platform founded by four public media partners: France Télévisions (public TV company), Radio France (public radio company), INA (public media archives service) and France Médias Monde (public radio and TV company).
done_all 1a marked as Fully compliant by Laurent Bigot.
Criterion 1b
Archive
Evidence required: Insert a link to the archive of fact checks published in the previous three months. If you do not collect all fact checks in one place, please explain how the fact-checking is conducted by your organization.
franceinfo.fr
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
You can find several exemples :
> http://blog.francetvinfo.fr/oeil-20h/
Laurent Bigot Assessor
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
Franceinfo.fr publishes reports regularly about claims’ accuracy. It does so with approximately one or two fact-checks daily over the previous three months. Its work is published here:
Le Vrai du Faux (on the radio France Info, 5 days a week):
http://www.francetvinfo.fr/replay-radio/le-vrai-du-faux/
L’Oeil du 20 Heures (on the TV channel France 2, 5 days a week):
http://blog.francetvinfo.fr/oeil-20h/
Others rubrics of the global media website (occasionnaly):
done_all 1b marked as Fully compliant by Laurent Bigot.
Section 2: Nonpartisanship and Fairness
Criterion 2a
Body of work sample
Evidence required: Please share links to ten fact checks that better represent the scope and consistency of your fact-checking. Provide a short explanation of how your organization strives to maintain coherent standards across fact checks.
franceinfo.fr
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
Here is the first chapter from our guide for reporters and editors "We have three strong principles : readability, transparency and accessibility.
- To be clear, our website is above all didactic and precise. Journalists dismiss ambiguous phrases, repetitive incisions, convoluted phrases, use the right words, restrict the use of the conditional. They use a staging simplifying the reading on any medium, and in particular the mobile.
- Because it is part of a networked information, FTVi weaves a simple, direct and honest report with its audience. The journalist's tone is characterized by a humility that imposes a total transparency on the journalistic process: a confession of ignorance "I do not know", search for information, confession of errors, corrections, making-off, etc."
Laurent Bigot Assessor
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
Franceinfo.fr did not select fact-checks to prove scope and consistency of its work. But they are all searchable and available on its website. The editor in chief only quotes the first chapter from Franceinfo.fr’s guide for reporters and editors:
“We have three strong principles: readability, transparency and accessibility.
- To be clear, our website is above all didactic and precise. Journalists dismiss ambiguous phrases, repetitive incisions, convoluted phrases, use the right words, restrict the use of the conditional. They use a staging simplifying the reading on any medium, and in particular the mobile.
- Because it is part of a networked information, FTVi weaves a simple, direct and honest report with its audience. The journalist's tone is characterized by a humility that imposes a total transparency on the journalistic process: a confession of ignorance "I do not know", search for information, confession of errors, corrections, making-off, etc.”
We selected fact-checks by ourselves:
Le Vrai du Faux
L’Œil du 20 Heures
http://www.francetvinfo.fr/replay-radio/le-vrai-du-faux/le-vrai-du-faux-de-villepinte_2151845.html
These examples show that France Info covers a variety of speakers (Marine Le Pen, François Baroin, Ségolène Royal, Edouard Philippe, Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, etc.) and that its fact-checks are non-partisan work.
done_all 2a marked as Fully compliant by Laurent Bigot.
Criterion 2b
Nonpartisanship policy
Evidence required: Please share evidence of your policy preventing staff from direct involvement in political parties and advocacy organizations. Please also indicate the policy your organization has as a whole regarding advocacy and supporting political candidates.
franceinfo.fr
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
You can find below France Televisions code of ethics : http://www.francetelevisions.fr/charte_des_antennes
Laurent Bigot Assessor
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
To explain its policies to preserve its non-partisan way of fact-checking claims, Franceinfo.fr mention the France Télévisions code of ethics: http://www.francetelevisions.fr/charte_des_antennes
Indeed, France Télévisions is one of the public media companies (with Radio France, INA, and France Médias Monde) that make up Franceinfo.fr.
This document mentions:
“Public television service is meant to be the benchmark for pluralism.” (…)
“Public television service is meant to be the benchmark for quality and innovation of programs, respect for human rights, pluralism and democratic debate, social inclusion and citizenship, and promotion of the French language.” (…)
“Presenters, journalists or people who are to be involved in broadcasts must respect the principle of equitable treatment of guests or interviewees, as well as the views expressed.” (…)
done_all 2b marked as Fully compliant by Laurent Bigot.
Section 3: Transparency of Sources
Criterion 3a
Sources Policy
Please share a brief and public explanation (500 words max) of how sources are provided in enough detail that readers could replicate the fact check. If you have a public policy on how you find and use sources for your fact-checking, it should be shared here.
franceinfo.fr
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
We don't have any public policy on that matter but we publish every data and we provides any sources we have. Transparency is the main principle of our work as you can see here (http://www.francetvinfo.fr/elections/presidentielle/presidentielle-quel-candidat-vos-elus-ont-ils-parraine_2076657.html) or here (http://www.francetvinfo.fr/bac/classement-des-lycees/votre-lycee-est-il-performant-verifiez-le-avec-notre-moteur-de-recherche_2107600.html)
Laurent Bigot Assessor
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
The Franceinfo.fr’s staff explain the way it provides sources to the readers :
“We don't have any public policy on that matter but we publish every data and we provides any sources we have. Transparency is the main principle of our work.”
According to our assessment, the Franceinfo.fr’s fact-checkers always give details to the readers, so that they are able to replicate the fact-check by their own means, especially in its fact-checking section, called Le Vrai du Faux (like here: http://www.francetvinfo.fr/replay-radio/le-vrai-du-faux/quand-francois-baroin-recycle-une-rumeur-a-des-fins-electorales_2185719.html).
done_all 3a marked as Fully compliant by Laurent Bigot.
Section 4: Transparency of Funding & Organization
Criterion 4a
Funding Sources
Evidence required: Please link to the section where you publicly list your sources of funding (including, if they exist, any rules around which types of funding you do or don't accept), or a statement on ownership if you are the branch of an established media organization or research institution.
franceinfo.fr
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
France Télévisions is a public media depending on state funding. Franceinfo.fr is non profit and does not have any advertisement
Laurent Bigot Assessor
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
Franceinfo.fr has no specific section to detail its sources of funding.
Its editor in chief explains:
“France Télévisions is a public media depending on state funding ; Franceinfo.fr is non profit and does not have any advertisement”.
As mentioned above, Franceinfo.fr is part of the French public broadcasting service. So its sole shareholder is the French state, trough four public media companies: France Télévisions (public TV company), Radio France (public radio company), INA (public media archives service) and France Médias Monde (public radio and TV company).
We can only find elsewhere a “Mentions légales” section where these four companies are mentioned, here: http://www.francetvinfo.fr/cgu/
done 4a marked as Partially compliant by Laurent Bigot.
Criterion 4b
Staff
Evidence required: Please link to the section detailing all authors and key actors behind your fact-checking project with their biographies. You can also list the name and bios of the members of the editorial board, pool of experts, advisory board, etc. if your organization has those.
franceinfo.fr
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
Laurent Bigot Assessor
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
There’s no section detailing authors behind the fact-checking sections Le Vrai du Faux and L’Oeil du 20 Heures. And there’s no section to present their biographies.
There’s only a section detailing authors behind the all Franceinfo.fr’s website (without biographies):
http://www.francetvinfo.fr/journaliste/
Antoine Krempf, the sole author of Le Vrai du Faux, is the only one to be presented (without biographie) in its fact-checking section, at the top and bottom of the page, here:
http://www.francetvinfo.fr/replay-radio/le-vrai-du-faux/
The authors of L’Oeil du 20 Heures don’t even sign the articles they publish on Franceinfo.fr’s website.
But it’s no place where it’s possible to identify all the fact-checking authors of the digital platform Franceinfo.fr, probably because some of them work for the radio France Info and some of them work for the TV France Télévisons / France 2, some of them work only for the fact-checking sections of the digital platform (Le Vrai du Faux and L’Oeil du 20 Heures) and some of them are not full time fact-checkers…
cancel 4b marked as Non compliant by Laurent Bigot.
Criterion 4c
Contact
Evidence required: Please link to the section where readers can get in touch with the organization.
franceinfo.fr
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
Laurent Bigot Assessor
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
It’s quite easy for readers to contact Franceinfo.fr: they can use the page called “Nous contacter” (the link is at the bottom of each page: http://www.francetvinfo.fr/nous-contacter/) It provides a generic e-mail to contact the journalists.
done_all 4c marked as Fully compliant by Laurent Bigot.
Section 5: Transparency of Methodology
Criterion 5a
Detailed Methodology
Evidence required: Please link to a section or article detailing the steps you follow for your fact-checking work.
franceinfo.fr
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
We have published several videos in a MOOC to explain our methodology http://www.francetvinfo.fr/internet/reseaux-sociaux/tous-factcheckeurs-quelle-difference-entre-fait-et-fake-news_2160518.html / http://www.francetvinfo.fr/internet/reseaux-sociaux/video-reseaux-sociaux-verifiez-avant-de-partager_2154485.html
Laurent Bigot Assessor
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
There’s a place on the website where it’s possible to read an explanation about the Vrai du Faux fact-checking section, here: http://www.francetvinfo.fr/replay-radio/le-vrai-du-faux/ (at the foot of the page)
It explains: “Le Vrai du Faux is a news event that sifts through small and large approximations that envelope political, economic, trade union discourse ..., broadcast on France Info, from Monday to Friday at 8:21 am, led by the journalist of France Info Antoine Krempf. During this "fact-checking" appointment offered by the Maison de la Radio by France Info, Antoine Krempf offers a comprehensive range of continuous information on the public service, but it also scrutinizes social networks . This appointment proposed by France Info offers you a decrypted, analyzed, contextualized reading of public discourse.”
And there’s a place on the website where it’s possible to read an explanation about the Oeil du 20 Heures fact-checking section, here: http://blog.francetvinfo.fr/oeil-20h/
It explains: “Behind the political scenes, the deciphering of communication shots, fact-checking, the team of the Oeil du 20 Heures lays a staggered look at what makes the news. Surveys and reports to be found from Monday to Thursday in the 20 hours and every day on this blog.”
We can also find two articles (a kind of MOOC with videos for the public) that detail a kind of methodology. But there’s no possibility to find them easily on the website:
But there’s no accessible place on Franceinfo.fr where it explains the methodology publicly and clearly.
done 5a marked as Partially compliant by Laurent Bigot.
Criterion 5b
Claim submissions
Evidence required: Please link to the page or process through which readers can submit claims to fact-check. If you do not allow this, please briefly explain why.
franceinfo.fr
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
Readers can submit corrections through our contact page or using our "live" where a journalist will answer them (http://www.francetvinfo.fr/en-direct/)
Laurent Bigot Assessor
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
There’s no dedicated page to invite readers to submit claims to fact-check.
But they can use the same ways they use to contact the organization staff (mentioned above):
http://www.francetvinfo.fr/nous-contacter
The editor in chief explains that it’s also possible for the public to use the Franceinfo.fr’s “live”, accessible from the homepage (http://www.francetvinfo.fr/en-direct), where a journalist will answer them…
cancel 5b marked as Non compliant by Laurent Bigot.
Section 6: Open & Honest Corrections Policy
Criterion 6a
Corrections policy
Evidence required: Please link to the page with your policy to address corrections. If it is not public, please share your organization's handbook.
franceinfo.fr
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
Our policy is to give people every chance to allegations before the story is published. Our efforts to contact the subjects must be transparent and verifiable.
Laurent Bigot Assessor
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
Franceinfo.fr has no public corrections policy. But they have a corrections policy. The staff explains it: “Our policy is to give people every chance to allegations before the story is published. Our efforts to contact the subjects must be transparent and verifiable.”
cancel 6a marked as Non compliant by Laurent Bigot.
Criterion 6b
Examples of corrections
Evidence required: Please provide two examples of a correction made, or correction requests handled, in the past year.
franceinfo.fr
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
We could not find any examples in the past year regarding a fact-checking work.
Laurent Bigot Assessor
20-Sep-2018 (6 years ago) Updated: 6 years ago
It seems that Franceinfo.fr have no real example of implementation of its correction policy to provide.