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A complete company profile can be found here: https://investors.gannett.com/corporate-profile/default.aspx

The Fact Check team is attached to the USA TODAY Washington Bureau, and is supported by journalists throughout the USA TODAY Network, comprised of local newsrooms in 46 U.S. states.

The work of the Fact Check team is accessible via the News section of USA TODAY's website https://www.usatoday.com/news at this URL: https://www.usatoday.com/factcheck

The applicant is compliant in this area, producing fact checks related to public health and political issues and its website explains USA TODAY is a a part of Gannett Co.

However, I navigated to the Fact Check page of the site by using the drop down from the main USA Today website because a link included in the application does not work. Here's the page I used: https://www.usatoday.com/news/factcheck/ but I note the URL included in the application (https://www.usatoday.com/factcheck) produces an error message. I have attached a screen shot of the error message.

The USA TODAY fact-checking team was formally established in early 2020, building on fact checks performed by journalists at USA TODAY and the 200+ local newsrooms that comprise the USA TODAY Network. It began in response to an increasing number of false claims from political operatives and elected officials that, in turn, were amplified by social media platforms. Early partnerships in local communities including Milwaukee, Wis., and Phoenix, Ariz., combined with partnerships with organizations such as PolitiFact reinforced the need to establish fact-checking in a more formal structure.

Today, the core fact-checking team is comprised of the following journalists at USA TODAY:

Martina Stewart, Senior Editor, Fact Check & Supreme Court https://www.usatoday.com/staff/2646783001/martina-stewart/

Eric Litke, Fact Check Editor https://www.usatoday.com/staff/4383116002/eric-litke/

Brad Sylvester, Fact Check Editor https://www.usatoday.com/staff/10381829002/brad-sylvester/ 

Sudiksha Kochi, Fact Check Reporter https://www.usatoday.com/staff/5243206001/sudiksha-kochi/

BrieAnna Frank, Fact Check Reporter https://www.usatoday.com/staff/2648293001/brieanna-j-frank/ 

Christopher Mueller, Fact Check Reporter https://www.usatoday.com/staff/4386974002/chris-mueller/

Kate Petersen, Fact Check Reporting Fellow https://www.usatoday.com/staff/6109715001/kate-s-petersen/ 

Hannah Hudnall, Fact Check Reporting Fellow https://www.usatoday.com/staff/10146264002/hannah-hudnall/

Molly Stellino, Fact Check Audience/Reporting Fellow https://www.usatoday.com/staff/4763760002/molly-stellino/ 

Eleanor McCrary, Fact Check Reporting Fellow https://www.courier-journal.com/staff/9893367002/eleanor-mccrary/ 

The core team is supported by more than a dozen reporters in the USA TODAY Washington Bureau as well as local reporters throughout the USA TODAY Network. 

The applicant is compliant in this area. Its staff members and their roles are clearly labeled and identified on the website. 

Week of January 23, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/01/28/fact-check-wikileaks-did-not-release-staged-moon-landing-footage/9217263002/

Week of January 30, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/01/31/fact-check-covid-19-pneumonia-not-allergic-reaction/9214215002/

Week of Feb. 6, 2022: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/02/10/fact-check-beijing-olympic-skiers-not-competing-near-nuclear-plant/6721512001/

Week of Feb. 13, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/02/18/fact-check-underground-railroad-unrelated-black-lawn-jockey-statues/6816652001/

Week of Feb. 20, 2022: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/02/25/fact-check-tiktok-doesnt-show-russians-parachuting-into-ukraine/6937733001/

Week of Feb. 27, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/03/03/fact-check-false-claim-video-shows-explosion-ukraine-airport/9344488002/

Week of March 6, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/03/07/fact-check-viral-clip-video-game-footage-not-ukraine/9392566002/

Week of March 13, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/03/15/fact-check-russian-attack-mariupol-hospital-not-staged/7041649001/

Week of March 20, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/03/23/fact-check-members-congress-did-not-get-21-pay-raise/7076044001/

Week of March 27, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/03/30/fact-check-false-claim-hillary-clinton-fired-watergate/6844908001/

Week of April 3, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/04/08/fact-check-fictional-tucker-carlson-quote-ukraine-spreads-online/9511561002/

Week of April 10, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/04/14/fact-check-federal-reserve-has-balance-sheet-9-trillion/7198368001/

Week of April 17, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/04/22/fact-check-putin-did-not-nationalize-russian-bank-create-currency/7385457001/

Week of April 24, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/04/28/fact-check-anti-natalist-clip-tv-show-not-world-economic-forum/9555254002/

Week of May 1, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/05/04/fact-check-false-claim-elon-musk-suspended-bill-gates-twitter/9573011002/

Week of May 8, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/05/10/fact-check-private-credit-reporting-agencies-issue-credit-scores/9706223002/

Week of May 15, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/05/15/fact-check-false-claim-former-rep-trey-gowdy-endorsed-2000-mules/9731368002/

Week of May 22, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/05/27/fact-check-ice-assisting-texas-not-enforcing-immigration-laws/9946210002/

Week of May 29, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/05/31/fact-check-texas-school-shooting-suspect-us-citizen/9962085002/

Week of June 5, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/06/06/fact-check-false-claim-abortion-related-deaths-ended-after-roe-ruling/9764955002/

Week of June 12, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/06/13/fact-check-false-claim-johnny-depp-touring-kyle-rittenhouse/7533180001/

Week of June 19, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/06/24/fact-check-false-claim-house-bill-outlaws-gun-cleaning-assembly/7626378001/

Week of June 26, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/06/30/fact-check-supposed-mark-meadows-ginni-thomas-texts-satire/7703520001/

Week of July 3, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/07/05/fact-check-birth-records-young-uvalde-victims-arent-public/7770760001/

Week of July 10, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/07/11/fact-check-mcconnell-plans-lead-senate-republicans-after-midterms/7821794001/

Week of July 17, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/07/19/fact-check-false-claim-supreme-court-overturned-2020-results/10037664002/

Week of July 24, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/07/29/fact-check-vladimir-putin-donald-trump-didnt-recently-meet-dc/10182425002/

Week of July 31, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/08/03/fact-check-experts-say-shading-ac-unit-does-not-improve-efficiency/10163459002/

Week of Aug. 7, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/08/09/fact-check-monkeypox-not-side-effect-covid-19-vaccine/10238928002/

Week of Aug. 14, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/08/17/fact-check-altered-photo-exaggerates-donald-trumps-weight/10291316002/ 

Week of Aug. 21, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/08/22/fact-check-drop-vaccination-rates-2020-didnt-end-sids/10333447002/ 

Week of Aug. 28, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/08/28/fact-check-colorado-dominion-machines-performed-properly-recount/10208450002/ 

Week of Sept. 4, 2022 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/09/06/fact-check-altered-image-dr-oz-campaign-sign-spreads-online-pennsylvania-senate/7939604001/ 

Week of Sept. 11, 2002 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/09/12/fact-check-false-claim-chief-justice-john-roberts/8062277001/ 

Week of Sept. 18, 2002 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/09/20/fact-check-false-claim-masks-do-not-make-people-more-obedient-slave-like/8026835001/ 

The applicant is compliant in this area. I have opened the links included and checked more recent fact checks. A more detailed description/evaluation of fact checks related to sourcing and methodology will be provided in the other sections. 

Link to main fact check page: https://www.usatoday.com/news/factcheck

I have reviewed the following fact checks, and I mark the applicant compliant in the 1.4 criteria. The fact checks that I reviewed include the headline and date (all from the last 3 months in 2022) below: 

Dec. 14: Fact check: Arizona's voting equipment was certified ahead of the 2022 midterms

Dec. 14: Fact check: Herschel Walker's changing vote count was due to human error, not election fraud

Dec. 12: Fact check: No, WHO chief did not say COVID-19 boosters kill children

Oct. 28: Fact check: California uses controlled burns to mitigate wildfires

Sept. 20: Fact check: No, masks do not make people more obedient and 'slave like'

USA TODAY and Gannett Media do not have any commercial, financial or institutional relationships to the state, elected officials or political parties other than through the sale of political advertising, where candidates purchase advertising space in a similar fashion to ordinary retail clients. We maintain a strict separation between the editorial and business operations of our enterprise. 

USA Today Fact Check is compliant in this area as it does not receive or have commercial or financial incentives (outside of advertising, which it mentions) with government actors, elected officials, or political parties. 

The Principles of Ethical Conduct for USA TODAY and the USA TODAY Network can be found here: https://cm.usatoday.com/ethical-conduct/

Details on how Gannett ensures ethical business practices can be found here: https://www.gannett.com/people/

I have reviewed USA Today's ethics policies and mark this section as compliant. A partial draft of its policy is attached. 

The examples provided below, as a body of work, demonstrate USA TODAY's commitment to seeking the truth, telling the truth and surfacing accurate information even when claims are political in nature. We believe this work is of particular importance as instances of disinformation and minsinformation continue to grow. Each of these examples exemplify our commitment to deep and fair-minded reporting, research and analysis regardless of where the result of the claim may need. Many of these examples reflect assessments on our part that run counter to a prevailing political orthodoxy or narrative evident at the time of publication. 

For each fact check, our process is the same from the selection of individual claims to fact check to the end with final editing and publication.

Step 1: We primarily use Facebook's fact-checking product to help surface claims that would make good fact check assignments.

Step 2: An editor then makes a decision to approve the assignment, typically after some preliminary research is conducted.

Step 3: Once the fact check is drafted, typically with editors collaborating with fact check reporters during the research and reporting process, at least two USA TODAY fact check editors scrutinize the work product in every respect. This includes reviews for fairness, balance and adherence to the ratings scheme USA TODAY uses in addition to the publicly-available ratings guidance provided by Facebook. 

We believe these examples demonstrate that USA TODAY uses the same high and exacting standards of evidence when assessing claims no matter what side of the partisan divide the originate from. In addition, we believe these examples demonstrate that we are unafraid to rate claims based on that evidence even if our assessment might surprise some readers by undermining a dominant narrative. These examples also show that we can and do handle nuance and subtlety even when claims are very partisan in nature.

Articles that demonstrate our nonpartisanship since July 2021

Debunking claims from the left:

• Biden on gun control - https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/06/14/fact-check-biden-once-said-more-gun-control-may-not-reduce-crime/7609342001/

• Fake Ted Cruz tweets - https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/05/31/fact-check-no-ted-cruz-did-not-reuse-twitter-text-mass-shootings/9992665002/

• Fake MTG tweet - https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/07/12/fact-check-fabricated-tweet-marjorie-greene-taylor-circulates/7821487001/

• Fake Trump quote - https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/08/28/fact-check-quote-fbi-probes-and-presidency-misattributed-trump/10291744002/ 

• Costs of student debt cancellation - https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/09/21/fact-check-student-debt-relief-cost-government-billions/10434891002/ 

Debunking claims from the right:

• False claim Biden admin was distributing crack pipes https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/02/11/fact-check-crack-pipes-arent-included-30-million-grant-program/6736281001/

• Trump still wrongly saying 2020 was rigged - https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/01/06/fact-check-donald-trump-2020-election-results/9115875002/

• False claim that sending postcards to key will decertify ballots - https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/08/29/fact-check-sending-postcards-state-officials-wont-decertify-2020-election-results-ballots/7888952001/ 

• Boston Children’s Hospital and transgender care - https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/08/22/fact-check-false-claim-boston-hospitals-transgender-care/10340507002/

• TPUSA misleads on WEF police - https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/05/27/fact-check-photos-show-swiss-force-not-world-economic-forum-police/9961987002/

I have reviewed a dozen fact checks from the last year included those included by the applicant and others. I find fact checks on a range of issues related to a number of political ideologies. 

As an example, one fact check from July 2022 examined the false claim that former President Donald Trump had met with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. (It was headlined: "Fact check: False claim that Trump, Putin had recent meeting in Washington, D.C.")

A June fact check ("Fact check: Biden once said he 'never believed' gun control, federal registration would reduce crime") examined statements made by President Joe Biden in 1985. 

Others are included in subsequent sections of this review. 

Compliant. 

USA TODAY looks for material from elected and appointed officials, those running for office and those who represent public officials and other public figures. We monitor speeches, debates, events, TV appearances, news stories, social media, campaign ads, news releases and more for material.

In selecting the items to fact check, we try to focus on topics that are in the news or that could be confusing to people. Though we don’t keep count, we do strive for balance – ideologically and geographically – in our fact checks.

Our complete criteria can be found here: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/02/12/fact-check-guidelines-usa-today/4735217002/

This is clearly articulated online. I mark the applicant fully compliant, and I have attached a screen shot of its explanation related to how it selects and processes claims. 

For Criteria 2.3 I reviewed the Aug. 28 fact check headlined: "Dominion voting machines in Colorado performed properly during 2022 primary recount"

At the top of the page, the fact checker wrote, "The claim: Dominion voting machines failed in a Colorado recount" and starts by explaining a Mesa County clerk lost their secretary of state bid and wrote a news release claiming the machines "failed." Another official in another state wrote a Facebook post with a similar claim though this one added machines had a "50% failure rate." 

The fact checker wrote: "But the claim is baseless. The voting machines tested in the county passed with 100% accuracy, according to a spokesperson for the El Paso County Clerk and Recorder's office." Additionally and using transparency, the fact checker explained they reached out to the two people mentioned who made the false claims for comment or further evidence, and none was provided. Furthermore, the fact checker explained a bipartisan team that includes one Democrat and one Republican were in place for a review of any ballots flagged. 

For Criteria 2.4 I assessed the Dec. 14 fact check "Article falsely claims Speaker Nancy Pelosi was arrested for treason" 

USA Today Fact Check was assessing the claim made by a site online called Real Raw News that Pelosi "was arrested and charged with treason and seditious conspiracy." An online site claimed that Pelosi had been arrested after a state dinner with the French president. 

The fact check explained: "But the claim is bogus. Real Raw News is a website that publishes fabricated stories, many of which USA TODAY has debunked. There are no legitimate reports of Pelosi being arrested. She has made multiple public appearances since the supposed arrest and detainment."

The Principles of Ethical Conduct for USA TODAY and the USA TODAY Network can be found here: https://cm.usatoday.com/ethical-conduct/

The applicant is compliant in this criteria because their ethical policy, which explains nonpartisanship is available. Any person using the site and seeking its policy would be able to access it. I have included a screen shot from the bottom of USA Today's main page to show where it is. 

For Criteria 3.1 I examined the Aug. 9, 2022 fact check: "Monkeypox is not a side effect of the COVID-19 vaccine, experts say"

Clearly incorrect social media posts and fake news related to Covid-19 have been a primary area of concern for the global fact check community for nearly three years. USA Today's fact check staffer clearly understands this in their analysis of this false claim by choosing top sources to fact check the item.

They wrote "But the claim is baseless. Infectious disease specialists told USA TODAY that monkeypox is not linked to any of the COVID-19 vaccines. These vaccines also do not contain any live viruses, so it is not possible that monkeypox can be a side effect." Additionally, they wrote: "Monkeypox is most certainly not a side effect of the COVID vaccine or any vaccine for that matter, Dr. Scott Roberts, an infectious disease specialist at Yale Medicine, told USA TODAY. There is no evidence from any clinical studies to support this claim."

I have not see this in other applications, which I think could be a standard-bearer in the industry. At the end of its fact checks USA Today lists its fact-check sources and explains when and how they contacted/interviewed them. As an example for this Aug. 9 piece, the source list copied verbatim:

Our fact-check sources:

Dr. Taison Bell, Aug. 4, Phone interview with USA TODAY

Dr. Scott Roberts, Aug. 4, Phone interview with USA TODAY

Dr. Stuart Ray, Aug. 4, Email exchange with USA TODAY

USA TODAY, Aug. 4, Biden administration declares monkeypox a public health emergency

AFP Fact Check, June 9, Monkeypox not a side effect of Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine

USA TODAY, July 27, Addressing myths about monkeypox: A look at symptoms, treatment and other common questions

USA TODAY, Aug. 2, Monkeypox state cases: New York, California top numbers as Biden admin declares emergency

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Aug. 9, 2022 U.S. Map & Case Count

Associated Press, May 24, COVID-19 vaccines didn’t cause monkeypox outbreak

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, July 15, Understanding mRNA COVID-19 Vaccines

For Criteria 3.2 I reviewed the Dec. 12, 2022 fact check headlined "No, WHO chief did not say COVID-19 boosters kill children"

Here, the fact checker was assessing a video posted to social media (it had different likes/interactions on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram) that claimed incorrectly to show the WHO director saying countries were using the boosters to do harm. He did not say that. Here are the sources copied verbatim that the Fact Check staff members used to debunk the claim: 

Our fact-check sources:

World Health Organization, Dec. 20, 2021, WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the media briefing for Geneva-based journalists

USA TODAY, April 22, 2020, Public health 'superstar' or pro-China propagandist? WHO chief lands in US political crosshairs

Reuters, Aug. 22, New breed of video sites thrives on misinformation and hate

Reuters, Dec. 29, 2021, Fact Check-WHO chief’s stutter while speaking about booster shots triggers conspiracy

AFP Fact Check, Dec. 31, 2021, Posts misrepresent WHO chief's remarks on Covid vaccine inequity

Market Watch, Nov. 8, Nearly half of election-related videos on Rumble are posted by untrustworthy sources, as are 1 in 5 on YouTube: misinformation monitor

PolitiFact, Nov. 18, World Health Organization director general stuttered, he wasn’t asserting that countries are killing

For Criteria 3.3 I reviewed the May 2022 fact check headlined "False claim that former Rep. Trey Gowdy endorsed '2000 Mules'"

Its sources here are varied and thorough, but the the one that stands out is an email exchange by USA Today staffers with Gowdy, a former South Carolina Representative, who was the subject of the bogus claim. The fact check noted: "USA TODAY reached out to Gowdy, who rejected the statements found in the claim. 'Both assertions are completely false. Wasn’t at Mar a Lago. Haven’t seen the movie.' Gowdy told USA TODAY via email. 'Didn’t even know there was a movie. So it’s 100% false.'" But the fact check site went beyond just his email. 

Its complete source list to investigate the claim: 

Associated Press, May 3, Gaping holes in the claim of 2k ballot ‘mules’

Associated Press, May 10, Former US Rep. Gowdy didn’t praise film alleging election fraud

AFP, May 12, US documentary revives Trump's unproven election fraud claims

Check Your Fact, May 10, Fact check: Did Trey Gowdy attend the premier of ‘2000 Mules’?

PolitiFact, May 4, The faulty premise of the ‘2000 mules’ trailer about voting by mail in the 2020 election

Trey Gowdy, May 10, Email exchange with USA TODAY

Troy Nehls, May 4, Tweet

Jenna Ellis, May 4, Tweet

TwitterDavid Limbaugh, May 6, Tweet

For Criteria 3.4 I reviewed the Dec. 14 fact check "Herschel Walker's changing vote count was due to human error, not election fraud" 

A TikTok user posted a slight vote count change from TV, and then in a post that went (kind of) viral, claimed election fraud and garnered 30,000 likes in a few days. It was the result of human error and the tally was corrected within one minute. 

Our fact-check sources:

USA TODAY, Dec. 7, Georgia 2022 Senate runoff recap: Warnock wins election, boosting Democratic majority

PolitiFact, Dec. 9, Fluctuating vote count on Fox News resulted from human error, not fraud in the Georgia runoff

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, Dec. 12, Results

USA TODAY, Nov. 23, Fact check: Image shows network error reporting Pennsylvania vote totals, not election fraud

Lauren Easton, Dec. 13, Email exchange with USA TODAY

AFP, Dec. 9, TV vote count correction not evidence of Georgia runoff fraud 

The USA TODAY Fact Check team is a section or unit USA TODAY, which is a part of Gannett Co., Inc.

A complete company profile can be found here: https://investors.gannett.com/corporate-profile/default.aspx

USA Today is clear that it is a part of the Gannett Co. It also is clear that it has relationships with the local newspapers that also are owned by Gannett (some formerly GateHouse papers). As such, I mark them as compliant here. 

The parent company's latest required financial disclosure form, which includes a statement of ownership, can be found here: https://investors.gannett.com/financials/sec-filings/sec-filings-details/default.aspx?FilingId=15598907

Gannett, as a publicly-traded media company, has quarterly and annual filings that can be searched on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's website. Gannett also has on its investor relations page of its website financial information. That site is easy to read and navigate. For these reasons, I mark Criteria 4.2 as compliant. 

USA TODAY's organizational structure can be found here: https://www.usatoday.com/contact/staff/

Attached, is the section showing staff members from the Fact Check team. It is clear and lists roles and responsibilities if you click on the profiles. As such, I mark Criteria 4.3 as compliant. 

Professional biographies of our leadership team and individual journalists can be found here: https://www.usatoday.com/contact/staff/

Criteria 4.4 is an extension of 4.3. I have included one example of a member of its fact check team to show how its site explains the roles. As such, I mark them as compliant. 

Our editorial staff list includes direct contact information for each team member: https://www.usatoday.com/contact/staff/

We also maintain a separate contact page and form for inquiries: https://marketing.usatoday.com/contact-us/https://www.usatoday.com/contact/staff/

Any reasonable user would be able to find information about the Fact Check team and connect through a number of online/email channels should they wish to communicate with them. As such, I mark them as compliant in Criteria 4.5 

Our full criteria can be found here: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/02/12/fact-check-guidelines-usa-today/4735217002/

Under USA Today's Fact Check Guidelines, it explains how it selects topics and how it reports topics. Given this transparency and coupled with its sourcing, I mark Criteria 5.1 compliant. 

For Criteria 5.2 I used the June 2022 fact check "Biden once said he 'never believed' gun control, federal registration would reduce crime"

The fact checker explained that a spate of recent mass shootings put the spotlight on gun control including comments made by Biden that were posted and widely circulated on Facebook. That comment was "“During my twelve-and-a-half years as a member of this body, I have never believed that additional gun control or federal registration of guns would reduce crime." 

To fact check this claim, USA Today turned to the original comment, which was made in a 1985 Senate session, and noted Biden has "gone on to advocate for gun control measures" since. Its methodology included a review of his voting record and complete public comments. It also included news reports on his "policy evolution." USA Today further contacted a White House spokesperson who referred to a statement provided to NBC News in 2019. Additionally, the fact check points to a more recent White House press briefing where the issue was addressed and to a primetime address by Biden on the issue. 

As such, I mark this criteria as compliant. 

For Criteria 5.3 I reviewed the ay 15, 2022 fact check "False claim that former Rep. Trey Gowdy endorsed '2000 Mules'"

The methodology explains that the USA Today fact checker connected directly with Gowdy. Furthermore, it cites reporting from the Associated Press that noted the claim was mis-attributed to Gowdy. 

Based on my review of this fact check, I mark the applicant compliant. 

For Criteria 5.4 I reviewed the September 2022 fact check "No, masks do not make people more obedient and 'slave like'"

The post begins by saying that misinformation about masks has been rampant since the outset of the Covid 19 pandemic. It noted that a Canadian man added to that misinformation with a post that said masks make people "slave like." That false post also said that blocking airways provided a trigger for the body to "increase obedience and compliance to the highest levels."

The fact check continues that it connected with a number of media experts, who all said there is no basis for that claim. It explained using an interview with a University of Washington professor of medicine that the claim is false. It also included an interview with a professor of psychology at the University of Louisville. Its methodology continues by stating what the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control note about masks stopping the spread. 

Based on this review, I mark this criteria compliant.

For Criteria 5.5 I reviewed the Dec. 16, 2022 fact check "PCR tests are 'gold standard' for detecting COVID infection, no link to cloning"

Here, a USA Today fact checker noted that there is no link to cloning. The methodology is easy to follow and includes a review PCR tests being the best detection despite social media posts and videos online claiming the tests have links to cloning. Infectious disease experts including at the Mayo Clinic were contacted and quoting noting there is not nor has there been any link between PCR tests and cloning. The fact check even explains what cloning is and how it has nothing to do with testing for a virus. Additionally, the fact check finds and explains an article cited by social media users was published four years before the outbreak of Covid 19. 

I mark this criteria as compliant. 

We include an invitation for readers to submit information to be fact-checked on our Fact Check Guidelines page: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/02/12/fact-check-guidelines-usa-today/4735217002/

Our dedicated e-mail address for this purpose is factcheck@usatoday.com 

USA Today Fact Check has a clearly marked section under its guidelines with the bolded subhead "How Do We Choose Our Topics." It explains, in part: "In selecting the items to fact check – because we can’t check them all – we try to focus on politics, health, science and other topics in the news, significant national issues or those that could be confusing to people. Though we don’t keep count, we do strive for balance – ideologically and geographically – in our fact checks." 

This is clearly labeled and would help any reasonable person understand what is and is not fact-checkable. As such, I mark Criteria 5.6 compliant. 

Our corrections policy is linked from the homepage at https://www.usatoday.com and at the top of the fact check landing pages at https://www.usatoday.com/news/factcheck - here is a direct link: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2022/01/02/corrections-clarifications-2022/8883854002/

I find USA Today Fact Check's corrections policy to be clear. Additionally, an email address is provided where any reasonable person could send in a query or complain about an item's accuracy. As such, I mark Criteria 6.1 compliant. 

To build on the point made in the above critieria, to show compliance with Criteria 6.2 I have included a screen shot of its corrections policy that also includes a recent correction at the bottom of the page. As such, I mark this compliant. 

USA TODAY routinely investigates reports of inaccuracies and publishes corrections once verified. An archive of all published corrections can be found here: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2022/01/02/corrections-clarifications-2022/8883854002/

To assess compliance with Criteria 6.3 I have reviewed its corrections archive and show that it has and does update work and articulate reasons corrections may have been necessary. As such, I mark this item compliant. 

The link to the complaints page on the IFCN site can be found in the last section, "What if we need to correct something," of this page:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/02/12/fact-check-guidelines-usa-today/4735217002/

I confirm the applicant explains it is an existing IFCN signatory. It also includes a link where a user could submit a complaint directly to the IFCN. As such, I mark Criteria 6.4 compliant. 

USA TODAY routinely investigates reports of inaccuracies and publishes corrections once verified. An archive of all published corrections can be found here: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2021/01/11/corrections-clarifications-2021/6629259002/ 

USA Today publishes corrections and clearly articulates its policy on corrections and clarifications. As such, I mark Criteria 6.5 compliant.