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** Biden's Numbers, October 2023 Update
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Every three months, we provide you with statistical measures of how the United States is doing under the current president. It's a feature we started under Barack Obama ([link removed]) and continued under Donald Trump ([link removed]) .

Today, we give you the latest data on the 46th president, Joe Biden. The article is chock-full of facts -- some that may surprise you and others not so much.

Here's a sample of how the nation has changed during Biden's time in office:

The economy added 13.9 million jobs, putting the total 4.5 million higher than before the pandemic.

The U.S. murder rate declined by one-half of a point.

U.S. crude oil production is up 10.7%; imports are up 7.4%.

The number of apprehensions of those trying to cross the southern border illegally crept back up in recent months, and is up 300% overall.

For more, read the full story, "Biden's Numbers, October 2023 Update. ([link removed]) "
HOW WE KNOW
On our website, we explain our process ([link removed]) and how we rely on primary sources. There is no better example of that than Biden's Numbers. In that quarterly feature we gather data from sources such as the Energy Information Administration, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Economic Analysis, and the Congressional Budget Office, among others. All are transparent about their data and collection methods.
FEATURED FACT
Each year, the Census Bureau releases two measures of U.S. poverty: the official poverty measure, developed in the 1960s, and the Supplemental Poverty Measure, introduced in 2011. Among other differences, the SPM considers noncash benefits that are not included in the official poverty measure, such as government programs that help low-income individuals and families with food, housing and health care. Read more ([link removed]) .
WORTHY OF NOTE
This week, Managing Editor Lori Robertson spoke at the Nordic Press Center in Washington, D.C., to journalism students from the University of Bergen’s Center for Investigative Journalism in Norway.

Lori talked about FactCheck.org and how we do our work, and she answered questions about fact-checking.

The graduate students are in Washington for three weeks as part of an exchange fellowship ([link removed]) with the American University School of Communication. Next month, students from AU will travel to Norway to spend three weeks there.
REPLY ALL

Reader: How many lies has Biden told during his years in office?

FactCheck.org Director Eugene Kiely: We don't use the word "lied" when writing about false statements -- since we don't know the intent of the person or organization that got the facts wrong. We're not mind readers.

We also don't keep track of how many times an individual makes false or misleading statements. That information could be mistaken or misused as a "scorecard." What's wrong with a scorecard? Well, we don't write about everything that every politician says all the time. We don't write an article, for example, when politicians make statements that are true. They are supposed to be accurate. They don’t get credit for that. We also follow the president more closely than a senator and vice president -- which are two positions that Joe Biden held before he became president. So his "scorecard" would be incomplete.

All we can offer is a link to all of our stories about Joe Biden -- the false and misleading claims he has made and those that others have made about him or his policies. Since 2007, we have written more than 400 articles related to Biden. You can find them here ([link removed]) .


** Wrapping Up
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Here's what else we've got for you this week:
* "Stefanik’s Distorted U.S. Energy Production Claim ([link removed]) ": In her speech nominating Rep. Jim Jordan as House speaker, Rep. Elise Stefanik distorted the facts about U.S. energy production and the reasons for higher gasoline prices and utility bills.
* "What We Know About Three Widespread Israel-Hamas War Claims ([link removed]) ": Since fighting broke out between Israel and Hamas militants on Oct. 7, misinformation about the war has circulated online. But a widely viewed and shared video supposedly correcting “three lies about Palestine” and “atrocity propaganda” being spread by Israel and its supporters also gets some of the facts wrong.
* "Posts Falsely Push Bill Gates-Connected ‘Air’ Vaccine Conspiracy ([link removed]) ": Inhalable or spray versions of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are still in development and don’t have regulatory approval. Posts online are distorting recent research from Yale University to falsely claim that governments have approved such products to mass vaccinate people without their consent in a plot involving Bill Gates.
* "Video: FactChecking Social Media Misinformation ([link removed]) ": Hearst Television, which has been one of our media partners since 2019, recently featured our work in a “Get the Facts” segment on how to detect social media misinformation.
* "Social Media Posts Spread Bogus Quote From Qatari Leader ([link removed]) ": Posts on social media are spreading the baseless claim that the ruler of Qatar has “threatened that if the bombing of Gaza does not stop, he will cut off the supply of gas to the world.” The country’s government gets most of its revenue from energy exports, and there’s no record of Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani making such a threat.
* "Trump’s Misleading Poverty Rate Comparison ([link removed]) ": The official U.S. poverty rate in 2022 “remained stable compared to 2021,” but an alternative method of measuring poverty “increased significantly, reflecting changes in economic well-being following the end of many pandemic-era programs,” the Census Bureau says in a new report.

Y lo que publicamos en español ([link removed]) (English versions are accessible in each story):
* "Los ingredientes de la vacuna contra la gripe son seguros, al contrario de lo que sugiere un meme engañoso ([link removed]) ": Las vacunas contra la influenza contienen pequeñas cantidades de varios ingredientes que les permiten actuar y mantenerse seguras y duraderas. Un engañoso meme enumera más de dos docenas de sustancias y afirma sugerentemente que son ingredientes de las vacunas contra la gripe. Pero la mayoría de las sustancias no están en estas vacunas y las que están, no son peligrosas.

Do you like FactCheck.Weekly? Share it with a friend! They can subscribe here ([link removed]) .
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