Almost one in four fact checks of political discourse focuses on false claims that have been repeated, with each claim repeated an average of four times. That strongly suggests that these are not isolated errors, but disinformation strategies.

Research on fact-checking has largely focused on its influence on public perception, while its effects on politicians are less understood — particularly on how fact-checking motivates them to correct false claims or at least stop their spread. However, repeating false statements suggest the speaker is spreading falsehoods on purpose.

These are some of the conclusions drawn from the recent study, “Combating Repeated Lies: The Impact of Fact-Checking on Persistent Falsehoods by Politicians.” The study was published in Media and Communication and developed as part of the Iberifier project, which studies disinformation in Spain and Portugal. The authors examined 1,204 fact-checked claims over a period of five years to identify notable trends.

Repeated false claims are increasingly common in political discourse, leading fact-checkers to adopt various strategies to combat recycled disinformation. Ahead of Spain’s regional elections on May 28, 2023, Spanish fact-checking organization Newtral flagged more than 30 repeated false claims that had been debunked multiple times. Similarly, in 2021, The Washington Post’s Fact Checker recorded over 55 false statements made by former U.S. President Donald Trump repeated at least 20 times, including one claim that resurfaced an astonishing 493 times. 

 Nearly 25% of the political falsehoods debunked by Newtral involved repeated claims. This repetitive pattern suggests a deliberate strategy within political parties in which politicians prioritize maintaining a false narrative even when confronted. These claims show they are not simply occasional mistakes; they reflect a coordinated effort to fortify specific political positions.

Original claimants rarely repeat their falsehoods directly — only about 20% of the time — but other party members often echo these claims, showcasing their widespread dissemination.

To do so, political actors use tactics that blur the lines between deception and self-correction. The study identified five distinct strategies used in political discourse to repeat these falsehoods.

The first is introducing nuanced variations. By slightly modifying or adapting numbers or context while maintaining the core falsehood, political actors maintain the same ideas. 

Read the full article, by Neutral’s  Irene Larraz and her research colleagues Ramón Salaverría and Javier Serrano-Puche, here. 

MILWAUKEE, Wisc. — With Election Day approaching, Wisconsin Rep. Derrick Van Orden claimed on Fox News that a Venezuelan immigrant, charged with sexual assault and child abuse, was released in Prairie du Chien due to sanctuary policies in Minneapolis and Madison.

Immigration and crime were already key issues for voters in swing states like Wisconsin. Van Orden’s statement fueled the debate, but he provided no evidence to support his claim.

“He was released from both of these places because they are sanctuary cities,” the congressman told conservative television host Laura Ingraham.

In nearly 30 states without dedicated local fact-checkers, such a claim might have gone unchallenged. 

But in Wisconsin, the nonprofit newsroom Wisconsin Watch reviewed the statement, as it touched on a local issue of public interest. Wisconsin Watch runs the state’s only standalone fact-checking initiative verified as a signatory of the International Fact-Checking Network's Code of Principles.

Tom Kertscher, Wisconsin Watch’s lead fact-checker, examined Van Orden’s claim. His investigation found no evidence that sanctuary policies influenced the release of the suspect, Alejandro Coronel Zarate.

In a short fact check, Kertscher wrote that Coronel Zarate was arrested in Minneapolis in November 2023 on unrelated charges, but prosecutors declined to file charges, and he was released under standard legal procedures. In Madison, where Van Orden also pointed blame, Coronel Zarate was never in custody.

Coronel Zarate, who is accused of violent crimes in Prairie du Chien, is alleged to have ties to the Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang involved in human trafficking and other criminal activity. His escape resulted from procedural decisions, not local policy.

He was eventually jailed on Sept. 5, 2024, in Prairie du Chien, after police arrested him for multiple charges following a reported disturbance. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement issued a detainer to notify federal authorities if he posted bail.

With an overwhelming number of false claims focusing on local issues in the days leading up to the election, the fact-checking team often debated which statements to verify.

“We’re up against hundreds of millions of dollars worth of misinformation,” Wisconsin Watch CEO George Stanley told me during my late October visit to the team in Milwaukee. Political ads were the biggest expense in the presidential race, which cost $3.5 billion, according to the Financial Times — with much of the spending focused on the seven swing states.

As a lifelong Wisconsin resident and veteran news leader, Stanley has seen the collapse of a once-vibrant local news landscape, leaving partisan radio shows to fill the void.

“In Wisconsin, a battleground state, there’s no local news on radio anymore,” said Stanley. “All our daily newspapers are owned by far-away chains with no knowledge of the local environment. … They’ve cut costs to the bone, so local knowledge and voices are lost.” 

The U.S. saw 127 newspaper closures last year, according to a recent study on “news deserts.”

Without recent donor funding to increase resources, Stanley doubts his team could have helped voters separate fact from fiction in as many posts as they did. The organization used part of a $100,000 ENGAGE grant from the IFCN to hire Kertscher and Trisha Young, an audio and video producer of fact checks, full-time.

ENGAGE, the third annual round of the Global Fact Check Fund managed by the IFCN and supported by Google and YouTube, distributed $2 million to 20 organizations. This funding strengthens global fact-checking efforts, enabling recipients like Wisconsin Watch to expand their capacity to combat misinformation.

The organization also used the funds to bring its evidence-based journalism to the state’s “news deserts,” produce Spanish-language content for Hispanic and Latino communities, and tailor fact checks for platforms like TikTok, YouTube and Instagram, popular with young audiences.

To reach radio listeners statewide, the newsroom tapped Young, a multimedia journalist, to create 30-second fact briefs for broadcast. Partnering with Civic Media, she delivers these briefs across 20 radio stations, connecting with listeners in areas lacking local news.

Young also produces 60-second fact brief videos for the outlet’s social media audience. 

“The strategy is to reach people where they are and deliver accurate information in formats they enjoy,” she told me. 

Read the full story here. 

YouTube announced a new information panel for videos by fact-checkers certified by the IFCN or the European Fact-Checking Standards Network (EFCSN). Under each video, viewers will see a label stating, “This channel belongs to a verified member of the IFCN,” or “This channel belongs to a verified member of the EFCSN,” adding context about the channel’s commitment to reliable information. 

The company says the feature will initially roll out in English, with more languages to follow soon.

• MediaWise’s Alex Mahadevan and ex-IFCN director Alexios Mantzarlis reported that “X’s Community Notes had a marginal, if any, impact on the (U.S.) election”  
• Maldita examined how platforms failed to address disinformation during Spain’s devastating flooding crisis.
• Science Feedback’s Bastien Carniel with “Despite Community Notes, most content reviewed by EU fact-checkers goes unaddressed on X/Twitter.”
• RasKRIKavanje’s Marija Vučić and Vesna Radojević with an analysis of Serbia’s right-wing media network, detailing how rival outlets collaborate to amplify nationalist and anti-globalist narratives.
• The Washington Post’s Glenn Kessler with “What I’ve learned from 9 years of fact-checking Donald Trump.”
• Factchequeado, a U.S.-based Spanish language fact-checker, debuted Electopedia, an online resource designed to pre-bunk electoral misinformation, providing bilingual resources and key information about the voting process. Its Electobot is a WhatsApp chatbot that answers questions regarding the electoral process and political candidates, ensuring that voters can make informed decisions.
• PolitiFact’s Madison Czopek with an analysis of Elon Musk’s 450 posts in two weeks on X, showing how he spreads falsehoods about FEMA, immigration and voting.
• The New York Times’ Steven Lee Myers and Stuart A. Thompson with “Disinformation Watchdogs Are Under Pressure. This Group Refuses to Stop.”
• Claire Wardle on “How news paywalls contribute to the spread of misinformation”