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Source and evidence evaluation

A method for separating what an institution claims, what a public record proves, and what independent reporting verifies or disputes.

SourcesWhite HouseNational addressReutersElection securityCongress.govS. 1383 actions

In constitutional practice

A speech establishes that a president made a claim; bill text establishes proposed legal rules; reporting and underlying evidence test factual assertions.

Connected public record

Topic and question links below are editorial learning suggestions for this demo, not canonical relationships from the archived database.

Topics

No direct record in this edition.

Bills

No direct record in this edition.

Court cases

No direct record in this edition.

Practice questions

  • When an office makes a contested factual claim, what should a civic news reader do first?
  • What does an official speech prove most directly?
  • What does the text of an unpassed election bill establish?
  • Which source is best suited to test a contested factual claim in an official election speech?
  • Calling a document a primary source means every factual assertion inside it is independently verified.

SourcesWhite HouseNational addressReutersElection securityCongress.govS. 1383 actions