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Fact-Check Publishing Standard

Fact-Check Publishing Standard

Short Verdict

TheFoundations can keep fact checks as a strong editorial product, but not every review card should be indexable or monetized.

The current crawl found `156` fact-check pages under the `650`-word depth threshold. The cluster has useful claim-boundary language and source links, but many pages read like short review surfaces with repeated structure. For AdSense readiness, publish only fact checks that contain substantial publisher analysis, a source trail, a clear verdict, and a useful next step for readers.

Short review/status cards should be:

  • merged into stronger claim-cluster guides,
  • kept internal,
  • noindexed until expanded,
  • excluded from ad code,
  • removed from sitemap if they are not publication-ready.

Target URL

Recommended public standard page:

https://staging.thefoundationsof.us/fact-check-publishing-standard/

Optional internal editorial URL:

https://staging.thefoundationsof.us/editorial-standards/fact-check-publishing-standard/

Meta Description

TheFoundations fact-check publishing standard explains verdicts, source trails, evidence limits, noindex rules, and when short claim-review cards should be merged into stronger guides.

Current Cluster Evidence

Saved crawl findings:

  • `156` fact-check pages.
  • Median fact-check length: about `595` words.
  • Fact-check pages range roughly from the high `500`s to low `600`s.
  • Every fact-check page in the crawl was below the `650`-word depth threshold.
  • Fact-check pages generally include many internal links and external links, but repetition and thinness remain the core risk.

Representative patterns:

  • Montezuma / flood / relief / rail / Aztec claims.
  • St. Augustine alias / mission register / translation / identity claims.
  • Jacksonville wharf / service ledger / queue / continuity claims.
  • One-record proof claims involving census, Freedmen's Bureau, Freedman's Bank, deeds, tax records, pension files, probate records, church records, and marriage records.
  • Source-method claims such as "caption counts as citation," "template certifies research," and "citation count proves truth."

Source Trail

Policy and site-readiness sources:

  • Google Publisher Policies: https://support.google.com/adsense/answer/10502938
  • Google AdSense site readiness guidance: https://support.google.com/adsense/answer/7299563
  • Google Search spam policies: https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies

Operational site sources:

  • TheFoundations sitemap index: https://staging.thefoundationsof.us/wp-sitemap.xml
  • Fact-check topic archive: https://staging.thefoundationsof.us/topic/fact-check/
  • Example fact-check: https://staging.thefoundationsof.us/fact-check/fact-check-template-certifies-research/
  • Example fact-check: https://staging.thefoundationsof.us/fact-check/fact-check-one-census-page-proves-ancestry/

Google's relevant policy frame is that ads should not be served on screens without meaningful publisher content or low-value content. For TheFoundations, that means a short claim-review card should not be monetized or pushed into the sitemap just because it has a verdict label.

What This Proves

This proves:

  • The site has a large fact-check surface.
  • The fact-check system is useful but needs a publication threshold.
  • Many fact-check URLs are currently closer to review cards than full public articles.
  • The site needs a visible standard for verdicts, source trails, evidence limits, and noindex rules.
  • Merging related micro fact checks into stronger guides will create more valuable publisher content than publishing many similar short pages.

What This Does Not Prove

This does not prove:

  • that all fact checks are bad,
  • that all short pages must be deleted,
  • that every fact-check URL should be redirected immediately,
  • that Google has penalized each fact-check URL individually,
  • that a single source can certify identity, ancestry, nationality, tribal enrollment, DNA conclusions, legal status, restitution eligibility, private genealogy, or living-community membership.

The issue is not the existence of fact checks. The issue is whether each public, indexable, monetized fact-check page has enough original publisher value to stand alone.

Public Draft

Fact-Check Publishing Standard

TheFoundations uses fact checks to slow down public claims before they become repeated as proof.

A fact check should not only answer "true" or "false." It should show the claim, the source trail, the evidence limit, and the safest wording a reader can reuse.

What A Fact Check Must Include

Every public fact check should include:

  • the claim being checked,
  • the short verdict,
  • the source trail,
  • what the evidence supports,
  • what the evidence does not support,
  • what additional evidence would change the status,
  • related place, record, source, or field-guide links,
  • correction path,
  • review date.

Verdict Labels

Use stable verdict labels:

  • Supported: the public source trail supports the claim as written.
  • Partly Supported: the source trail supports a narrower version of the claim.
  • Needs Review: the claim may be plausible but the current evidence is incomplete, indirect, contradictory, or not yet checked.
  • Unsupported: the claim is not supported by the cited evidence.
  • Misleading: the claim uses a real source but overstates what it proves.
  • Out of Scope: the claim asks the site to certify identity, ancestry, legal status, tribal membership, DNA, restitution, private genealogy, or a living-community status that TheFoundations cannot certify.

Avoid verdict labels that sound final when the source trail is incomplete.

Evidence Grades

Use evidence grades to explain why a verdict was chosen:

  • A: direct primary source or object record tied to the claim's person, place, date, and context.
  • B: strong source cluster with small limits or one missing context piece.
  • C: partial evidence, indirect evidence, or a source that supports only a narrower claim.
  • D: weak source trail, template-only review, citation without context, or unsupported inference.
  • Hold: not ready for public reuse.

Evidence grades should never be treated as identity certification.

Minimum Publication Threshold

A fact check can be public and indexable when it has:

  • at least `700` words of useful, non-repetitive publisher analysis, or a shorter length only when the evidence table itself is substantial,
  • at least two source references, unless the claim is about one specific source,
  • a clear verdict,
  • a "what this proves" section,
  • a "what this does not prove" section,
  • an internal link to a stronger hub or source guide,
  • no unresolved placeholder language,
  • no ad code if the page is review-gated or below threshold.

Shorter fact-check cards can exist, but they should be treated as review cards, not fully published monetizable articles.

When To Noindex A Fact Check

Noindex a fact check when:

  • it is under `650` words and mostly template language,
  • it exists only as a queue/status card,
  • it has no clear verdict,
  • it lacks a source trail,
  • it repeats the same proof-boundary language as many other pages,
  • it is waiting on source review,
  • it involves sensitive identity claims without enough context,
  • it would be better as part of a larger cluster guide.

Use:

<meta name="robots" content="noindex,follow,max-snippet:-1,max-image-preview:large,max-video-preview:-1">

Also remove noindexed review cards from XML sitemaps.

When To Merge Fact Checks

Merge fact checks when several pages repeat the same lesson.

Examples:

  • "One census page proves ancestry," "one church record proves family membership," and "one Freedman's Bank card proves family tree" should point into a larger guide: "One Record Does Not Prove A Family Line."
  • "Template certifies research," "citation count proves truth," "caption counts as citation," and "source table settles identity" should point into a larger guide: "Source Tables Do Not Settle Identity."
  • Montezuma flood, rail, relief, spelling, and origin claims should point into a substantial Montezuma source-trail guide.
  • St. Augustine alias, parish, mission-register, translation, and same-person claims should point into a substantial St. Augustine records guide.
  • Jacksonville wharf, service ledger, payroll, queue, and continuity claims should point into a substantial Jacksonville records guide.

Merging should not erase useful URLs blindly. Use one of these:

  • Keep the old page noindexed with a visible link to the cluster guide.
  • Redirect only if the new guide answers the same claim clearly.
  • Leave a correction note when a prior verdict changed.

Sensitive Claim Rule

Fact checks must not certify:

  • identity,
  • ancestry,
  • nationality,
  • tribal enrollment,
  • citizenship,
  • DNA conclusions,
  • legal status,
  • restitution eligibility,
  • private genealogy,
  • living-community membership.

They can explain what a public source does and does not show.

Reader Reuse Rule

Each fact check should end with safe wording.

Pattern:

The current source trail supports [narrow claim]. It does not prove [overclaim]. Stronger wording would be: [safe sentence].

If no safe public wording exists, the page should say:

Do not reuse this claim as proof yet. Treat it as a research question.

Implementation Plan

1. Add The Public Standard Page

Create:

/fact-check-publishing-standard/

Publish the public draft above. Link it from:

  • `/fact-check/`
  • `/source-review/`
  • `/editorial-standards/` if available,
  • fact-check templates,
  • correction pages,
  • review queue pages.

2. Update The Fact-Check Template

Required template fields:

Claim:
Verdict:
Evidence grade:
Review status:
Last reviewed:
Source trail:
What this proves:
What this does not prove:
What would change the status:
Safe wording:
Related guides:
Correction path:
Global guardrail:

3. Add Noindex Logic For Review Cards

Recommended WordPress behavior:

  • Fact-check pages under threshold should be `noindex,follow`.
  • Fact-check pages with status `Needs Review`, `Hold`, `Unsupported`, or `Out of Scope` can remain public only if they are useful enough and not primarily template text.
  • Ads should not render on noindexed fact-check pages.

Suggested MU-plugin extension:

function foundations_fact_check_should_noindex(): bool {
    if (!is_singular('foba_fact_check')) {
        return false;
    }

    $post_id = get_queried_object_id();
    $content = wp_strip_all_tags((string) get_post_field('post_content', $post_id));
    $word_count = str_word_count($content);

    $status = strtolower((string) get_post_meta($post_id, 'review_status', true));
    $hold_statuses = ['needs review', 'hold', 'review required', 'unsupported', 'out of scope'];

    if ($word_count < 650) {
        return true;
    }

    return in_array($status, $hold_statuses, true);
}

add_action('wp_head', function (): void {
    if (!foundations_fact_check_should_noindex()) {
        return;
    }

    echo "\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex,follow,max-snippet:-1,max-image-preview:large,max-video-preview:-1\" />\n";
}, 2);

Review this snippet before production because the actual meta key for status may differ.

4. Create The First Merge Targets

Build these cluster guides before redirecting or noindexing many cards:

1. Source Tables Do Not Settle Identity. 2. One Record Does Not Prove A Family Line. 3. St. Augustine Alias And Mission Records. 4. Jacksonville Wharf / Service Ledger / Continuity Claims. 5. Montezuma, Flood, Rail, Relief, And Aztec Claims.

5. Update Sitemaps

Remove noindexed review cards from:

wp-sitemap-posts-foba_fact_check-1.xml

or the equivalent sitemap generated by the active SEO plugin.

Internal-Link Plan

Link the standard page from:

  • `https://staging.thefoundationsof.us/source-review/`
  • `https://staging.thefoundationsof.us/corrections/`
  • `https://staging.thefoundationsof.us/corrections-log/`
  • `https://staging.thefoundationsof.us/community-guidelines/`
  • `https://staging.thefoundationsof.us/start-here/`
  • `https://staging.thefoundationsof.us/library/`
  • fact-check archive or hub pages,
  • individual fact-check cards.

Each individual fact check should link to:

  • one source-method page,
  • one place hub when location matters,
  • one stronger cluster guide when the claim is part of a repeated pattern,
  • the correction path.

AdSense Readiness Notes

Before AdSense resubmission:

  • Do not serve ads on noindexed fact-check cards.
  • Do not serve ads on fact-check pages below the publication threshold.
  • Do not serve ads on claim-review queue pages.
  • Remove noindexed fact-checks from XML sitemaps.
  • Keep ads off pages where template text outweighs original analysis.
  • Make sure the public fact-check standard is visible from the fact-check hub.

Good AdSense candidates:

  • long-form source-trail guides,
  • place-based explainers,
  • cluster guides with original analysis,
  • fact checks that have substantial source interpretation.

Weak AdSense candidates:

  • short status cards,
  • one-source proof warnings,
  • duplicate template pages,
  • pages with a verdict but no meaningful source explanation.

Correction / Review Note

Review this standard after the first merge pass.

Track:

  • number of fact-check pages still indexable,
  • number noindexed,
  • number merged,
  • number redirected,
  • number left as full public fact checks,
  • number with ad code enabled,
  • number below `650` words still in sitemap.

Update the standard if the fact-check template changes or the site adds structured status fields.

Related Guides

For the evidence boundaries behind repeated claim-review patterns, continue to Source Tables Do Not Settle Identity and One Record Does Not Prove A Family Line. See the corrections path when a source or verdict needs review.

Global Guardrail

TheFoundations explains public historical evidence, source trails, and claim boundaries. It does not certify identity, ancestry, nationality, tribal enrollment, DNA conclusions, legal status, restitution eligibility, private genealogy, or living-community membership.

Related Guides

Source Tables Do Not Settle Identity, One Record Does Not Prove A Family Line, and the corrections path.

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