Channel 4 website to tell the truth about politicians and their advertising

by Sam Matthews, Brand Republic 23-Mar-05, 14:10

LONDON – Channel 4 is launching a website that will monitor the factual accuracy of what is said by major UK politicians in ads, speeches, interviews, debates and press releases.

FactCheck has been derived from the US version launched in 2003 to widespread acclaim in the run-up to last year's Presidential election.

The Channel 4 service aims to tell the British public whether politicians are telling the truth, whether they are being selective, what facts they are leaving out or whether they are telling a lie.

The site will go live on March 30 and will be updated daily when the UK election campaign begins. A general election is widely expected to be called for May 5.

It has initially been commissioned to run for the duration of the election, but may well continue beyond that if it proves as successful as its American counterpart.

FactCheck will be led by Jon Bernstein, former editor-in-chief of the all-of-government website Directgov, and will be produced by ITN, which makes the Channel 4 news, a FactCheck team of researchers and political journalists.

Dorothy Byrne, head of Channel 4's news and current affairs, said: "We believe FactCheck will be an important service to the public during the election period. With so many statements flying around, it is so often difficult for the voter to know where the truth lies."

If you have an opinion on this or any other issue raised on Brand Republic, join the debate in the Forum.