Interview with FactCheck.org’s Viveca Novak
We were lucky enough to have a dialogue with Viveca Novak, Deputy Director of Annenberg Political FactCheck.org, Webby Winner and WebbyConnect speaker, about her site’s role as an integral online political watchdog. For more information on FactCheck.org, read below and check out our Webby Index for more hard facts.
Q: How does FactCheck live up to the .ORG mission of serving the public interest?
A: FactCheck is a nonprofit, noncommercial site. It’s also nonpartisan and nonideological. Our mission is to be a kind of consumer advocate for voters, to cut through the spin in political ads, debates, speeches and other forms of political communication by monitoring the factual accuracy of what’s being said. We want our material, which is free, to be widely shared in the hope of reducing the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics.
Q: How has being a .ORG site helped FactCheck meet its goals?
A: In general, the .org designation is a starting point that conveys to users that we’re not out to make a buck and we make some claim to serving the “public interest.” That’s not true of all .orgs, and users have to be discerning, but the category provides a bit of a boost in earning a user’s trust, which is helpful to groups like ours. Ultimately, of course, it’s up to each individual to figure out if she finds a site credible.
Q: As the Internet becomes increasingly commercialized, what can non-profit websites do to stay competitive while not losing their civic-minded identity?
A: Offer good content, and offer it in the most user-friendly way possible. Keep thinking about design and be aware of what others are doing to keep current with how users like to interact with the web.
Q: What are your thoughts on net neutrality?
A: We’re neutral on net neutrality. We anticipate that we may have to write about this issue at some point in the future, if it comes up in advertising.
Q: How does FactCheck support itself financially?
A: All of our funding comes from the Annenberg Foundation, except a grant from the Flora Family Foundation that helps support FactCheckEd.org, an educational offshoot of our main site. FactCheck.org is a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania. We accept no money from corporations, labor unions, individuals, political parties or lobbying organizations.
Q: What’s your favorite part of running FactCheck?
A: Brooks Jackson, FactCheck.org’s founder and director, and I are having a blast doing this. Part of the fun comes from the flexibility of being web-based. If we want to start a videocast summarizing our week’s work, we do it. If we think an article is especially important, we let it run long. We love the fact that anyone who’s interested in our content can access it with ease, and we’re gratified that our work is often picked up by other news outlets and that we’ve received terrific feedback from readers. We have an exceptional staff who make it a pleasure to come to the office every day.
Still, I think my favorite aspect of the job is knowing that all we have to do is tell the truth. We don’t have to hype our work, as so often happens in the mainstream media (where I spent decades), nor do we need to worry about offending a candidate. Our mission is to remain free of those considerations so we can set out the facts clearly and, when we can, with a bit of humor.
