We don't ask you to trust us. We show the receipt.
Every verdict on The Baseline is built the same way: the claim is quoted exactly, measured against primary data, and published with its sources attached. The same standard applies to every politician, every party, every time. This page explains exactly how that works — and how to hold us to it.
The process
Five steps, applied to every claim before it is published.
Where the machine stops. An automated desk finds claims by tracked public figures, gathers independent sources, and publishes a check only when it clears a fixed gate: a named public figure, at least two independent sources it actually cites, a confidence floor, a daily cap, and a daily limit per speaker so one politician cannot fill the record. Every automated check is labeled as such until the editor, Cory Hepler, has read it, and the editor can edit or unpublish any check in one click. Anything that fails the gate waits in the review queue as a draft until the editor publishes or discards it. The label on a check tells you which path it took.
The verdict scale
Six verdicts. We never invent new ones, and we never use cartoon mascots or gimmick scales.
Sourcing standards
What counts as evidence, and what doesn't.
Primary first
We cite the original source — agency data, official transcripts, court filings, peer-reviewed research — not another outlet's summary of it.
Non-partisan by default
We favor sources with no stake in the outcome — CBO, BLS, GAO, the courts. Advocacy data is labeled as such.
Always linked
Every source is linked in the check itself. If you can't click through and verify it, we haven't finished the job.
Corrections
We will get things wrong. Here's what happens when we do.
When we make a factual error, we fix it promptly and mark the change openly. Corrected checks carry a dated note explaining what was wrong and what changed. We never silently edit a verdict.
If you believe a check is mistaken, email coryh2014+baseline-corrections@gmail.com with the specifics. Substantive challenges are reviewed by the editor against the original sources, and the outcome is logged publicly whether or not the verdict changes. A public corrections log lists every change we've made.
Editorial independence
Who decides, and who can't.
The Baseline does not write for a side and does not pick its audience by politics. Our method is non-partisan — and our credibility depends on it. We check claims from every direction by the same standard. A check that only ever finds one side wrong isn't a check; it's a press release.
No funder, advertiser, or political organization has any say over which claims we examine or what verdict we reach. Editorial decisions are made by one person, the editor, Cory Hepler, who is named on every page and answers for every check, including the ones the automated desk publishes.
Funding & transparency
Where the money comes from.
Open by default
As of September 24, 2026, The Baseline is paid for entirely by its owner and has no sponsors, advertisers, grants, or donors. The full funding and ownership disclosure lives on the transparency page, which is linked in the footer of every page and is updated the day anything about the money changes — not annually, and not after the fact.
Hold us to this.
If we ever fall short of the standard on this page, tell us. The method only works if it's enforced — by the editor and by you.
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