How to find where a claim started

Most claims you see are copies. Here is how to work back to the original.

Start with the exact words

Copy the most specific phrase in the claim, especially any number, name, or unusual wording, and search for it in quotation marks. Specific figures travel intact from copy to copy. "Cut 1,200 jobs" will lead you further than "cut a lot of jobs."

Sort by date, then check the dates

Put the results in date order and open the earliest ones. Publication dates on web pages are often wrong or updated, so confirm with the page's own byline date, the date in its URL, or the first time a search engine or the page's comments show it existed. TruthRanking records the publication date and how certain it is, separately from when the page was captured.

Follow the citations backward

A news story cites a press release; the press release cites a study; the study may say something narrower than the press release did. At each step, check whether the source actually says what the next one claims it says. Many claims change shape on the way down the chain.

Separate republication from corroboration

Ten outlets running the same wire story are one source. A post sharing a screenshot of an article is the article. Corroboration means a second, independent party reached the same fact from its own evidence. See republication vs. corroboration.

Attribute to the speaker, not the outlet

When a newspaper quotes a spokesperson, the claim belongs to the spokesperson. When a column carries a byline, the claim belongs to the author. Record both: who said it, and where it appeared.

Know when you have reached the bottom

You have found the first source when the earliest version cites nothing earlier, or cites a primary document (a permit, a dataset, a court filing, a lab report) that you can read for yourself. If the trail goes cold, say so. "Origin not found" is a valid result and better than a guess.

Capture before you act

Before you contact anyone, capture the first source privately: the full page, the time, and a fingerprint of the file. Pages change once people know they are being challenged. Read why private capture matters.