The Trust Project Indicators

Website

The Trust Project Indicators

Founded in 2016

The Trust Project is a collaborative initiative of several news companies that is developing standards to increase transparency in journalism. The project developed the following "Trust Indicators" as a start: Best Practices, Author/ Reporter Expertise, Type of Work, Citations and References, Methods, Locally Sourced, Diverse Voices, Actionable Feedback. News Organizations will display the indicators on their own articles.

The Trust Project Indicators is not affiliated with RAND. It was selected for this database because it fits our researchers' inclusion criteria.

Tool type

Codes and standards

Status

Fully operational

Intended users

Journalists

Cost

Free

Tool focus

This tool is both content- and process-focused. It directly evaluates information (e.g., authenticating a photo), but also assesses how information is produced and disseminated.

Method or technology

Human implementation

Is the tool automated?

No

Founding organization

The Trust Project

Founder/primary contact

Salley Lehrman

How is this tool working to address disinformation?

This tool hopes to fight disinformation by using indicators to amplify high-quality journalism and helping users avoid lower-quality sources that may contain misinformation or disinformation.

Is there a connection with tech platforms?

Yes. Google, Facebook, and Bing are tech partners. The Trust Project received financial support from Google.

Who is funding the tool?

Craig Newmark, Democracy Fund, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Markkula Foundation

Are there external evaluations?

None found