During our break for the holidays, readers sent us comments about TSA screenings, the estate tax and bringing FactCheck to cable television.
In the FactCheck Mailbag, we feature some of the e-mail we receive. Readers can send comments to editor@factcheck.org. Letters may be edited for length.
A New Home for FactCheck.org
With the New Year we are getting new GPS coordinates.
FactCheck.org is moving to the Annenberg Public Policy Center’s new headquarters building on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania. Our web address, of course, remains unchanged.
Our new physical address:
FactCheck.org
c/o Annenberg Public Policy Center
202 S. 36th St.
Philadelphia, PA 19104-3806
Our telephone numbers:
Annenberg Public Policy Center: (215) 898-9400
FactCheck.org News Desk: (215) 573-7070
Annenberg’s Washington, D.C., office — which has been our home since we began operations in 2003 —
Let the Distortions Begin
It has been seven whole weeks now since the midterms, and – like you, perhaps – we’ve enjoyed watching football and “Glee” uninterrupted by campaign ads. But that doesn’t mean there’s no campaigning going on. Potential Republican presidential aspirants …
Holiday Announcement
Both the Washington and Philadelphia offices of FactCheck.org will be closed from Dec. 24 through Monday, Jan. 3, in observance of Christmas and New Year’s.
When we resume, we will be taking a different approach to our coverage of weekend public affairs shows. We will continue to monitor them and to research any dubious factual claims by public officials and political candidates. And we will post separate items on any that we discover to be false or misleading.
Chain E-mails of 2010
In episode 42 of our podcast, we look back at the top chain e-mails of 2010. And yes, they were false.
For more on this episode, see:
The Viral Spiral of 2010 Dec. 21
FactCheck Mailbag, Week of Dec. 14-Dec. 21
This week, readers sent us comments about chain e-mails and TSA, and wishes for happy holidays.
In the FactCheck Mailbag, we feature some of the e-mail we receive. Readers can send comments to editor@factcheck.org. Letters may be edited for length.
The Viral Spiral of 2010
There’s a reason they call chain e-mails “viral” — their transmission is swift, extensive and very hard to stop. They tend to contain indignant, outraged messages that are nearly always false and often malicious. We can’t say exactly …
FactCheck’s Post-Election Conference
In episode 41 of our podcast, we give you some highlights from our post-election conference on political advertising by outside groups.
For more on this episode, see:
Cash Attack Conference
TSA Not to Blame for This
Q: Did TSA confiscate nail clippers from a soldier returning on a military charter from Afghanistan, but allow him to keep his military weapon?
A: This tale from an anonymous source is an impossible fabrication. TSA doesn’t list nail clippers as prohibited items, doesn’t screen military charters arriving in Indianapolis, and has no access to the terminal in question.
Sunday Replay
Surprisingly – considering that the topic du jour was taxes, which means numbers – the flubs and fibs on the Dec. 12 talk shows were few, and relatively minor.
Not So Out-of-Context
On "Meet the Press," the chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, Austan Goolsbee, claimed host David Gregory had taken a quote by White House economic adviser Larry Summers "a little out of context." Not so. Goolsbee and Gregory were discussing the tax deal President Barack Obama had worked out with congressional Republicans.