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TABLE 4-11: THE CLAIM AND EVIDENCE TABLE

The claim Evidence required Result of the check Use decision

Use after
Sales rose by 12 An official report and Confirmed in the
correcting the
percent. a specific page. original report.
wording.

Original data or a The link exists but
The initiative cut Do not use as a
repeatable does not support the
costs by 40 percent. fact.
calculation. figure.

A systematic review
This method is best Conflicting studies Restate it as a
or more than one
for all users. exist. conditional claim.
strong source.

Delete it and
A publisher index or
A specific research The title or identifier report the
an academic
reference. does not exist. fabricated
database.
reference.

The SIFT Method and Lateral Reading
The SIFT method proposes four quick moves: stop, investigate the source, find better

coverage, and trace the claim or the image back to its original context [8]. It suits the
moment when AI presents a source, or when you encounter an unfamiliar post or page.
Lateral reading means that you do not stay inside a page to judge its reliability from its design

or its “about us” section. Open other tabs and look for who stands behind the organization,
how independent sources describe it, and whether better coverage exists. Research on fact-
checking practice has shown that expert verifiers use this approach rather than long vertical

reading inside the site alone [9][17].

Begin with stopping, because content that provokes anger, fear, or admiration pushes
toward rapid sharing. Then investigate the body, not the article alone. After that, look for
the best available source, not the first result. Finally, trace the image, the quotation, or the
figure back to the full version and the original context.

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