About.
Who makes this, and what to do if we got something wrong.
Every week a lot of people tell you what a story really proves about the other side. This site takes those claims one at a time, works out what would have to be true if they were right, goes and checks, and shows you the result. Sometimes the claim holds up. Usually it half does. That "half" is the part most coverage skips, and it's the part we're here for.
Hobocode LLC, a one-person research shop run by Jeremy Johnson. The research behind these pages is published in full, with all its formulas and caveats, at hobocode.net. This site is the same work in plainer language, not a separate or lighter standard.
Nobody pays us to cover anything. No advertiser, no party, no advocacy group, no platform. If that ever changes it will be disclosed on this page before it appears anywhere else.
What we will and won't do
We track claims, not people
A card is about something someone said in public, usually while holding office or a large audience. It isn't a verdict on the person, their character, or their good faith. We are strict about this in the other direction too: a claim landing badly on our checks doesn't mean the person lied.
Everything here is protected speech
Tracking a claim isn't an accusation of a crime and not a call for anyone to face consequences. Political argument, including argument we grade badly, is supposed to be loud and free. The point of the grade is to give a reader something to weigh, not to get anyone in trouble.
We show the evidence, not just the conclusion
Every card carries the checks we ran, what we found, and the original quotes with links. If our reasoning is bad you should be able to see exactly where, without taking our word for anything.
We don't do anonymous sourcing
Everything on a card traces to something you can open and read yourself. If we can't link it, we don't run it.
Corrections
We will get things wrong. When we do, the fix is public.
How we handle a mistake
If a quote, date, number, or verdict is wrong, we change it and say on the card what changed and when. We don't quietly edit and move on. If a correction changes a grade, the card says what the grade was before.
If you're on a card and think we're wrong
Write to jerm@hobocode.net. Tell us which card and what specifically is wrong. You don't need a lawyer and you don't need to be polite. A factual correction gets made regardless of who asks or how.
What we won't remove
Accurately quoted public statements stay up, including ones the speaker regrets. Disagreeing with our read isn't grounds for removal, though we will publish a substantive response alongside the card if you send one.