WKU News

Editors from the Pulitzer Prize-winning political fact-checking site PolitiFact will be on Western Kentucky University’s campus for a special post-election event on Wednesday, Nov. 16, at 7 p.m. in the Mass Media & Technology Hall auditorium.

In “A Survivor’s Guide to the Pants on Fire Election,” PolitiFact's Amy Hollyfield and Katie Sanders will tell the story of 2016 through their work and their mission. The timely event is part of the annual Fleischaker/Greene Scholars in First Amendment Studies lecture series at WKU’s School of Journalism & Broadcasting.

“This event should provide an informative, cathartic and entertaining experience for students, faculty and the community after a strenuous and hard-fought general election,” said Amanda J. Crawford, a journalism professor who organized the lecture. “We are thrilled to have PolitiFact deliver this special presentation at Western Kentucky University.”

PolitiFact, run by editors and reporters from the Tampa Bay Times, rates the accuracy of claims by elected officials and others in U.S. politics. When it awarded PolitiFact the Pulitzer Prize for its reporting about the 2008 election, the Pulitzer board cited PolitiFact's use of "probing reporters and the power of the World Wide Web to examine more than 750 political claims, separating rhetoric from truth to enlighten voters." 

The lecture is presented as part of the Fleischaker/Greene Scholars in First Amendment Studies Fall 2016 class, “Politics & The Presidency.” More information about the class and insightful research and reporting by students can be found at www.wkujournalism.com/presidency.