From Post to Proof
A screenshot appears in a group chat, followed by a simple question: “Legit ba ini?”
Someone has already shared it. A few people are commenting, and others are sending it to their friends. The information is moving fast, but nobody seems to know where it started.
For a student journalist, this is where the work begins.
Before sharing a post or turning it into an article, the first thing to do is find its source.
1. Find where it came from
Screenshots do not always show the whole story. A post may have been cropped, an old announcement may have been shared as if it were new, or someone may have removed important details before taking the screenshot.
Go back to the original post whenever possible. Look for the account, page, announcement, or document where the information first appeared.
If you cannot find the original source, that is already a reason to be careful.
2. Check who posted it
Not every account knows what it is talking about.
When checking information, look at who gave it and whether that person or organization is actually connected to the issue. An official announcement from a school or government office, for example, can be checked against an anonymous comment claiming to know what happened.
The name attached to the information matters.
3. Look at the whole story
A photo or video can be real and still be misleading.
A picture may have been taken at a different time, while a short video may leave out what happened before or after the clip. Even a real statement can sound different when only one sentence is posted.
Before publishing, look for the details that may have been left out.
Ma’am Ahlette C. Reyes, Information Officer of the Philippine Information Agency, emphasized the importance of checking the context and confirming information through reliable sources.
4. Ask someone who knows
If the story involves a person or an event, talk to the people involved.
Ask what happened. Check their answers against the information already available. If necessary, find another source who can confirm the details.
This may take longer than simply reposting something, but it gives the journalist a better chance of getting the story right.
5. Don’t let the headline do too much
Once the information has been checked, the headline still matters.
Online, dramatic headlines can easily attract attention, especially when people are scrolling quickly through their feeds. But making a story sound bigger than it really is can leave readers with the wrong idea.
Reyes put it simply: “Accuracy is still greater than virality.”
A story does not become better just because more people clicked on it.
6. Use AI with caution
AI tools can help with grammar or sentence structure, but they should not be treated as the source of the facts in a story.
Reyes advised journalists to use AI sparingly and not depend on it for an entire article. Information produced by AI still needs to be checked because a confident-sounding answer can still contain mistakes.
The journalist is still responsible for what gets published.
7. Think about the people in the story
There are also times when journalists have to think beyond whether information is available online.
Stories involving minors, young people, or sensitive situations require extra care. Just because something can be found on social media does not always mean every detail needs to be republished.
A journalist has to consider whether sharing the information serves the public interest and whether the people involved could be unfairly affected by the story.
Before you post
Digital platforms have made news faster and easier to access. A journalist can publish an update almost instantly, reach people outside the community, and use photos, videos, graphics, and livestreams to tell a story.
But that speed can also make mistakes travel quickly.
For Reyes, going digital does not mean leaving the basic principles of journalism behind. Journalists still have to check their sources, verify information, and make sure they understand what they are reporting.
The next time a screenshot lands in the group chat, there is no need to be the first person to share it.
Find the source first and check the details.
Then decide if it is worth posting.
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