Be an Informed Voter in 2012

We are constantly inundated with information from the U.S. presidential candidates, Congress, the White House, and special interest groups. Who is really telling the truth? How can one separate fact from fiction? Two websites try to do just that.

FactCheck.org, a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center, is described as a "nonpartisan, nonprofit 'consumer advocate' for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics." The website monitors the factual accuracy of statements by major U.S. political players that are made via TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews and news releases. Their goal is to "apply the best practices of both journalism and scholarship, and to increase public knowledge and understanding."

The other site is PolitiFact.com, which won the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting for its coverage of the 2008 election, is a project of the St. Petersburg Times to help find the truth in politics.

Reporters and researchers from the St. Petersburg Times examine statements by U.S. political players, such as the presidential candidates, members of Congress, the President, cabinet secretaries, lobbyists, people who testify before Congress, and anyone else who speaks up in Washington. They research their statements and then rate the accuracy on the Truth-O-Meter as being True, Mostly True, Half True, Mostly False and False. The most ridiculous falsehoods get their lowest rating – Pants on Fire. They also rate the consistency of public officials using three ratings: No Flip, Half Flip and Full Flop.

Additionally, they have created the Obameter to help the reader assess the Obama presidency. Reporters have compiled a database of more than 500 individual promises that President Obama made during the presidential campaign. The promises are rated as Promise Kept, Compromise, Promise Broken, Stalled, and In the Works.

There is also a GOP Pledge-O-Meter, which tracks the promises of the Republican leadership in the U.S. Congress.

No matter what your political affiliation or political beliefs, become an informed voter. Don't vote based on political ads. Political ads are just like any other advertisement -- someone is trying to sell you something. Don't be lazy - - Do your own research and learn the facts.

A final suggestion -- There are a lot of bogus e-mails that are in circulation. Before forwarding an e-mail to others and perhaps causing unnecessary fear and further spreading misinformation, I suggest a visit to Snopes,com to verify the information.

"It takes two to speak truth - One to speak, and another to hear. "
-- Henry David Thoreau