Scoring model Auditable inputs
Illustrative claim
“Dallas is expected to complete a player trade this week.”
72/100
Credible report
Supportive evidence, meaningful uncertainty.
Example only · no real story is being rated here
Independent Cowboys media analysis
Evidence
before echo.
Cowboys Review traces reports to their source, separates news from speculation, and shows exactly why a claim earns its score.
All ratings are provisional while the 2022–2026 pilot is underway.
01 / The model
One rumor.
Three different questions.
Story credibility
How strongly does the evidence support this exact claim, right now?
Reporter reliability
How have qualifying original reports resolved in this specific category?
Outlet integrity
Does the publication attribute, link, label, headline and correct responsibly?
02 / Source chains
Four posts can still be
one source.
Repetition is not corroboration. We map every citation, embed and rewrite back to its earliest reporting root—and count only truly independent confirmation.
Original reporting rootReporter A
Independent2
Outlet articleCites Reporter A
3
AggregatorCites the outlet
4
Video reactionCites aggregator
1independent
reporting root
reporting root
4total
occurrences
occurrences
3maximum
chain depth
chain depth
03 / Backtesting
Built to survive
messy stories.
We are testing easy confirmations and hard edge cases before any reporter leaderboard goes public.
2022Injury timeline
Dak Prescott’s shifting return window
Can a careful model separate an initial medical estimate from later, better information?
Why it’s in the pilot2024Contradictory reporting
The Mike Zimmer–Rex Ryan sequence
Expected hire, public denial, renewed contact, then an agreement: every verb matters.
Why it’s in the pilot2025Source-chain test
Micah Parsons traded to Green Bay
Joint reports, precise compensation and a same-day resolution test speed without rewarding echo.
Why it’s in the pilot12 stress-test clusters · 2022–2026 · development, validation and holdout sets
See the complete pilot04 / Non-negotiables
Specific claims.
Visible evidence.
Public corrections.
An unresolved private conversation is not a miss. An aggregator does not inherit a scoop. A correction never vanishes. And a 5-for-5 sample does not outrank a deep record without adjustment.
See every rule and formula →