How to Build a Real-Time Fact-Checking Website for the Public

Create a user-friendly fact-checking website that instantly verifies content against trusted sources. This project aims to provide immediate True/False results for articles or screenshots, making reliable information easily accessible to the general public.

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Simple Summary

Build a real-time fact-checking website that instantly verifies articles or screenshots against reliable sources and Snopes, displaying a True/False badge for the general public.

Product Requirements Document (PRD)

Goals:

Develop a real-time fact-checking website for the general public
Provide immediate verification results for articles or screenshots
Support English language content
Handle up to 100 simultaneous users

Target Audience:

General public seeking quick fact verification

Key Features:

User input for articles or screenshot uploads
Real-time fact-checking against reliable sources and Snopes
Immediate True/False badge display
User-friendly interface for easy navigation

User Requirements:

Simple, intuitive interface for content submission
Fast, accurate fact-checking results
Clear True/False badge visualization
Mobile-responsive design for accessibility on various devices

User Flows

Content Submission: User uploads article text or screenshot → System processes input → User waits for verification
Result Display: System completes verification → True/False badge appears → User views result
Multiple Checks: User submits another piece of content → System processes new input → New result displayed

Technical Specifications

Frontend: React.js for a responsive single-page application
Backend: Node.js with Express for API handling
Database: MongoDB for storing verification results and user data
API Integration: Axios for HTTP requests to fact-checking APIs
Image Processing: Tesseract.js for OCR on uploaded screenshots
Hosting: Replit for development and initial deployment
Version Control: Git integration within Replit

API Endpoints

POST /api/verify
- Request: { content: string, type: "text" | "image" }
- Response: { result: "true" | "false", confidence: number, sources: string[] }
GET /api/stats
- Response: { totalChecks: number, accuracyRate: number }

Database Schema

FactCheck:
  id: ObjectId
  content: String
  type: String (text/image)
  result: Boolean
  confidence: Number
  sources: Array<String>
  timestamp: Date

User:
  id: ObjectId
  username: String
  checkCount: Number

File Structure

/src
  /components
    Header.js
    Footer.js
    FactCheckForm.js
    ResultDisplay.js
  /pages
    Home.js
    About.js
  /services
    apiService.js
    factCheckService.js
  /utils
    imageProcessing.js
  App.js
  index.js
/server
  /routes
    factCheck.js
    stats.js
  /models
    FactCheck.js
    User.js
  server.js
/public
  index.html
  styles.css

Implementation Plan

Set up Replit environment with Node.js and React
Implement basic frontend structure and components
Create backend server with Express
Integrate OCR functionality for screenshot processing
Implement fact-checking logic and API integrations
Develop database schema and connect MongoDB
Create API endpoints for fact-checking and stats
Implement user authentication (if required)
Optimize for performance and scalability
Conduct thorough testing and bug fixes
Deploy initial version on Replit

Deployment Strategy

Develop and test on Replit's integrated development environment
Use Replit's hosting capabilities for initial deployment
Set up continuous integration with Replit's version control
Monitor performance and user feedback
Iterate and improve based on user engagement
Consider scaling to a cloud platform (e.g., Heroku, AWS) if user base grows beyond Replit's capabilities

Design Rationale

The project uses React for its component-based architecture, allowing for a modular and maintainable frontend. Node.js and Express provide a lightweight backend suitable for API integrations. MongoDB is chosen for its flexibility with unstructured data, which is beneficial for storing varied fact-checking results. The file structure separates concerns between frontend components, backend logic, and services, promoting code organization. Replit is used for its all-in-one development and hosting capabilities, making it ideal for a beginner-friendly project with immediate deployment needs.