Glossary
Primary source
An original, first-hand document, recording, or eyewitness — as opposed to a secondary source that describes or interprets the primary.
Examples of primary sources: official documents (court filings, agency reports, transcripts), original research papers, direct eyewitness accounts, raw data. Secondary sources: news articles about the original document, expert summaries, opinion pieces. Good fact-checking traces every load-bearing claim to a primary source. Articles that don't link to primary sources are asking the reader to take them on faith. See also: fact-checking.
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