Verification Layers

Verification Architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                  VERIFICATION STACK                   │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                                                     │
│  Layer 1: AI Pre-Screening (automated)              │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────┐   │
│  │ • Internal consistency check                 │   │
│  │ • Language analysis & sentiment              │   │
│  │ • Preliminary trust score (0-100)           │   │
│  │ • Flag suspicious claims                     │   │
│  │ • Duration: < 5 seconds per article          │   │
│  └──────────────┬──────────────────────────────┘   │
│                 │                                   │
│                 ▼                                   │
│  Layer 2: Community Review (crowdsourced)           │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────┐   │
│  │ • Min 5 reviews per article                  │   │
│  │ • Each reviewer's vote weighted by their     │   │
│  │   reputation score                           │   │
│  │ • High-reputation reviewers count more       │   │
│  │ • Reviews remain visible on article page     │   │
│  │ • Duration: minutes to hours                 │   │
│  └──────────────┬──────────────────────────────┘   │
│                 │                                   │
│                 ▼                                   │
│  Layer 3: Expert Validation (final sign-off)        │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────┐   │
│  │ • Verified journalists / domain experts      │   │
│  │ • Required only for flagged or contentious   │   │
│  │   articles                                   │   │
│  │ • Also used for high-impact breaking news    │   │
│  │ • Duration: minutes to hours                 │   │
│  └─────────────────────────────────────────────┘   │
│                                                     │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

When Each Layer Applies

Article Type	AI Check	Community	Expert
Scraped from major source	✅	Optional	❌
Scraped from small source	✅	If low confidence	If flagged
Citizen report (high trust user)	✅	✅ 3 reviews	If flagged
Citizen report (new user)	✅	✅ 5 reviews	✅ Always
Breaking / sensitive news	✅	✅	✅ Always

Badge System

Based on verification level, articles receive a badge:

Badge	Description
✅ AI Verified	Passed AI pre-screening with high confidence
👥 Community Verified	AI check + minimum community consensus
⭐ Expert Verified	AI check + community + expert sign-off
📱 Citizen Report	User-submitted, basic AI check passed