Holan will discuss the growth of fact-checking in the United States and the methods that fact-checkers typically use to combat misinformation. She will detail strategies for sourcing and how fact-checkers use checklists for comprehensive debunking. She will discuss the rise of fake news since 2016, varying definitions for fake news, and how journalists work to inform the public about inaccurate information.

Angie Drobnic Holan is the editor of PolitiFact, the U.S. politics fact-checking website. She directs, assigns and edits PolitiFact’s coverage of national politics and presidential elections, including debates and nominating conventions. She started with PolitiFact as a reporter and was on the team that won the Pulitzer Prize for fact-checking the 2008 election.

Holan has discussed PolitiFact and fact-checking on national television and radio, including CNN, NPR, C-SPAN, the PBS Newshour and Washington Week, among many others. She has presented on fact-checking methods at the Global Fact-checking Summits in Buenos Aires, London and Madrid.

Holan holds dual master’s degrees in journalism and library science. Her MS is from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, and her MLS is from the University of South Florida, an information school accredited by the American Library Association. In 2014, the library school presented her with the Jean Key Gates Distinguished Alumni Award.

Holan currently teaches as an adjunct faculty member Georgetown University graduate school of journalism. She lives in Arlington, Va., with her husband Mark Holan.

Entrance is free. Please note that space is limited! Registrations will be handled on a “first come, first served” basis.