Google and YouTube have announced a $13.2 million grant to establish a fact-checking fund at the nonprofit Poynter Institute. 

The grant was awarded to Poynter’s International Fact-Checking Network to establish a Global Fact Check Fund and support a network of 135 fact-checking organizations from 65 countries covering more than 80 languages. Scheduled to open in early 2023, the fund will help fact checkers scale existing operations or launch new ones. To that end, fact-checking organizations can use the funding to incorporate new technologies, create or expand digital footprints, optimize verification tools, and increase their capacities to deepen audience engagement through innovative storytelling formats such as audio, video, or podcasts.

“Google and YouTube remain dedicated to keep doing our part to help you find what you’re looking for and give you the context you need to make informed decisions about what you see online,” the companies said in a joint statement. “And we’re committed to continuing to support the journalists and fact-checking organizations on the front lines of the fight against misinformation.”

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