PolitiFact launches PunditFact

PolitiFact, a fact-checking site operated by the Tampa Bay Times, says it’s launching PunditFact, a site “dedicated to checking claims by pundits, columnists, bloggers and the hosts and guests of talk shows.” The site will hire journalists to research statements by media figures and rate their truthfulness. The results will be published on PunditFact.com and featured on the PolitiFact site as well.

PunditFact is funded by $625,000 in grants over two years from the Ford Foundation and the Democracy Fund. It also received funding from craigconnects, a philanthropy run by craigslist founder Craig Newmark.