Methodology

How receipts are built

Every receipt begins with a decision brief — a description of what was decided, when, and by whom. The brief goes through a research pipeline that retrieves primary source documents, identifies named participants, and generates editorial perspective summaries.

Primary source requirement

Every receipt must cite an official government document as its primary source: a Federal Register entry, White House transcript, Congressional Record, signed legislation text, or official government press release. News reporting alone does not qualify as a primary source. If no primary source document exists, the most authoritative sourced reporting is used with a note explaining the absence.

Participant attribution

Every person tagged in a receipt — as decision-maker, agreed, or opposed — must have a source that specifically attributes that position to them. The source must be direct: a vote record, an official statement, a direct quote, or on-record reporting. AI inference is never used to attribute a position to a named individual.

Perspective framing

The Left and Right summaries reflect how left-leaning and right-leaning outlets covered the decision. The Straight summary is sourced to primary documents with no editorial language. The Analysis surfaces what neither side fully reported — internal dissent, buried legal or budget implications, historical precedent ignored by both sides, or what the decision does not say.

AI disclosure

Perspective summaries (Left, Right, Straight, and The Analysis) are generated with AI assistance using Claude, an AI model made by Anthropic. All AI-generated content is clearly labeled on every receipt. AI-generated perspectives are editorial framings, not objective fact. Every receipt is reviewed before publication.

Consequence linking

Consequence links between receipts are confirmed by a human editor before they appear on the page. A consequence link requires at least one source that explicitly connects the two events. AI flags potential connections but a human confirms every link before it publishes.

Corrections

If you find a factual error, unsourced claim, or misattributed participant in any receipt, contact us at info@wellthisisnews.com. Confirmed corrections are noted on the receipt.