Yet, since the press has spent decades reprinting such data unquestioningly, cross-checking facts and figures is a relatively new practice: one bank robbery was recently reported in five different papers with five different figures for the amount stolen.

ECONOMIST: Mexico

Her eyes were not blaming him, just checking the facts.

NEWYORKER: Town of Cats

Either way, investors would do themselves a big favor by checking out the facts about seasonality.

FORBES: Sell In May Still Working Like A Charm

Much remains unclear about the circumstances of this accident, and we are checking to ascertain the facts.

WSJ: Shoe Factory Collapses in Cambodia

Lurking behind these debatable unemployment statistics - and there is an interesting bit of fact-checking here - are the two undisputable and, perhaps, unsustainable facts of South Africa's economy: Too few people paying tax, and too many receiving welfare payments .

BBC: South African unemployment: Lies and statistics

Following up on these alleged facts would not have been investigative journalism, just routine fact-checking on a story that seemed innocent on the surface.

CNN: Te'o story, big fail for sportswriters