The Mental Health Leadership Toolkit for Fact-Checkers is a series of five guides around core topics for mental health in the newsroom, with a special focus on the needs of fact-checkers and their managers. It was developed as part of a rigorous, 6-month program of training and coaching for leaders run by The Self-Investigation in 2024 with support from the International Fact-Checking Network.
Fact-checking professionals face a specific set of challenges around mental health, such as tight timelines, online harassment, vicarious trauma and relentless work demands. Because of this, we believe that having the right tools and strategies to protect one’s mental health and better support teams is more important than ever.
This program supported 14 fact-checking organizations. Participants joined one of two cohorts: one in English and one in Spanish. The Self Investigation’s training managers, Emma Thomasson and Natalia Martín Cantero, aimed to give fact-checking leaders the skills to cultivate a lasting culture of mental health awareness and action within their teams. In addition, leaders received individualized coaching and to support them and help cement change in their newsrooms.
What we learned is that managers of fact-checkers from different organizations across the globe often feel alone with the problems they encounter when running their teams. But regardless of the country or organizational size, they actually face very similar challenges in supporting their teams’ mental health, from India to Brazil, Nigeria to Hungary.
The training was designed around The Self-Investigation’s six pillars, or building blocks, for a mentally healthy workplace:
These pillars were developed by Dean Yates and Kim Brice based on materials from MindShare Partners.
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1Leadership buy-in. Media executives and managers who understand that their staff’s mental health and overall welfare must be a priority and are prepared to invest time and resources to achieve it. An organization’s leadership that understands they set the tone and therefore consciously model healthy workplace practices.
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2Psychological safety. It encourages disclosure of mental health issues and concerns without fear of negative consequences. Managers are willing to consider adjusting expectations and make accommodations when needed. Diversity, equity and inclusion are valued and honored.
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3Prevention and early intervention practices (stress risk assessments and audits, regular 1:1s for example) are embedded in workplace culture. Flexibility and autonomy are fostered.
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4Visible multi-layered support across the organization. Employee assistance programs, other external support, internal written policies and guidelines as well as peer support are known and implemented throughout the organization.
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5Continuous evidence-based training to raise awareness and enhance skills to implement healthy workplace practices are available to all staff members, starting with higher management.
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6Transparency and good communication. The values, policies and resources protecting staff’s mental health are regularly communicated within the organization, not only but especially when times are rough.
Mental Health Leadership Toolkit for Fact-Checkers
Five guides available on burnout prevention, digital boundaries, vicarious trauma and moral injury, online harassment and psychological safety
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TOOLKIT LAUNCH WEBINAR
Watch the launch webinar of the Mental Health Leadership Toolkit, held on December 10, 2024. Gain first-hand insights from the Toolkit’s authors and program participants who contributed to its development.
Stay tuned for the release webinar of the remaining three guides, coming in early 2025!
CREDITS
This toolkit was developed collaboratively by The Self-Investigation team, based on trainings led by Kim Brice, Natalia Martín Cantero, Aldara Martitegui, Naseem Miller, Juan Carlos Segarra, Pablo M. Fernández, and Emma Thomasson. We are also grateful to our cohort members and coaches for their generous contributions, feedback and thoughts during the program, which informed the shape and content of this toolkit.
- Authors: Emma Thomasson, Kim Brice, Mar Cabra, Natalia Martín Cantero
- Contributors: Natalia Martín Cantero, Naseem Miller
- Spanish Translation: Natalia Martín Cantero
- Editors: A.X. Mina, Mar Cabra
- Design: Paula Montañà Tor, Mariam Mamdouh
- Illustrations: Diana Cuéllar
Cohort participants
- Mardylid Scarlet Castillo Yánez – Cotejo.info (Venezuela)
- Patricia Cusicanqui Hanssen – Bolivia Verifica (Bolivia)
- Tamoa Calzadilla – Factchequeado (United States)
- Fernanda da Escóssia – Aos Fatos (Brazil)
- Matías Di Santi – Chequeado (Argentina)
- Kritika Goel – Logically Facts (India)
- Rosemary Igebka – Factcheckhub (Nigeria)
- Jency Jacob – BOOM Live (India)
- Opeyemi Kehinde – Factcheckhub (Nigeria)
- Eric Litke – USA Today (United States)
- Lorena Martínez – Logically Facts (UK)
- Alessandra Monnerat – Estadão Verifica (Brazil)
- Szilvi Német – Lakmusz (Hungary)
- Sophie Nicholson – AFP (France)
- Rafael Olavarría – Factchequeado (United States)
- Adriana Olivera – Bolivia Verifica (Bolivia)
- Karen Rebelo – BOOM Live (India)
- Amanda Ribeiro – Aos Fatos (Brazil)
- José Felipe Sarmiento Abella – Colombia Check (Colombia)
- Katarina Subasic – AFP (Serbia)
- Bradley Sylvester – USA Today (United States)
- Alba Tobella – Verificat (Spain)
- Karla Torres – Cotejo.info (Venezuela)
- Blanka Zöldi – Lakmusz (Hungary)
Coaches
- Kim Brice
- Jeremy Clifford
- Aldara Martitegui
- A.X. Mina
- Elena Sancho
- Emma Thomasson
- Rocío Ovalle