# Source checklist for narrated story and documentary scripts

From https://storyscript.launchmatic.net/source-checklist/ — free to print and share.

## Before you write

- [ ] Write the one-sentence claim the video makes. Every source you collect should support or test it.
- [ ] List the 5–10 factual claims the script can't work without (dates, numbers, quotes, who did what).
- [ ] Note what you already believe about the topic, so you notice when you only collect sources that agree.
- [ ] Decide your sourcing bar: at least one primary source or two independent reliable secondary sources per key claim.

## Finding sources

- [ ] Start from a reference work (encyclopedia, textbook, museum page) to map the topic, then follow its citations.
- [ ] Look for primary sources: original documents, court records, letters, official reports, contemporaneous newspapers, data sets.
- [ ] Prefer secondary sources with named authors, editors, publication dates and their own citations (books, peer-reviewed papers, established outlets).
- [ ] For each key claim, find a second source that doesn't simply copy the first.
- [ ] Search for the strongest counter-argument or a debunking of the story before you commit to it.
- [ ] Check whether a famous quote is actually attributed in a contemporary source, not just on quote sites.

## Recording each source

- [ ] Save author, title, publisher, date, URL and the date you accessed it.
- [ ] Archive web pages (e.g. the Wayback Machine "Save Page Now") so the link still works later.
- [ ] Copy the exact passage that supports the claim, with page number or timestamp.
- [ ] Tag each source: primary, secondary, or tertiary; and how reliable you judge it.
- [ ] Link every script line that states a fact to the source(s) behind it.

## Checking claims

- [ ] Numbers: check units, the year they apply to, and whether they were rounded or estimated.
- [ ] Dates and names: confirm spellings and dates in at least two sources.
- [ ] Quotes: verify the wording, the speaker and the context; don't trim a quote so it changes meaning.
- [ ] Images and footage: confirm what they actually show, where and when; label reconstructions and AI-generated visuals.
- [ ] Mark anything disputed or uncertain, and say so in the narration ("historians disagree…", "according to…").
- [ ] Separate fact from interpretation: phrase your own conclusions as conclusions.

## Before you publish

- [ ] Re-read the script once only for factual claims, ticking each against its source.
- [ ] Put the main sources in the description (title + link), and pin a sources comment if the list is long.
- [ ] Check licences for footage, images and music; credit as required.
- [ ] Disclose sponsorships and any realistic altered or synthetic media as the platform requires.
- [ ] Keep your source file. If a viewer reports an error, fix it and post a correction.

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StoryScript (in development) collects sources first and links every script line to them. Waitlist: https://storyscript.launchmatic.net/