Evidence ledger
A spreadsheet template for tracking each claim with its source, dates, counter-evidence and verdict — plus a review checklist to use before publishing.
When several reports describe the same event, it is easy to lose track of whether they checked the claim independently or simply repeated a common source. A claim ledger makes that difference visible while the research is still in progress.
What’s inside
The CSV opens in any spreadsheet app. Each row is one claim, with columns for:
- the exact claim, source title, link and issuing body;
- publication date and event date, kept separate;
- page or table reference, definition of the measure, geography and population;
- whether the source is primary, any independent confirmation and any credible counter-evidence;
- access status, your conclusion, publication status, and who checked it when.
The first row is a labelled example — delete it before use.
The companion checklist
Download the evidence review checklist — two short lists to run before you draft and before you publish.
Good practice
Keep ledgers for sensitive work in private storage. Never put participants’ identifying details in a shared or public file.
Licence and credits
Version 1.0, released under CC0 1.0 (public domain). Requirements: Any spreadsheet app (LibreOffice, Excel, Google Sheets).
Original work by Daniel Khan.