Built for the
messy name.
Stories that start with a partial identifier. Confirm first. Deepen second.
Journalists
A breaking story names “Michael Chen in Chicago.” Compare the possibles. Confirm the right one before a correction is on the editor’s desk.
Open the desk →Name collisions
Shared names, missing middle initials, two people in the same city. The desk is built for that pile, not a single perfect query.
Open the desk →A number on a document
A leak, a campaign filing, a court exhibit. Start from the email or phone you have. Do not spend the enriched-data credit until you say it is the right person.
Open the desk →Backgrounding a subject
A source, a candidate, a company officer. Confirm work history, locations, and public profiles, then deepen only the person who belongs in the piece.
Open the desk →Public-records follow-up
FOIA productions and campaign-finance dumps are full of partial names. Resolve who is who, then keep the packet with the story file.
Open the desk →Identity on deadline
When two records look alike, photos and jobs on the card are how you decide. Initials stand in when there is no picture.
Open the desk →Deepen the confirmed record
One credit covers the live enriched-data run. Export a PDF when you brief the desk.
Lawful newsgathering
Use the desk for reporting. Confirm identities independently before publication. The owner can refund a wasted search.
Open the desk →