Ad Fontes Science, a division of Ad Fontes Media, is developing a system to rate scientific journals for reliability and relevance, with potential applications in library collections management, publishing and AI content licensing.
The Scientific Information Reliability Chart (SIRC) adapts the visual approach behind Ad Fontes Media’s Media Bias Chart to scientific literature. It plots publications on two axes, separating the reliability of their scientific claims from how effectively they interpret findings for their intended communities.
The initiative, which is due to be showcased on 4 November at the 2026 Charleston Premiers sessions at Charleston Conference, is led by managing directors Kent Anderson and Joy Moore.
Anderson’s publishing background includes the New England Journal of Medicine, Science, JBJS and Pediatrics, while Moore has held roles at Nature Publishing Group, Blackwell and Silverchair. Ad Fontes Media founder and chief executive Vanessa Otero is also part of the team.
Under the proposed system, reliability is scored across seven dimensions, including study design, study quality, financial and ethical disclosures, and the clarity of scientific claims. Relevance is assessed through five dimensions covering author expertise, original contribution, promotional focus, community accountability and how claims are moderated through peer scrutiny.
The organisation says journal positions are based on assessments of dozens of papers, using professional analysts and consistent criteria. Article assessments are then combined to produce publication ratings.
For libraries and consortia, Ad Fontes Science identifies collections management as a potential application, offering assessments of journal quality and variation within publishing portfolios. It also envisages publishers using the ratings to inform editorial strategy and researchers consulting them when choosing where to submit papers.
Other proposed uses include helping aggregators and AI developers assess content for licensing and training datasets, and supporting journalists and practitioners evaluating scientific sources.
The organisation presents the initiative as a response to unreliable publications, large-scale retractions and weaknesses in existing research metrics. It argues that generative AI has added to the difficulty of navigating scientific information.
Its website currently displays an anonymised prototype chart dated May 2026, with an interactive version described as being in development. The organisation is also recruiting analysts to assess scientific publications.
Further information is available on the Ad Fontes Science website.
Source: www.researchinformation.info
