Methods, evidence & privacy
A curated guide from Coutts Media. Catalogue and source checks dated 29–30 October 2026. Thirty-three tools: AI tools, conventional software and datasets. Training providers, course directories, handbooks, policy guides and publishing systems are deliberately excluded.
What the finder does
Describe a job, choose a task or role, or search for a tool by name. Matching is deterministic and runs in the page. It recognises common reporting phrasing, simple negation (“I do not need transcription; I need translation”) and stated requirements: device, language, technical setup, free budget, account and confidentiality. Input formats are surfaced as checks, not confirmed compatibility. The same eligibility rules apply to search, discovery, browsing, comparison and copied notes. It does not use a language model, API, key or server.
The finder shows at most three initial matches and can reveal all remaining matches. Results are ordered by task fit, then reported requirements. This is not a quality, accuracy or popularity ranking. Each card states what it meets, what needs checking and what rules it out. A tool that cannot meet a stated requirement is shown separately as a closest option, or not at all when no useful comparison exists.
Coverage and gaps
The catalogue is selective. Unsupported requests return a visible coverage gap instead of a forced recommendation. Current gaps include audience analytics and engagement, headline and copy generation, newsletter platforms, CMS and publishing, rights clearance, and most accessibility testing. Colour contrast and caption editing are covered; alt text, keyboard testing, screen readers and motion are not.
Roles (reporter, editor, producer, fact-checker, photographer, audio/video, data, freelancer, publisher) are optional shortcuts. They filter the catalogue; they do not claim that every tool suits every person in that role.
Comparison
Two or three tools can be compared field by field: type, tasks, devices and setup, language evidence, input and output formats, cost and account, data handling, requirement fit, separate check dates and hands-on test status. Missing information is shown as not recorded. The comparison is not a scorecard.
Evidence and dates
Every entry links to the official tool page and relevant evidence. Features, cost and privacy have separate check dates. Access is labelled free software, free tier, paid or cost unverified; quotas and billing are recorded only where checked. A listing is desk research unless the card says an editorial sample test is recorded. No workflow is marked tested without a real test; currently none are marked hands-on tested.
Provider pages and terms change. Pricing, quotas and data handling can change without notice. Confirm consequential claims with the provider before relying on them. The oldest of the separate feature, cost and privacy dates determines freshness. Any review older than 90 days is excluded by the default free filter and flagged on the card.
Approval and the AI policy tab
Every result carries a rules or approval warning appropriate to its type: AI tools point to the approved AI tool list, conventional software to procurement and security rules, and datasets to licence and personal-data checks. Freelancers are pointed to the checklist for recording their own decision. The finder cannot know or grant your organisation’s approval. The finder cannot know or grant your organisation’s approval. The AI policy tab provides a guided process, a copyable starter policy, a tool-approval checklist and fictional scenarios. It is a drafting aid, not legal advice. Tool-specific caveats stay on the tool cards; the policy tab supplements those caveats and does not replace them.
Your task text
The finder makes no network requests, uses no analytics, stores no task descriptions and needs no account. Text stays in page memory. Your browser may restore form values under its own settings; clear the form and close the page after use on a shared device. Static hosting can retain ordinary access logs such as IP addresses. The finder cannot control host logging, browser extensions, screen capture or a compromised device.
Clicking a provider, evidence or contact link leaves the page. Providers control their own services, terms and charges. No task description is added to those links or to the Coutts Media email enquiry. Link referrers are suppressed.
Confidential work
The confidentiality control and detected sensitive/offline intent exclude cloud, mixed and unknown processing from recommendations. Local and browser options remain configuration-dependent: sync, backups, plugins, shared folders and device access can expose material. Local processing is not a guarantee of source protection. Browser-based interfaces may call external services; InVID is labelled mixed for that reason.
Do not paste names, source documents or identifying details into a task description. No tool is described as safe for protected sources. Local use still needs your organisation’s approval. Consult the responsible editor or security specialist for consequential source-protection decisions.
Checking results
AI transcripts, summaries and translations are leads. Check quotations, numbers, names and dates against the original. A citation does not prove its source supports the claim. Existing fact-check searches retrieve prior work; they cannot establish a new claim. Forensic scores, AI detectors and plausible shadows are not authenticity verdicts. Test language support on a short sample and use a fluent reviewer for consequential translations.
Maintenance and updates
tools.json is the source of truth. Discovery is a separate command-line process with network disabled until an editor records recent permission; it can only produce unreviewed candidates. A human editor checks features, costs, privacy configuration, rights, access and a sample workflow before any entry is published. Scraping cannot publish a recommendation or silently advance a review date.
When a claim changes, edit the entry and set the relevant check date to the date of the real check. Do not refresh a date because the site was rebuilt. If evidence cannot be found, mark the cost unverified or remove the entry and record it in research/held-entries.md.
Regional sources
Regional tool sources include openAFRICA, Municipal Money, data.gov.sg, Cofacts, Trove, GSI Maps and WhatDoTheyKnow. Region labels describe relevance or origin, not guaranteed access from every country.
Corrections & contact
To report an outdated entry or discuss newsroom training, contact Coutts Media. Include the tool name and public evidence link, without confidential source material. No payment or mailing-list subscription is needed to use the finder.