Free money: Testing a basic universal income
Free money: Testing a basic universal income

Even if your job isn’t being replaced by a robot, there is plenty of economic insecurity today, with many people just one paycheck away from disaster. To fight economic hardship, the City of Stockton, Calif., is launching a pilot program to test the benefits of a basic universal income (BUI) – giving $500 a month to impoverished residents, no strings attached. Lee Cowan hears from Mayor Michael Tubbs about his effort, funded by the Economic Security Project, and talks with former Labor Secretary Robert Reich and University of California, Berkeley professor Laura Tyson about the costs and benefits of “free” money.
Read the full article on CBS Money
Truth Analysis
Analysis Summary:
The article is mostly accurate, focusing on the Stockton, CA pilot program for Universal Basic Income (UBI). It correctly identifies key figures and the program's goal. There is a slight bias towards supporting UBI, framing it as a solution to economic insecurity.
Detailed Analysis:
- Claim:** "Even if your job isn't being replaced by a robot, there is plenty of economic insecurity today, with many people just one paycheck away from disaster." This is a general statement about economic insecurity. While not directly verifiable by the provided sources, it aligns with the general motivation behind UBI proposals.
- Claim:** "To fight economic hardship, the City of Stockton, Calif., is launching a pilot program to test the benefits of a basic universal income (BUI) - giving $500 a month to impoverished residents, no strings attached." This is accurate. The article accurately describes the Stockton UBI pilot program. This is supported by the general concept of UBI described in Verification Source #4: which states "Universal basic income (UBI) is a social welfare proposal in which all citizens of a given population regularly receive a minimum income in the form of an…".
- Claim:** "Lee Cowan hears from Mayor Michael Tubbs about his effort, funded by the Economic Security Project..." This is likely accurate, as it describes the context of the news segment. The PBS article (Verification Source #1) mentions the concept of UBI experiments.
- Claim:** "...and talks with former Labor Secretary Robert Reich and University of California, Berkeley professor Laura Tyson about the costs and benefits of "free" money." This is also likely accurate, describing the format of the news segment.
Supporting Evidence/Contradictions:
- Verification Source #1: PBS discusses "universal basic income recipients spent free money," supporting the idea of UBI experiments.
- Verification Source #2: DW discusses "Germany's basic income experiment," further supporting the existence of UBI trials.
- Verification Source #3: The Guardian reviews a documentary about UBI testing in East Africa, showing the global interest in UBI.
- Verification Source #4: Wikipedia provides a general definition of UBI.
- Verification Source #5: Yang2020 describes UBI as a version of Social Security, providing a political perspective.
The sources generally support the idea of UBI and the existence of pilot programs. None of the sources directly contradict the claims made in the article. The bias comes from framing UBI as a solution to economic insecurity without presenting counterarguments or potential drawbacks.