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Understanding the Critic score
What the final agent checks and how to read its verdict.
The Critic is the final agent in the 10-stage pipeline. It reviews the finished exposé against six editorial dimensions and returns an overall score from zero to ten.
What it scores
- Factual grounding. Are any facts, names, dates, or numbers ungrounded in the research material? Every claim is cross-referenced against what the Fact-Checker verified.
- Specificity. Is the writing concrete, or does it hide behind genre language ("compelling characters", "relevant today")?
- Format fit. Does the exposé match the target broadcaster's slot, tone, and structure expectations?
- Cliché avoidance. Are there clichés that flag this as a junior pitch? The Critic maintains a banned-phrase list per broadcaster.
- Dramatic arc. Does the narrative structure work? Setup, turn, resolution?
- Producer brief. Is the production-feasibility section real: access confirmed, sources named, logistics thought through?
Each dimension scores 0-10. The overall score is a weighted summary.
What the score means
- 8.5 or higher: Broadcast-ready. The Critic thinks this one is ready to send. A green "Broadcast-ready" block replaces the fix-list; export and ship.
- 7.0-8.4: Strong draft. Close. The fix-list shows you the specific dimensions that need a revision pass to cross the shippable floor.
- 5.0-6.9: Needs work. Structural issues. Review the Critic's weaknesses and revise — or rethink the angle.
- Below 5.0: Rewrite. Something fundamental is off. Often the topic itself isn't pitch-ready; a sharper angle might help more than a revision.
The Critic is a tool, not a verdict. Your judgment on the output quality is the real call.