It was the best of sources, it was the worst of sources...
The Internet is a fantastic place to find great sources, but it is also a fantastic place to find not so great sources.
Learning how to evaluate information is one of the most important skills you will learn at ACC. Anyone can publish on the web - you have to be proactive about deciding if the information is reliable or contains bad information.
Tips:
How can you tell if a web site is trustworthy or not? It's not always easy, but there are things that you can look for that will help you decide.
The library guide, Finding & Evaluating Information on the Internet, can help you evaluate websites and judge the quality of the information you find.
Use the SIFT skills employed by many fact checkers to determine if a news source or claim is factual and trustworthy. Simply put the SIFT skills are:
| S |
Stop! Do NOT read the source you just found, instead: |
| I |
Investigate the source. Use Google, Fact Checking Websites and/or Wikipedia to find out more about the source of information. Good fact checking websites include, Snopes.com and AP Fact Checker. |
| F |
Find the original source/trusted coverage. If the source you found seems to be quoting from another article or other source, find the original source of information to confirm facts and investigate the original source. |
| T |
Look for trusted sources. Build a library in your mind of sources you have found to be trustworthy. When you see a claim online, you can Google the claim and add the name of one of your trusted sources to see if they have covered the same story. Fact checking websites like Snopes are great sources of trustworthy information because of the amount of research they do to verify a story. |
SIFT method was developed by Mike Caulfield based on the skills used by professionals used by fact-checkers.
What is CRAAP?
CRAAP is a set of criteria designed by California State University, Chico to help you find the best sources for your school work. It is a good starting point for evaluating sources for academic purposes like papers, reports and speeches.
Is it CRAAP?
Use the following rubric to help you choose sources for your paper or other school work.
Created by Austin Community College Library Services, 2017.
Be skeptical of all sources that you find whether online or in print. Use CRAAP or your own personal criteria to find sources that are appropriate for your purpose. Your criteria for sources for academic work may be very different than your criteria for sources for personal use. It all depends on the situation.
