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Environmental Studies Research Guide: How to Evaluate Sources

Evaluating Information Sources

When evaluating the veracity of sources (articles, websites, etc.) consider the following criteria:

1.  Are the sources authoritative and relevant? Is it possible to determine:

  • Currency of information
  • Sources cited in the work / Sources citing the work
  • Person(s) participating in creating the source
  • If there are balance viewpoints
  • Peer Reviewed / Refereed / Scholarly
  • To what sites do the links/URLS in the sources go

2.  Are the sources from:

  • Trade publications (e.g. Time/Warner )
  • University presses (e.g. Duke University Press)
  • Professional associations (American Chemical Society, National Education Association )
  • Primary, secondary, tertiary sources
  • Websites (for example: .com,  .org., .edu, .gov)

For more information about evaluating sources, review the recommended sites below:

Evaluating Media Bias

 

By ad fontes media.  For the most recent printable and/or interactive version go to: https://adfontesmedia.com/interactive-media-bias-chart/

News Sources: Real or Fake?

"IFLA has made this infographic with eight simple steps (based on FactCheck.org’s 2016 article How to Spot Fake News) to discover the verifiability of a given news-piece in front of you. Download, print, translate, and share – at home, at your library, in your local community, and on social media networks."https://repository.ifla.org/items/c5dbfa34-7d00-47ac-8057-0183a5056438