Is Your Information Credible?

Do you know if the information you find online credible? Is this site real: http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/ … If you answered yes then you need to keep reading!!

In this magazine you will learn about how to find out if your information is credible.

URL

Now in days with the internet, all you have to do is Google something then you get thousands of sites. But, are they all good?

If the URL ends in .mil (military) .edu (education) .gov (government) then the information is almost always accurate. But, if it ends in org. (organization) .net (network) or .com (commercial) you definitely have to look into the information more.

Author

To start look around the page and see if you can find an author; if you do, look them up on Google. If they have credentials related to the page then you know the page is probably accurate. But, if they are a rocket scientist writing about Greek literature you might want to think again about using the site.

If you can’t find the author try and find links about the page.

Links

On almost every website you go on you will find links. If you can’t find an author then it is good to see if the links on the page relate to the topic of the page.

If you can’t find any go to http://www.alexa.com/ . On alexa.com you paste the URL of the site you are on into the search box. Then “Alexa” will find any sites that link to the site. If the sites are reliable [that link to it] then there is another very good chance that the site is reliable. Also, if you go to Google and then put “links: (insert the URL here)” Google will come up with sites that link to it.

Fact or Opinion?

It is also good to identify if the site is fact or opinion.

If it is a fact the author will probably say something like this: According to a 2006 survey by _________ 80% of kids don’t want school during the summer.

If it is an opinion it will probably say something like this: I believe … I think … in my opinion. Also, if the author says something like: they say … scientists agree that … then that also is probably an opinion.

Is it a Hoax?

Another good way to find out if your site is reliable is to go to http://www.snopes.com/. If you decide to use it you put the topic of the page in the search box. Then “Snopes” will bring up a bunch of sites that pertain to the page. If you find your link, click it, then at the top of the page it will tell you if it’s a hoax or not.

Is This Site Meant for Your Eyes?

Are you a 12 year old reading a site meant for 45 year olds? If you are then find another link. It is important to be able to understand what you are reading! If you don’t, or if the site doesn’t give enough information, you should stop reading it.

Turn to the next page to see the Flow Chart…

Bib l i og raphy

U n i v e r s i t y , A c a d i a . " V a u g h a n M e m o r i a l L i b r a r y . " C r e d i b l e S o u r c e s C o u n t . V a u g h a n M e m o r i a l L i b r a r y , 2 0 0 8 . W e b . 1 1 M a r 2 0 1 1 . < h tt p : / / l i b r a r y . a c a d i a u . c a / t u t o r i a l s / w e b e v a l u a ti o n / > .

B l a c k s t o n e , P a m . " W e b L e n s . " E v a l u a ti n g Q u a l i t y & I n t e g r i t y o f O n l i n e I n f o r m a ti o n . W e b L e n s , 2 0 0 5 . W e b . 1 1 M a r 2 0 1 1 . < h tt p : / / w w w . w e b l e n s . o r g / q u a l i t y . h t m l > .

K i n g , J o h n a t h a n . " Y a h o o . " T e n W a y s t o D e t e r m i n e t h e C r e d i b i l i t y o f I n f o r m a ti o n o n t h e I n t e r n e t . Y a h o o , 7 D e c 2 0 0 9 . W e b . 1 1 M a r 2 0 1 1 . < h tt p : / / w w w . a s s o c i a t e d c o n t e n t . c o m / a r ti c l e / 2 4 3 4 9 5 0 / t e n _ w a y s _ t o _ d e t e r m i n e _ t h e _ c re d i b i l i t y . h t m l ? c a t = 1 5 > .

F e c k e , J e ff . " B l o g g i n g a t I t s W o r s t . " I a m A w a r e o f a l l I n t e r n e t T r a d i ti o n s . R o c k i n T h e m e s , 1 8 J u n 2 0 0 8 . W e b . 1 1 M a r 2 0 1 1 . < h tt p : / / m o d e r a t e l e ft . c o m / ? p = 4 4 0 8 > .

B e a g l e y , J o s h . " M o b i l e W e b . " L i v e A c ti o n P i n o c c h i o C o m i n g S o o n . M o b i l e W e b , 1 9 S e p 2 0 1 0 . W e b . 1 1 M a r 2 0 1 1 . < h tt p : / / i n s i d e p u l s e . c o m / 2 0 1 0 / 0 9 / 1 9 / l i v e - a c ti o n - p i n o c c h i o -c o m i n g - s o o n / > .