Writing, Rhetoric, and Communication: Evaluating Information

There are many different source types to choose from when doing research. However, no matter the source type, the evaluation process is the same.

Common source types:

• Academic journals & articles (written by experts or researchers in the discipline)
• Books / eBooks (written by anyone)
• Reference materials (i.e. encyclopedias, almanacs, dictionaries)
• Newspapers and Magazines (written by journalists)
• Websites, Videos, Media (written by anyone)
• Images (i.e. charts, pictures, infographics)
• Data & Statistics (usually affiliated with organizations, research studies, etc.)

Watch the video below to learn more about these types of sources, including their benefits and drawbacks.

On the open web, information is freely available, but anyone can create and host a site without any regulation, and some sites employ crowd source editing, which can be edited by anyone, such as Wikipedia.

When evaluating sources, go beyond the source (Google it!) and keep these five things in mind as you employ vertical (evaluating the source itself) and lateral reading (checking the accuracy of the source by consulting other sources of information): currency, relevance, authority, accuracy, and purpose.

See the video and image below to learn more about how to use these methods of evaluating sources to determine if a source is credible.

When evaluating news and journalism resources, look for an "About" page and a journalism code of ethics. Credible news sources will provide such  information but all articles still need to be evaluated based on their content, accuracy, etc.

Ask yourself: What does the source cover? How does one report for that organization? Do journalists undergo training for that organization? How do they determine content? Who and how do they interview? 

Click the image for the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics.