LibGuides: Evaluating Sources: Think like a fact checker

Verify information like a fact checker

These four moves from V erified by Mike Caulfield and Sam Wineburg (2024) will help you go deeper in assessing the quality of your sources.

SIFT :

S: Stop or Slow down to consider the source. Examine & recognize reactions or unknowns.
I: Investigate the source. Read laterally to understand the context of the source (What kind of source is this? Who are the authors, sponsors, publishers?)
F: Find other coverage. How are other sources considering this topic or claim?
T: Trace claims, quotes, and media to the original context. Go upstream to the orginal source of information. Circle back: If you get lost, hit dead ends, or find yourself going down an increasingly confusing rabbit hole, back up and start over knowing what you know now. You’re likely to take a more informed path with different search terms and better decisions.

As you investigate sources, you might ask these questions:

Expect accountability

When encountering a news or information source, ask yourself...

What do you know about the source?

Who publishes it? Who owns it?

Does the source have an Editorial Policy?
Does it follow a Code of Ethics?
Lack of an explicit and prominent editorial policy or a statement of ethical standards is a red flag.

High-quality, investigative news sources have explicit editorial policies and follow a code of ethics or professional standards.

Examples: Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Code of Ethics; Ethical Journalism Network's 5 Principles of Ethical Journalism.

Specific examples of policies and standards:

Reuters: The Trust Principles
BBC Editorial Guidelines
The Guardian News & Media Editorial Code
New York Times Standards and Ethics
NPR [National Public Radio] Ethics Handbook
American Society of News Editors (ASNE) links to individual news sources codes of ethics and newsroom practice.

Accountable sources issue corrections for errors and inaccuracies they subsequently discover. Corrections and inaccuracies should be addressed on the original content for an online source. For a print source, the corrections and inaccuracies are usually addressed in the subsequent issue. Fake news sources are not accountable for their content.

Accountable sources sign their stories and take personal and professional responsibility for the content. That means that articles should have bylines (the names of the authors).

Can you click on the byline? Where does it lead?

Google the author names. Is there a LinkedIn profile? Some other form of biographical information? What has the author done in the past? Does the author's background and experience qualify them to write on the article topic?