Image credit: Nathan Davidson, World Wide Interweb, July 10, 2017
It presents inaccurate or incomplete information in one or more of the following forms:
assumes the appearance of news as a form of humor
Examples: The Onion, The Daily Show
sensationalizes a topic for increased attention
"One weird trick to stop bad moods"
"The shocking truth about how social media is rewiring your brain"
supports a particular point of view or obscures responsibility
Examples of different kinds of bias in the news (University of Washington Libraries)
deliberately misleads people
Fake Print Editions of Washington Post Distributed in Washington, D. C. | Snopes
A deepfake ‘Joe Biden’ robocall told voters to stay home for primary election | Popular Science
How we evaluate news sources can depend on what we need to know and why. Sometimes we simply want to gain a quick, general sense of current events. Other uses of news — sharing it with others, citing it as a credible source, or taking action based the information — require us to be more careful. Here are some questions to ask.
Ask yourself, "Why am I seeing this now?" Did you seek it out? Did someone you know and trust share it? Be skeptical of sponsored and promoted content that may show up in social media feeds and search results.
Consider the headline or main message. Does it make you angry or afraid, or does it seem too good to be true? If so, look for other sources to make sure you aren't being provoked by misleading information.
Real stories and images from the past can become misinformation when they are recirculated in the present, especially as memes. Make sure you know their real context.
Be skeptical of stories and images that are shared without attribution. Look for an "About Us" page. A credible news site will provide contact information and names of editors and staff writers. Search their names to learn more about them and their reputations.
Be aware that newspapers and other news sources publish both news stories and opinion pieces. News stories report the facts about current issues and events. Opinion pieces — including op-eds and editorials — represent commentary on issues and events by either a particular author or the publication's editors.
Does it back up claims with data, quotes from experts, or links to credible sources? Does it contain obvious errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation? Be skeptical of news that seems rushed and carelessly produced.
Check other news sources that you trust to see if they have published similar stories. This verification technique is called lateral reading. If many reputable news outlets have verified and shared the same information, you can trust that the information is credible.
Look up the story on some of the fact-checking websites listed on the Skills and Strategies page. If more than one fact-checking site has investigated the story and found it to be true, partly true, or totally false, you can trust their judgment.
Even highly acclaimed news outlets can produce stories of varying quality. Here are a few more questions to ask as you read:
Try looking up the newspaper, magazine or site in Wikipedia to learn about its mission, history, and any controversies.
Visit the library's News Sources guide to learn more.
