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Evaluate Your Sources

Don't be caught using unreliable information. Learn to fact check and evaluate your sources to identify and use credible ones.

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Use this guide to help you evaluate sources, whether it's potential fake news, a claim about a product or service, or a source for a research paper. By learning the simple SIFT method of evaluation, you will be better equipped to identify fake news, as well as potential bias in regular news. This skill will help you be a smarter consumer of news, a better consumer of information, and a more informed citizen. You can use these skills for your research assignments, of course, but also in your personal life when you need to make important decisions.

 

Get Started by Understanding the News & Information Landscape

To get started in your quest for the truth, first you need to understand the news and information landscape.

Watch this 4:48 minute video to see how news and information are created and spread. You'll also learn what you can do to take control of your evaluation and understanding of the information that you read and hear.


Video by Damon Brown for TED-Ed (4:48)

Acknowledgements

This guide is based on Mitchell, Victoria. "Fake News and Information Literacy." UO Libraries, 7 Apr. 2021, researchguides.uoregon.edu/fakenews.