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| Because there is no review process or regulation for the public Web, you will need to judge for yourself the quality of the material you find. Keep in mind these questions: | |
| Relevancy /Coverage | -
Does the article address the topic?
- Does it provide you with the type of information needed? (e.g. background information, history, statistical data, analysis, studies or experiments) - How general or specific is the information about the topic? - Does the information you retrieve need to be recent, and if so, does the article provide recent information? |
| Authorship / Source | -
Is the article from a major newspaper, an established, reputable magazine,
or a scholarly journal (in other words, a reliable source)?
- Does it list an author or is the article unsigned? - Is this article sponsored by an organization or lobbying group? |
| Language Level / Intended Audience | -
Is the language simple and conversational or is the language complex and
sophisticated?
- Is the language of this article written at a scholarly level? - Who is the intended reader of this article? - Is this article written to grab your attention or is it written in an impersonal, scientific manner? |
| Objectivity / Bias | -
Is there a strong point of view expressed?
- Is the primary purpose of this article to sway opinion, to inform, to sell something, or to report facts? - Is the text substantiated by facts and evidence or does it only offer opinion? |
| Accuracy or Validity | -
Is there a bibliography or list of references provided with the article?
If so, scan the list to see the types of sources on which the author has
based his/her work.
- Does the author present facts in an objective manner and provide a list of references, or does s/he present an unsupported opinion? - When you consult another publication to verify the information presented in this article, will the facts be substantiated? |
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