Instructional Workshops ~ Fall Quarter 2000
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C O N T E N T S :
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Evaluating Sites for Quality of ContentAnyone can publish anything on the Internet. Ideally, the Internet is a democratic forum where every individual has the opportunity to express his or her own views, ideas, and opinions. Because of this, some critics have labeled the Internet anarchic because there are few, if any, controls over the content of web pages. As with any source that is collected for research purposes, nothing should be taken at face value. The content of web pages should be reviewed with a critical eye in order to separate possible fact from fiction, propaganda, or unsupported opinion. Questions to Ask: 1) Source? What is the source of the information? Is the author known? On what authority does the author write -- what are his or her credentials? Who sponsors the website? 2) Bias? What is the intent or purpose of the website ? Is the motivation for the website profit? ...news? ...propaganda? ...scholarly information? Does the material appear biased in any way? ...or is it fairly objective? 3) Reliability? How reliable does the information appear to be within the website ? How does the material compare to related sources, such as published books or journal articles? 4) Currency? How current does the information appear to be? How often is the website updated? 5) Reviews? Are there professional reviews available for the website? |
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Other resources for evaluating websites: Evaluating Web Resources Evaluate your Sources HoaxBusters ~ Computer Incident Advisory Capability |
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