Evaluating Information
Use SIFT to apply lateral reading skills for evaluating information.
Use SIFT to apply lateral reading skills for evaluating information.
What is lateral reading?
What is lateral reading?
When evaluating an information source, it means learning about a source from other sources. Reading laterally involves doing research about the information you have found.
(I) Investigating the source
(I) Investigating the source
Search bias ratings for the website you are evaluating.
Search bias ratings for the website you are evaluating.
Note: Ratings are mostly for large-sized news websites and so it is very possible your website may not be found.
- Search for the name of the media source in the top-right corner.
- What information is provided about the source?
- If the media source is listed, click on the hyperlink to read more.
- Hint: Use CTRL+F and search for the name of the media source.
Search Wikipedia and Google for the website you are evaluating.
Search Wikipedia and Google for the website you are evaluating.
- Search for the website name or domain.
- If there is an article about the website, see what it has to say!
Example:
- I searched Wikipedia for ThoughtCo and found this result, learning that it is part of the Dotdash media company formerly known as About.com (a site I have known about in the past)!
Search Google with the website name filling in the blank to see what you can learn about the website and how it is regarded.
- __________ shareholders
- __________ target audience
- __________ demographics
- __________ distribution
- __________ circulation
- __________ revenue
- __________ credibility
- __________ controversy
- __________ reputation