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Investigating the Article
Investigating the Article
- What kind of article is it?
- What is the purpose or agenda of the article?
- Where was the article originally published?
1) Categorize the Article
1) Categorize the Article
First, can you identify a main purpose for the writing?
First, can you identify a main purpose for the writing?
- To entertain?
- To educate?
- To persuade?
Next, if it is "news," how would you categorize the article?
Next, if it is "news," how would you categorize the article?
Can you tell what type of journalism it is?
If it is news, can you tell what type of news story it is?
If it is a feature news story, can you tell what type it is?
Now that there are so many different types of content online, it can be very difficult to categorize content. Here is a sampling of even more ways to categorize content:
Now that there are so many different types of content online, it can be very difficult to categorize content. Here is a sampling of even more ways to categorize content:
2) Search Google to Find Out More
2) Search Google to Find Out More
Article content may easily be syndicated or shared on multiple websites. Can you figure out the original source or the article?
Article content may easily be syndicated or shared on multiple websites. Can you figure out the original source or the article?
Search Google to see where else an article has been shared? When doing so, you may also see who else has referenced, cited, or linked the article. What do these connections indicate?
Search Google to see where else an article has been shared? When doing so, you may also see who else has referenced, cited, or linked the article. What do these connections indicate?
- Copy-and-paste the article title and search for it in Google.
- Alternatively, highlight the title, and right-click (or ALT + tap) to search in Google.
- You may get more accurate results by adding quotation marks around the title.
Example:
- I found an article "Zuckerberg promises a privacy-friendly Facebook, sort of"
- When searching for the title, you will see the same content on many different websites.
- It turns out the original source is the Associated Press, which creates content that is shared on many news sites.
3) Compare With Articles from Other Sources
3) Compare With Articles from Other Sources
It can be helpful to see how the same content is being covered by other sources. Search for another article on the same topic and compare it with your original article.
It can be helpful to see how the same content is being covered by other sources. Search for another article on the same topic and compare it with your original article.
- This link has information about national newspapers of record.
- Try searching for your topic in these newspapers. You can go directly to their websites to search. Or, in a Google search, type your topic and then paste the following: site:nytimes.com OR site:wsj.com OR site:latimes.com OR site:washingtonpost.com
- Example: If you are researching california wildfires, you could enter the following into your Google search: california wildfires site:nytimes.com OR site:wsj.com OR site:latimes.com OR site:washingtonpost.com
- This site allows you to search for news as it is reported by publications that provide different perspectives.
- Search for your topic and compare coverage from different sites. How do headlines differ? Images? Language? Evidence?
- Keep in mind that all information is reported with bias. Try to identify and account for bias, but evaluate beyond bias. For more information, see What Makes a Trustworthy News Source?
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