Evaluating News Sources
With the amount of information available to us, it can be challenging to know what is real, accurate news and what is fake, inaccurate news.
While reading an article online or in print consider these questions:
Credibility: Who is the author? Is he/she an authority on the subject?
Accuracy: Does the information on the site agree with other sources?
Reasonableness: What bias does the author, host or sponsor appear to have? Is the information provided balanced?
Support (factual support) How many sources support the resource? Is there a works cited?
Ways to check on the CARS of an article:
Factcheck.org a reliable organization that answers frequently asked questions, as well as archived questions. In addition, there is a place for you to ask a question about an article you read.
Snopes.com “the definitive Internet reference source for urban legends, folklore, myths, rumors, and misinformation.”
Politifact.com "PolitiFact is a fact-checking website that rates the accuracy of claims by elected officials and others who speak up in American politics. PolitiFact is run by editors and reporters from the Tampa Bay Times, an independent newspaper in Florida"
