TTAAL: It's Alive
Evaluating Sources: How to spot fake information, some things to consider:
- Who or what is the source of information?
- What is this person or organization about, or what do they stand for?
- Is this a trustworthy source? How do you know?
- Does the author include a bibliography listing sources that informed his or her writing?
- Are those credible sources, and how do you know?
Evaluating Images: Analyze images and consider the answer to these questions:
- Is the source of this image trustworthy? Why or why not?
- To what degree does this image (or set of images) support the information included in the text?
- What might not be shown in this image, and how does that influence my thinking?
Evaluating the Author’s Purpose and Potential Biases: What is the author's intent and choices (remember the author's purpose may be multifaceted, to Inform, Entertain, Persuade)
- Is the author trying to entertain you? What is the same or different?
- Is the author trying to inform you? What is the same or different?
- Is the author trying to persuade you? How can you tell?
- Does the author have more than one purpose in writing this article?
- What evidence can you provide to explain your thinking?
Fact Checking: Trust your gut. If you think it is unbelievable it just might be. Note unbelievable facts and do some fact checking to verify.
Activity: Go sleuthing for the true facts.
Using your assigned story, mark the facts from the story that seem too strange to be true. Then, use the resources provided and get started on a mission to find a second reliable source that confirms the fact(s) as true information.
TIPS for your searches:
- Practice selecting keywords and phrases that will help narrow the results.
- Evaluate the credibility of the web sites returned in the search. Review the prompts practiced in the Evaluating Sources section above.
- Look for sites with .edu, .org, or .gov extensions. In fact, include them in the search. Note: While these may be helpful, in some cases this information may be misleading as well.
Be a critical consumer — as well as producer — of information. Before you share something on the internet or on social media, remember:
- Be vigilant about fact checking what they read/view and what they produce.
- Identify more than one source with the same claim.
- Cite your sources when producing work.
- Weigh the value or potential impact of what you choose to “share.”
Two frequently referenced sites for fact checking are https://www.factcheck.org/ and https://www.snopes.com/. However, depending on the kind of information being investigated, these sites may not have straightforward answers, and it may be necessary to dig a little deeper.