A lesson about evaluating sources and their credibility.

1. Let’s play a game.
Are these sources
(in)CREDIBLE?
Or not credible…
Robyn Reid • Social Sciences Librarian
Texas Christian University
r.reid@tcu.edu

2. (in)CREDIBLE?
Or not credible…
I’m working on my
speech about the
cello, and looking for
information about the
history of the
instrument.
Is this source
(in)CREDIBLE?
Or not credible…
www.greatviolins.com/musings-on-the-cello

3. (in)CREDIBLE?
Or not credible…
While this source DOES have
some information about the
history of the cello, there
are NO WORKS CITED. Based
on other content on this
site, this is a violin shop.
They WANT TO SELL me
instruments. As instrument
sellers, they may have SOME
credibility, but I bet I can
find a better source. For me
this source is:
NOT CREDIBLE
www.greatviolins.com/musings-on-the-cello

4. (in)CREDIBLE?
Or not credible…
I’m working on my speech about the cello, and looking for
information about the history of the instrument.
Is this source (in)CREDIBLE?
Or not credible…

5. (in)CREDIBLE?
Or
not credible…
I found this source on Google. When I look at it more closely, I find
out it has a REFERENCE LIST. This author USES FOOTNOTES THAT CITE
BOOKS and other sources of information to tell me how she found
the history of the cello. When I LOOKED THE AUTHOR UP on Google, I
found out that she has a Master’s in Cello Performance and is a
curator of the Duke University Musical Instrument Collections. SHE
IS AN EXPERT on the cello! For me, this source is: (in)CREDIBLE!

6. (in)CREDIBLE?
Or not credible…
I’m working on my speech about the cello, and looking for
information about the history of the instrument.
Is this source (in)CREDIBLE?
Or not credible…
http://www.cello.org/cnc/article.htm

7. (in)CREDIBLE?
Or not credible…
This source is from an organization called the INTERNET CELLO
SOCIETY, which might be a credible source of information. When I
read the article, I see that IT HAS REFERENCES. However, the article
was WRITTEN IN 1998. While the speech I’m giving is about the
history of cello, I’m concerned that this article is not as current as
I want it to be. I looked up the author, and it turns out this essay
was WRITTEN BY A 12 YEAR-OLD. It is the fact that a 12 year-old wrote
this that concerns me most.
For me this source is: NOT CREDIBLE
http://www.cello.org/cnc/article.htm

8. (in)CREDIBLE?
Or not credible…
I’m working on my speech about the cello, and looking for
information about the history of the instrument.
Is this source (in)CREDIBLE?
Or not credible…

9. (in)CREDIBLE?
Or not credible…
I was not seeing any other links on the internet that looked
helpful, so I tried my search in FROGSCHOLAR. I found this book. It
was published in 1999. When I read more information about it, I
find that all the authors are SCHOLARS OR PERFORMERS. They are
EXPERTS! I am concerned about the TIMELINESS OR CURRENCY of the
information in this book. However, the book contains exactly the
kind of information I need for my speech, and for history topics,
the timeliness of a source may not matter as much. For me, this
source is: (in)CREDIBLE!

10. Thanks for playing!
Now, go find your own
(in)CREDIBLE
sources!
Robyn Reid
Social Sciences Librarian
Texas Christian University
r.reid@tcu.edu