Learn how to evaluate your sources.

1. News vs Fake News
Evaluating Information Sources
#uwslibTalks
Inspiring “sessions”for studentsand staff shared by expertlibrarians.

2. Fake News?
False stories that appear
to be news, spread on the
internet or using other media,
usually created to influence
political views or as a joke.

3. Spotting Fake News

4. Ask 4 Basic Questions
What? Who? Why? When?

5. What? / Relevance
Is it relevant to
my topic?
NO
Just stop right now
and don’t waste
time reading
irrelevant
information.

6. What / Relevance
Is it relevant to
my topic?
Yes
Continue but
think about…

7. Who? / Authority
Can you identify
an author or
organisation?
No
Just stop right
now and look
elsewhere!

8. Who? / Authority
Can you identify
an author or
organisation?
Yes
Continue but
think about…

9. Why? / Objectivity
Does it provide
unbiased
information?
No
Just stop right
now and…
If you use the
information, present
differentsides of the
argument.
If you need unbiased
information, look
elsewhere!

10. Why? / Objectivity
Does it provide
unbiased
information?
Yes
Continue but
think about…

11. When? / Timeliness
Is it sufficiently
up-to-date?
No
If it is not
current enough,
look elsewhere!

12. When? / Timeliness
Is it sufficiently
up-to-date?
Yes Use it!

13. Evaluating Information
It is all about determining and assessing the
quality of the information you find!

14. Fact checking links
Full fact <https://fullfact.org/> - the UK’s independent fact checkingcharity
FactCheck.org<https://www.factcheck.org/> - a project ofthe AnnenbergPublic PolicyCenter
Politifact <http://www.politifact.com/> - Pulitzer Prize-winningfact-check portal
Snopes <http://www.snopes.com/> - Award-winningfact-checkingportal
Hoax-Slayer http://www.hoax-slayer.net/about-this-blog/ - portal combatingemail andInternet hoaxes

15. Image & video attributions
Wokandapix (2017)Fake News [Digital Image inJPGformat].Available:https://pixabay.com/en/fake-news-media-
disinformation-2355686/ [Accessed: 1st August 2017].
How to Spot Fake News [IFLAinfographicbasedon FactCheck.org’s 2016 article ‘How to Spot Fake News’inJPG
format,Online] Available: https://www.ifla.org/publications/node/11174[Accessed: 1st August 2017].
Library at La Trobe University (2010) Why Can’t I Just Google? 3.12 mins. [Online] Available:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N39mnu1Pkgw [Accessed: 1st August 2017].

16. References
Albright, J. (2017) Welcome to the Era of Fake News. Media andCommunication. [Online] Vol. 5(2),pp. 87-89.
Available: https://uws-primo.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/primo-
explore/fulldisplay?docid=TN_doaj_soai_doaj_org_article_fc656f1a349f422f94e7fae223d7e5d3&context=PC&vid=4
4PAI_V1&search_scope=Blended&tab=blended&lang=en_US [Accessed: 1st August 2017].
Cambridge Dictionary. (2017)[Online] Available: http://dictionary.cambridge.org/ [Accessed: 1st August 2017]
Grix, J. and Watkins,G. (2010) InformationSkills: Finding andUsing the Right Resources.Basingstoke: Palgrave
Macmillan.
Hosier, A., Bullis, D.,Bernnard,D.,Bobish, G., Holden,I.,Hecker, J., Loney,T. and Jacobson,T. (2014)The Information
Literacy User’s Guide: AnOpen, Online Textbook. [Online] Available: http://textbooks.opensuny.org/the-information-
literacy-users-guide-an-open-online-textbook/ [Accessed: 1st August 2017].
Hunt, E. (2016) What is Fake News?How to Spot It andWhat YouCanDo to StopIt. The Guardian. [Online] 17
December. Available: https://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/dec/18/what-is-fake-news-pizzagate[Accessed: 1st
August 2017].
Kiely, E. and Robertson,L. (2016) How to Spot Fake News [Online] Available:
http://www.factcheck.org/2016/11/how-to-spot-fake-news/[Accessed: 1st August 2017].

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