Web sites:Web sites:

Reliability & Authenticity:

Issues & Resources

I. The problem: the Internet is

Relatively new & untested information and communication medium

Ubiquitous & pervasive in both authorship and audience

Unregulated and unregulatable

II. Examples of the problem:

New Hartford, MinnesotaNew Hartford, Minnesota

Feline Reactions to Bearded MenFeline Reactions to Bearded Men

Human rights in Tunisia websites:Human rights in Tunisia websites:• Amnesty International’sAmnesty International’s (http://www.amnesty.org/tunisia)http://www.amnesty.org/tunisia)• Tunisian government supporters’Tunisian government supporters’

(http://www.amnesty-tunisia.org/)http://www.amnesty-tunisia.org/)

III. 7 basic website purposes:

personal/vanity pages promotional for sales current or news sites informational (on a topic or hobby) persuasive as propaganda instructional registrational/data gathering

IV. Contexts of website evaluation:

Header

body

footer

navigation

V. Five evaluative guidelines:

Authority Currency Coverage Objectivity Accuracy

Authority

Who is responsible for the page?

What are their qualifications and associations, and can you verify them?

Authority

Check the footer for • name of the web page author • his/her credentials and title • organizational affiliation

Is the information verifiable?

Currency

Are dates clear when the website was first created and edited?

Currency

Check the footer for when • the website was created• when last edited

Check the content for • news items, • indications the site is actively maintained,• acknowledgements/responses to visitors

Coverage

What is the focus of the site?

Are there clear headings to illustrate an outline of the content? Is the navigation within the website clear?

Coverage

Check the header for a clear title and web site description

Check the content for headings and keywords

Check the navigation to verify it reflects the content outline within the web site

Objectivity

Are biases clearly stated?

Are affiliations clear?

ObjectivityCheck the content for • statement of purpose• type of web site and potential audience• outside links external to the website • graphics and cues for affiliations

Check the header/footer and URL/domain (.gov/.com/.edu) to determine organizational source of website and how this reflects on content type

Accuracy

Are sources of information and factual data listed, and available for cross-checking?

AccuracyCheck the content for • spelling and grammar• accuracy and consistency of facts

Check external web site rating services as Britannica, Cyberlinks, et al

AccuracyCompare content with

• website’s external links

• your independent research– on the Internet– bibliographic databases & electronic indexes (i..e ERIC)– books– print & on-line journals

VI. Bibliography

Webtruth

http://www.iss.stthomas.edu/webtruth