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Evaluating Web Sources

Authority:

Who publishes this web page?
What makes them an authority on this subject?
Do they cite their experience/credentials?
Are they accredited or endorsed by a reputable organization?
If they give their educational background, are the educational institutions accredited?
Does the article contains footnotes?
Does material copied from other sources appear to be fully credited?

Scope:

Who is the intended audience?
What time period is covered?
What geographical area is covered?
Is there a cultural (ie, Western European, Christian) bias?
Is this information a subset of a more comprehensive source? If so, who abridged it, and why?

Currency:

What is the date on the web page?
How frequently is it updated?
Is some of the information obviously out of date?

Accuracy:

Are the facts that are known to you reliable?
Is the coverage objective? If not, is the bias clearly stated?

Commercialism:

Is the presenter selling something (a product or an idea)?
Does the page have a corporate sponsor?
Are there any hidden costs?
Do you have to enter personal information in order to proceed?

Developed by Angelynn King, University of Redlands

Maintained by Karen Fischer 1/16/02
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