LibGuides: ENGL 1020: Conspiracy Theories (Shifferd): Evaluating & Fact Checking

Evaluating Sources for Credibility

"Evaluating Sources for Credibility." North Carolina State University Libraries, published on YouTube 9 June 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLTOVoHbH5c.
CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0 US license

Fact Checking Sites

Fact-checking websites can help you investigate claims to help you determine whether what you hear or read is true. These resources can help you determine the legitimacy of a claim, but even fact-checking websites should be examined critically.

FactCheck.org
A project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center that checks the accuracy of political statements, news, and claims
PolitiFact
Run by the Tampa Bay Times (which is owned by journalism school the Poynter Institute), this site checks and ranks political claims
Snopes.com
This site, which has operated since 1995, fact-checks urban legends, rumors, and news
The Poynter Institute / Fact-Checking Resources
The Poynter Institute serves as the world’s leading resource for journalists to engage and inform the public in democratic societies.
Media Bias/Fact Check
Aims to call biased or deceptive news and media practices
Washington Post Fact Checker
Fact checks political and governmental topics
LinkedIn
This professional networking site can be used to check the qualifications and expertise of authors

Try It Yourself!

Factitious
Curious how well you spot fake news? Test your skill with this game, from American University.

Stay Alert for Fake News

Fake news isn't always easy to spot. Be prepared to fact-check claims that you come across, and pay attention to where the information is coming from.

Use the tips on this page to learn how to identify bias as well as how to evaluate news articles and sites.

How to Spot Fake News

CRAAP* Test

CRAAP Test
If you would like a copy of the CRAAP Test, click the link for the PDF document.

Other Fact Checking Tools

Hoaxy
Not a fact-checking site, Hoaxy is a visualization tool that shows the path of fake news as it spreads

Take a Deeper Dive with MediaWell

MediaWell
An initiative of the Social Science Research Council, MediaWell curates research and news on digital disinformation and misinformation under (12) topics including Election Interference, How Misinformation Spreads, Regulation and Policy, Credibility and Trust, Algorithms and Automation, and more. Features news, Live Research Reviews, Expert Reflections, a Scholars Database describing research and active projects, and a Citations Library hosted by Zotero.