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Facts Matter: Solving the Problem of Fake News: How can you be a better information consumer?

How can you be a better information consumer?

	Remember that the evaluation "checklists" that you might have learned, like CRAAP or PROVEN, are good starting points. They exist to make you aware of the aspects of an article you should evaluate. But, they encourage you to read vertically (stay on the original article without opening new tabs to verify facts) and that is not enough to identify well-constructed disinformation. Successful fact-checkers have many tabs open, in addition to the original article, in order to follow links, verify facts and check credentials so they don't waste time with fake news.
	Make a conscious effort to avoid cognitive biases: Read beyond the headline/caption Be persistent (always look up author/organization credentials, follow all links and verify "facts" with outside sources) Be willing to amend your views or change your mind when presented with verifiable facts Don't be influenced by celebrity, non-expert names/endorsements and number of retweets/thumbs-up
	Use additional tools to verify "facts." Some good examples are: Fact Checkers Factcheck.org FactCheck.org fact-checks claims made by presidents, members of Congress, presidential candidates, and other members of the political arena by reviewing TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews, and news releases. PolitiFact: Fact-checking US politics Politifact fact-checks claims by politicians at the federal, state, and local level, as well as political parties, PACs, and advocacy groups and ates the accuracy of these claims on its Truth-O-Meter. Snopes Snopes.com was originally founded to uncover rumors that had begun cropping up in chain emails and message boards and is now highly regarded for its fact-checking. Verification Handbook: An ultimate guideline on digital age sourcing Handbook is a step by step guide for verifying digital content initially created for reporters and emergency responders. Verify Webpage History Internet Wayback Machine Web archive that captures websites over time and can be used to verify content history and edits. Check Author's Credentials LinkedIn A professional networking website where you can look up the authors of articles and books to see if they're credible. Verify Images Google Reverse Image Search Upload or use a URL image to check the content history or to see similar images on the web. Google Street View Identifying the location of a suspicious photo or video is a crucial part of the verification process. TinEye Reverse Image Search Upload or enter an image URL to the search bar and see a list of related sites. Has plug-ins for your browser.
	Seek out opposing viewpoints from sources like www.allsides.com
	Read Laterally!

Identifying Fake News Activity

We will divide into 3 groups. Each group will be given two resources to evaluate and your job is:

Identify which, if either, resource is reliable. It might be both, one or neither.
Record how you made your evaluation. What did you do to judge each resource?

Group 1: Evaluate the following resources:


https://doi.org/10.1542/peo_document339	https://acpeds.org/position-statements/bullying-at-school-never-acceptable

Group 2: Evaluate the following resources:


https://minimumwage.com/	https://www.thebalance.com/us-minimum-wage-what-it-is-history-and-who-must-comply-3306209

Group 3: Evaluate the following resources:

Group 4: Evaluate the following resources:

Article Credibility Exercise

Librarian

She/her

Email Me

Contact:

Karoline Manny
600 West Walnut Street
Danville, KY 40422

859.238.5299

Subjects: Anthropology, Children's Literature, Copyright, Economics, Education, Environmental Studies, History, International Relations, Law - U.S., Politics, Reference, Religion, Sociology, Spanish

SOC 110

Session Worksheet