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Honors Colloquium: Evaluating Information

Last Updated: Feb 19, 2024 12:07 PM

infographic outlining the tenets of civic online reasoning, with blue and black text on a white background that reads: when you come across information online, ask yourself: who's behind the information, what's the evidence, what do other sources say

Stanford History Education Group. (n.d.). Civic online reasoning classroom poster [Infographic].https://sheg.stanford.edu/

Evaluating Information

Considerations:

  • Authority

    • Who is behind the information?
      • Author
      • Publisher
    • What is their intention in publishing this information?
    • Are you including underrepresented perspectives? (Especially when the research focuses on them)
  • Types of Sources

    • Purpose of the source
      • To inform
      • To entertain
      • To persuade
    • Where does the source fall on the cycle of information?
      • Hours after event: social media posts, breaking news bulletins
      • Days/weeks after event: newspapers
      • Months after event: magazines
      • Months-years after event: journal articles, books
  • Date of Publication

    • Consider your topic
      • How current does your research need to be?
      • Have research practices in regard to your topic recently changed?