Librarians from the Research Engagement and Scholarship (RES) department are here to help.
Contact an RES Librarian:
David Bell
Steve Brantley
Kirstin Duffin
Michele McDaniel
Amy Odwarka
Examples of Websites:
Audience: |
General public; children to senior citizens; knowledgeable layperson; scholars; anyone |
|---|---|
Coverage: |
Popular topics; personal information; current affairs; government information; research; scholarly information; fun and games; and more... |
Written By: |
Anyone: professional journalists; children; teenagers (high school students); members of general public; scholars and researchers; poets and writers of fiction; essayists; college students; advocates and activists. |
Timeliness: |
Varies wildly: may be very current coverage or very out-of-date information, or undated. |
Length: |
Can vary greatly. |
Content: |
Anything; general discussion; editorial opinion; graphics; photographs; art; advertisements; statistical analysis; detailed analysis; fact; fiction; misinformation; disinformation; propaganda. |
Bias: |
Depends: May reflect the editorial bias of the author; may be objective or neutral; may be geared for academic or professional audiences; may be unsupported personal opinion. |
To Locate Websites, use a general search engine like Google, Bing, Duck Duck Go, et cetera
When evaluating web resources, there are many questions you should try to answer about the source of information.
1. Accuracy -- Is the information factual and accurate?
2. Authority -- Is it clear who the author is?
3. Content/Objectivity -- What is the purpose of the page or site?
4. Currency -- How recent is the information? Can you tell when the information was first created or last updated?
5. Documentation/Coverage -- Does the page verify or document it's claims?
