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Fullerton College Library

History of the United States

This guide is an entryway to the library's resources on American history.

Online Verification Skills for Website Evaluation

Through NewsWise, Mike Caulfield has created four videos on evaluating online web sites. Currently, these methods are recommended and considered more effective than just using checklists so make sure you view these short videos.

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Mike Caulfield is currently the director of blended and networked learning at Washington State University Vancouver, and head of the Digital Polarization Initiative of the American Democracy Project, a multi-school pilot to change the way that online media literacy is taught. 

(CIVIX is a Canadian "non-partisan, national registered charity dedicated to strengthening democracy through civic education". NewsWise is the product of a partnership between CIVIX and the Canadian Journalism Foundation, with the support of the Google.org Charitable Giving Fund of Tides Foundation.)

5 W's of Web Evaluation

  1. Before evaluating an article or news, investigate the original source by using the technique described in the videos to find external, unbiased information to gauge whether or not the source is reputable. For example, if you find an article in the New York Times, you'll want to evaluate the publication, the New York Times. Find out what outside sources say about the publisher or organization by doing an Internet search.
  2. Move on to the checklist to review the specific article if it seems like the source is reputable. 

Web Evaluation Tips