HTML version

[Home] [Accuracy] [Authority] [Objectivity] [Currency] [Coverage] [Resources] [Worksheets] [Notes]

Evaluating Internet Sources & Sites: a tutorial

Authority

Because publishing on the Web is so easy, determining the author's expertise relevant to the topic covered is essential. Ask yourself the following questions to determine the author's credibility.

1. Do you recognize the author's name?
2. If you don't recognize the name, what type of information is given about the author?
   • Position?
   • Organizational affiliation?
   • E-mail address?
   • Biographical information?
3. Was the site referenced in a document or web site that you trust?

Remember: If the author's name is not evident -- BEWARE! If the author's name is present, sometimes it is difficult to determine the author's credibility. Determine the level of importance the author's expertise is to the overall site.

Choose one of these two sites to evaluate.

Do you consider the author of the site to be an expert of the subject covered?
Why or why not?

Bioeithics.net :: Article Topics: Cloning
[http://www.bioethics.net/topics.php?catId=4]

Cloneaid
[http://www.clonaid.com/index.php]

© Jennifer Sharkey (sharkeyj@purdue.edu), Assistant Professor of Library Science and Information Integration Librarian, Purdue University Libraries
This tutorial may not be altered, changed, or reproduced in any way without the permission of the author.
Created: November 1998; Posted: March 1999; Revised: 13/Dec/2004
Base URL: http://www.lib.purdue.edu/InternetEval/