LibGuides: Fake News: Frauds and Fakes on the Internet: Checking Facts

Places to Check the Authenticity of Web Sites

AllSides
Provides balanced news coverage as well as media bias ratings.
FactCheck
This authoritative site from the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania also referred to as the Annenberg Political FactCheck “monitors the factual accuracy of what is said by major US political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews, and news releases.” Original articles analyze and offer commentary about politicians’ claims and statements. Individuals can browse by date or search by keywords to access the last four years of the Ask FactCheck archives. If the answer cannot be found using these archives, individuals can ask their questions directly using the AskFactCheck e-mail form. This site also features vid-casts and a Fact of the Day section.
Real or Satire
Type in a URL (web address) and these folks will tell you if it is legitimate.
Snopes.com
This rumor-busting site originated in 1995 with David Mikkelson’s interest in researching urban legends. With more than 20 years of professional research experience and a small staff of investigators, Mikkelson produces work that is reliable and backed up with facts. Is that story that just went viral really true? Are left-handed people now eligible for disability benefits under the “Justice for Dexterously Challenged Act”? Search the site by keyword, browse the list of 25 top trending legends, or peruse the archive by topic.

How to spot “fake news”
Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library has published a page on spotting fake news
The story behind Jar’Edo Wens, the longest-running hoax in Wikipedia history
From Washington Post.
Museum of Hoaxes
Covers internet and pre-internet hoaxes.
5 Tips for Spotting Fake News
From Christianity Today.

Another set of criteria is the CRAAP test

[See the LibGuide page on Fake News - Librarians at Work for more information.]

Courtesy of RADCAB.com

[Note clicking on the words in the left column will take you to the RADCAB page for that criterion.]

Relevancy	Is the information relevant to the question at hand? Am I on the right track?
Appropriateness	Is the information suitable to my age and core values?
Detail	How much information do I need? Is the depth of coverage adequate?
Currency	When was the information published or last updated?
Authority	Who is the author of the information? What are his or her qualifications?
Bias	Why was this information written? Was it written to inform me, persuade me, entertain me, or sell me something?