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Evaluating Sources: Evaluating Websites

This guide will help you learn how to evaluate different types of sources.

Evaluating Websites

The CRAAP Test applied to websites

websites can be difficult to evaluate

C: Currency

Currency

Date of Article or Webpage: Some topics, such as those in the health sciences or current events, require current information. Other subjects, such as geology, value older material as well as current.

The date on web article is usually located under the article title or look for a copyright date at the bottom of the webpage.

Know the time needs of your topic and examine the timeliness of the article; is it:

  • up-to-date,
  • out-of-date, or
  • timeless / current has no impact on information

A: Accuracy

Accuracy

How to determine if the information is correct: Become your own fact-checker. Look for:

  • facts and statistics that are documented (referenced) and originate from high-quality sources
  • information that is verified or found in other sources
  • is the page well-written 
  • author and publication information that is easy to find and their authority is easy to determine

Online fact-checking sites can be great tools to help determine the accuracy of a source, claim, or statement.

R: Relevance

Relevance

Does this website relate to my thesis statement or general topic? Information on a webpage is not going to be helpful if it does not address the topic at hand. Ask, "does this webpage provide new information"? If it is useful, does it:

  • support or refute an argument
  • provide well researched, detailed information
  • address a topic from a certain point of view or timeframe

P: Purpose

Purpose

What type of website is this? News, commentary/opinion, organization, government, personal, commercial?

What is the Purpose?

  • inform? For example: credible news sources, open source scholarly sites, government sites
  • persuade? For example: some organizational sites, bias news sites, personal sites
  • entertain? For example:  humor, gossip, social media
  • teach how to do something? For example: ehow.com, online tutorials, instructional sites
  • give an overview? For example: news sties, topical sites, wikipedia

A: Authority

Authority

Who is the author & do they have authority (knowledge/experience) to write on the topic: Is the author an expert in this field? Can you easily find information and credentials about the author? Is information or bias about the publisher transparent? What else has he/she/the publisher written?  Places to look for this information are:

  • "About Us" on the webpage
  • Click on the author's name, if applicable
  • Google/web search the author AND the website
  • Look at the URL: .org/.gov/.edu/.com