Young journalists must develop a critical eye for determining website credibility

Anyone and everyone can publish content on the Internet. Therefore, it is essential for young journalists to develop a critical eye when reporting on information found on the Internet.

Don Goble teaches broadcast, technology, multimedia and film at Ladue Horton Watkins High School, St. Louis, Missouri. In his classes, Goble teaches students media literacy skills through ​creation and project-based learning​. When teaching the lesson of determining credibility, Goble said he has students create a short headline newscast.

“In groups of two, students must research real news happening at that time to find stories from a variety of categories: international, national, local, sports, weather,​ and school community,” Goble said.

Goble asks students which websites they should visit first. Gobe said his students typically want to visit CNN.com, MSNBC.com or BBC.com for international news. Goble also advises his students to visit the local television station news websites, local newspapers’ websites, the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and NPR.

After that process, Goble suggests to his students that they consider the following criterion to uncover the credibility of a website:

  • Who is the author?
  • Is the author qualified to write on this topic?
  • Is the information timely?
  • Is factual information clearly ​separated from opinions or speculation?
  • When was the ​article ​published?
  • When was the site last updated​?​
  • Are there errors?
  • Are there obvious biases?​
  • Does the author quote credible sources?
  • Is advertising included on the page?
  • Is the content popular (many likes or tweets on social media)?
  • Can they ​attempt to verify the information using other sources?
  • Is there contact information​/social media presence?​

Goble said once a journalist obtains information, they must be able to cross-check it by finding other online sources that can vouch for or raise questions about that information. Goble teaches his students to call the person who offered the information that was found online to verify or find a credible person who may be able to verify or clarify.

Goble said the biggest thing a journalist can do to avoid being misled is to build relationships.

“We try to show value through our stories to our community so we can build what we call “Centers of Influence,’” he said.

Goble said these “centers” can offer information and a network of trusted people who reside within the communities, businesses or schools that journalists may need for stories.

“These “Centers” may also be experts in their field to answer questions for us, or refer us to individuals who can help with our specific needs,” he said.

Ultimately, Goble said a journalist can avoid being misled by being cautiously aggressive, yet intelligently patient.

For more resources on sorting facts from fiction online, visit the News Literacy Project. Goble also created a free iTunes U course that teaches students to create their own broadcast journalism news package on an iOS device with no accessories. Check out the course here for more information.