Jennifer Clagett
SLM 521
Evaluating Websites
A Checklist for Evaluating Websites
Use the following checklist to evaluate whether the websites you use for research purposes are either good or bad sources of information. Remember, you should only use those sources which are credible and reliable. The questions below will help guide you in determining which ones meet the criteria.
What does the URL say
about the site?
1. The URL can help you establish where the information comes from.
2. Does the URL indicate that this might be a personal page? (Look for ~, %, users, members, or people.)
3. Does the URL indicate that this is a government or educational institution? (.gov, .mil, or .edu)
4. Does the URL indicate that the site is an organization? (.org)
Who wrote the page?
1. Was the page written by an author, organization, or corporation?
2. Is there an "About Us" "Company Info" or "Profile" section that describes the author(s) at length?
What are the author's
credentials?
1. What makes the author or organization qualified to write on the topic?
2. What kind of education or background on the topic does the author have?
Is there any indication
that the page contains quality information?
1. Are there footnotes or links to other resources?
2. Does the author cite additional work of quality?
What do other people say
about the site?
1. Are there links on the site that specifically speak to the author’s credentials? For example, if the author has won awards, does the site link to evidence of award receipts?
2. Is the site listed in a search engine or on linked to another site that contains reliable information?
Is the page current?
1. When was the page last updated? If you cannot locate the date of the last update, you should probably use a different site. Similarly, if the page has not been updated recently, the information may be outdated, and unreliable.
Who is the publisher of
the page?
1. Is the page published by a single author? If the page was created by one author, check to be sure that this is not simply a homepage, or a fan site.
2. Is the page published by an organization or business? Is that organization/business credible? Have they spent the time to edit the information on the page?
What is the purpose of
the page?
1. Is the page meant as a satire? Be careful that you don’t mistake information given in jest for the real thing.
2. Who is the intended audience of the page?
3. Does the author intend the page to be for informational purposes, a rant, a reflection, etc. When in doubt, check the author’s intentions in a “About Me” link.
Examples:
Suppose you were trying to get information about the wildly popular Twilight series, and its author, Stephenie Meyer. In your search you come across the sites below. Which one is credible?
http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/
http://twilightsource.com/
The first site is a credible, reliable source. As the name suggests, this is the official website for Stephenie Meyer. Scroll to the bottom of the home page, to check that this site and its information belongs to the author herself, and is maintained by Seth, her little brother. He maintains that the information on the site has been checked by Stephenie and/or her publicist.
The second source is a fan site written by college students. It may look as though this site is the real deal, with videos and updates of the latest and greatest Twilight information, but all you have to do is check the “About Us” site to see that the students who wrote the site are not in any way affiliated with Stephenie Meyer or anyone officially connected to the books and films.