Use the tips throughout this LibGuide to check your own claim, or use one of the claims listed below for practice. Remember, fake news articles may fall under multiple categories and might even mix in a few facts amid their falsehoods.
Can you find enough evidence to prove or disprove this claim?
Other tips for fact checking and avoiding fake news
When you open up a news article in your browser, open a second, empty tab. Use that second window to look up claims, author credentials and organizations that you come across in the article.
Fake news spans across all kinds of media - printed and online articles, podcasts, YouTube videos, radio shows, even still images. Be prepared to double-check everything.
Beware of confirmation bias. Just because you might agree with what an article is saying doesn't mean it's true.
As Mad-Eye Moody said in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, "Constant Vigilance!" Always be ready to fact check.
Even the best researchers will be fooled once in a while. If you find yourself fooled by a fake news story, use your experience as a learning tool.
What to think about when thinking about the news
What is the main idea of this article? What is the point this article is trying to make? Was it easy to find? Does the title of the article make sense?
How does this article want me to feel? What kind of language is being used? Are the images positive or negative? Do you see lots of exclamation points and words in bold that make you pay attention to them?
Does this article provide evidence for its claims from good sources? Are the links provided sending you to medical journals, articles in well-researched publications or statistical sites? Or are they sending you to "alternative" sites with little factual information?
Am I able to independently verify the claims in this article? If a claim doesn't have a link in the article, can I find information on it myself? Are all the links simply recycled from one source, or are there multiple tests, surveys, studies or other sources available?
What makes real news real?
Real news is presented by real news sources. Check your news source for a code of ethics or a mission statement.
Real news is written by reporters with degrees in journalism and, often, in the fields in which they write.
The primary goal of real news is to inform. If you’re mad, scared, furious or anxious, you will want to investigate the article’s claims further.
Real news can be verified. You should be able to find reports, statistics and other real news articles that support what you’re reading.
