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HUM 1020 (Montione): Modern Era Presentation: 4. Credible Web Sources

Credible Sources

Credibility usually does not have a yes or no answer. More often it is a continuum, i.e. some sources are more credible than others.

In the academic world the most credible sources are scholarly journals (also referrred to as refereed, academic, or peer-reviewed journals). These are original research articles, written by experts, that are reviewed by other experts (a process called peer review) before they are published. These sources are relatively rare on the Internet, and often charge for access when found.

Sources that are not scholarly are considered popular sources. Some of their characteristics are:

  • written for the general public
  • catchy titles
  • ads

Within this category, some sources are more credible than others. The more credible ones feature:

  • review by an editor before publication
  • authors with some expertise in the subject
  • publishers that specialize in the subject
  • sources for their information

 

Web Site Evaluation Rubric

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