News
News
A "news" web site's primary purpose is to provide up-to-date information on current political, social, business and/or technology events. Most news sites consist of information consolidated from international and local media organizations, or other organizations that provide reports and commentary on contemporary business, investment, health, and lifestyle information.
Examples . . .
Science - Global Warming: BBC: Global Climate Change, Environmental Media Services
Social Science - Global Security: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, The Global Beat
Humanities - Holocaust: The Holocaust on Trial, Literature of the Holocaust: News
The more you answer "yes," the greater the likelihood that the information is of high quality.
AUTHORITY- Is it clear who is responsible for the contents of the page?
- Is there a link to a page describing the organization and its mission?
- Is there a way of independently verifying the legitimacy of the organization?
- Is contact information available, including mailing address and phone number?
- Does the organization have an established reputation?
- Is it clear who is ultimately responsible for the content of the material?
- Is the organization the holder of the copyright?
- Is the copyright holder an established publisher or organization?
- If the page contains individual articles, is the author(s) identified?
- Are the author's qualifications for writing on this topic available?
- If the author is the holder of the copyright, is it readily identifiable?
- Is the information well written?
- Are the goals of the site clearly identified?
- Are sources for factual information clearly referenced?
- Are there editors monitoring the accuracy of the information published on the site?
- Is the site free of grammatical, spelling, and other typographical errors?
- Are unpublished sources of information clearly identified?
- If information is attributed to an individual, is the identification of the individual clear and unambiguous?
- Are links to other sites provided and are they relevant to the topic?
- If statistical data are used, are they clearly labeled and are the sources referenced?
- Does the page have a time and date of first publication?
- Are revision times and dates provided?
- Is the information frequently updated?
- If links to additional information are provided, are the links evaluated?
- Are the goals of the site clearly identified?
- Is the information free of advertising?
- If advertising is present, is it clearly differentiated from the information content?
- Is factual information kept separate from interpretation?
- Is the text free of emotion and bias?
- Are the editorials and opinion pieces clearly labeled?
- Are multiple points-of-view provided?
- Is information available on how frequently the material is updated?
- Does the site indicate when it was last updated?
- Is there a date on the page to indicate when the page was placed on the Web?
- If the information is also published, does it indicate which edition the information belongs to?
- If it is a video or audio file, does it indicate the date and time the piece was originally broadcast?
- If statistical information is presented, is there an indication of when the information was gathered?
- Are links up-to-date and do they reference the most recent information?
- Are links to additional information active?
- Is the source of information clearly indicated?
- Does the information on the page address all the relevant issues of the topic?
- If there is a published equivalent, does it indicate if the web version is more extensive than the print version?
- If significant topics are left out, are reasons presented for their absence?
- If information is attributed to an individual, is the identification of the individual clear and unambiguous?
Putting it all together . . .
Authority. If the page lists the organization and author of the information, does it provide a mailing address and phone number to contact them, and . . .
Accuracy. If the page lists the organization's and author's credentials and the page is properly referenced, and . . .
Objectivity. If the page provides accurate information and an objective assessment of the information, and . . .
Currency. If the page provides current information that is regularly updated, and . . .
Coverage. If the page is complete with few information gaps and if attributions to information are clear and unambiguous, then . . .
You may have a higher quality news web page.
