16 Fact-Checking and Knowledge Checks
What is fact-checking?
Fact-checking is the process of verifying the factual accuracy of information to prevent inaccurate content from being spread or published.
Why fact-checking?
When you find a source of information, how do you know if it’s true? How can you be sure that it is a reliable, trustworthy, and effective piece of evidence for your research?
This section will introduce you to a set of strategies you can use to quickly and effectively verify your sources based on the approach taken by professional fact-checkers. Fact-checking is a form of critical, investigative inquiry that can minimize your own susceptibility to misinformation and disinformation and help you to avoid spreading it to others.
As an introduction, please watch the following video, which discusses why fact-checking information is vital for filtering out bad information. How can you know what information you can trust? Below are some reputable fact-checking sites.
Fact-Checking Sites
The following organizations are generally regarded as
reputable fact-checking organizations focused on U.S.
national news:
Respected specialty sites cover niche areas such as climate or
celebrities. Here are a few examples:
There are many fact-checking sites outside the U.S. Here is a
small sample:
Knowledge Checks
Sources
This section includes material from the source book, The Insiders: Information Literacy for Okies Everywhere, as well as the following:
“Fact-Checking Sites” by Mike Caulfield, found in Web Literacy for Student Fact-Checkers, licensed as CC BY 4.0, as well as the following: “Inform Your Thinking: Episode 7 – Fact Checking.” YouTube, uploaded by OkStateLibrary, 3 August 2018. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
Fact-checking is the process of verifying the factual accuracy of information to prevent inaccurate content from being spread or published.
