Navigating Digital Information #4

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"With ​

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, or leaving a site to find out what others say about it, you can learn who that someone or group of someones is. "

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"When I say ​

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, I mean one's recognized knowledge or expertise on a topic."

Open Ended

What is a topic you would like to become an authority on? What will you do to become an authority on that topic? (The only incorrect answer is "I don't know/care/etc."

While using lateral reading techniques to investigate a source's authority, you want to consider several factors:

• the author or authors' professional background

• the process they used to produce that information

• the systems that are in place to catch mistakes and correct them.

Multiple Choice

"An author's professional or educational background can indicate whether they are actually qualified to speak knowledgeably about a topic."

What do you think "qualified" means?

• Having moderate views that are generally agreeable to everyone.

• Having the skill, knowledge, or ability necessary for a task or topic.

Multiple Choice

Experts are always right.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Experts are more likely to be right about their area of expertise than an average person.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Which is a more reliable source on climate change?

• a scientist who has published studies of climate change in prominent academic journals

• a blogger with no formal science training

Multiple Choice

"Another good indicator of whether a source is reputable is the process that source used to produce or gather information."

What do you think reputable means?

• extremely distasteful, unacceptable.

• well-respected, honorable

Multiple Choice

Which is an example of the process a source used to gather their information?

• A reporter talking to protestors to write an article about the protest.

• A professor giving a lecture about the theory of relativity.

• A student writing a paper about how they spent the previous summer.

• A blogger getting into an argument with someone in their comments about their favorite beauty product.

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The system in place to ​

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is just as important as the process a source uses to collect information.

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"So, in addition to varying backgrounds and processes for gathering information, every source also had its own ​

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or point of view."

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​

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means favoring something in a way that's unfair.

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"Rather than dismiss a source because their background might make them supposedly biased, use the knowledge you learn about them to ​

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."

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"If a piece is marked opinion or analysis or perspective or viewpoint, it is meant to be ​

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, not just informative."

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"I am the world's leading Mountain Goats expert... is a good example of ​

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."

Open Ended

When you see an interesting headline online, what do you do to determine if it's accurate? Answer with at least 3 complete sentences.