Skip to Main Content

FYS 1068: Skepticism in the Information Age

Resources and information relevant to the topics covered in FYS 1068.

Fact-checking sites

Tips

What to do:

1.     Read/watch/listen very widely.

Some generally reliable sources are (some of which require a subscription): 

as well as various local sources.

2.     Recognize that even typically reliable sources, whether mainstream or alternative, corporate or nonprofit, rely on particular media frames to report stories and select stories based on different notions of newsworthiness.

3.     Be critical of the sources we share and engage with on social media.

What to avoid:

“Fake, false, regularly misleading sites” which rely on “outrage” using distorted headlines and decontextualized or dubious information in order to generate likes, shares, and profits” (examples: Politicalo, AmericanNews.com)​

Websites that may circulate misleading and/or potentially unreliable information (examples: ConsciousLifeNews.com, CountdownToZeroTime.com)

These websites sometimes use clickbait-y headlines and social media descriptions (examples: BipartisanReport.com, TheFreeThoughtProject.com)

Purposefully fake satire/comedy sites that can offer critical commentary on politics and society, but have the potential to be shared as actual/literal news (examples: Christwire.org, TheOnion.com

Content created by Sarah Cohn, Instructional Services Librarian, scohn@pace.edu

Activity

Verify the information contained in these articles. Is it true, false, fake, partly true?

Alliance for securing democracy

Verifying citation impact