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Fake News, or Evaluating News Sources
What is it, how to tell, and how to stop it!
Fact checking news articles and political claims
- Factcheck.orgCreated by the Annenberg Public Policy Center to fact check political claims.
- PolitifactThe Pulitzer Prize-winning Politifact researches the claims of politicians and checks their accuracy.
- SnopesOne of the oldest debunking sites on the Internet, Snopes.com focuses on urban legends, news stories and memes. the also cite their sources at the end of each debunking.
- Washington Post FactcheckerWhile focused primarily on political facts, it covers specific claims in-depth with plenty of cross-referencing.
- AFP FactcheckEmploys digital verification specialists around the world to monitor online content in local languages, from Amharic to Hindu, Mandarin or Malaysian. They take into account local contexts including culture and politics. Stories are edited by multilingual editors working in regional hubs.
- AllSidesAllSides™ is a media solutions company that strengthens our democratic society with balanced news, media bias ratings, diverse perspectives, and real conversation. We expose people to information and ideas from all sides of the political spectrum so they can better understand the world — and each other.
Satire - sites intended to be ironic or exaggerated
The goal of these sites is to use satire to expose, criticize, or ridicule ideas or human behaviors. They do not intend to be "real" news and make no claims that their is any truth or fact behind their stories. Unlike "fake" news sites, the purpose is to entertain, not to deliberately mislead.
- The OnionOne of America's premier parodic news sites.
- The New Yorker Borowitz ReportFrom humorist Andy Borowitz, a column parodizing and commenting on current news trends
- National ReportFake. Fake. Fake. Articles are intentionally subtle satire that parodies real news in a way that seems designed to trick its readers.
- Weekly World NewsSupernatural news stories that often seem to have a comedic intent, WWN touts its outlandish stories as real news, but should not be taken seriously.
- Empire NewsFrom their About page: Empire News is intended for entertainment purposes only. Our website and social media content uses only fictional names, except in cases of public figure and celebrity parody or satirization. Any other use of real names is accidental and coincidental.
Identifying Hoax Sites
- Real or Satire?The internet is full of fake news websites and people that fall for fake news. Use this handy tool for quick analysis of some of the biggest satire websites.
- FacecrooksAbout: Our mission is to monitor and chronicle the seedy, unsavory and sinister side of social media. We provide current news, educational resources and alerts on social media privacy, safety and scams.
- Truth or FictionA non-partisan website where Internet users can quickly and easily get information about eRumors, fake news, disinformation, warnings, offers, requests for help, myths, hoaxes, virus warnings, and humorous or inspirational stories that are circulated by email.
- HoaxyVisualizes the spread of claims and related fact checking online. A claim may be a fake news article, hoax, rumor, conspiracy theory, satire, or even an accurate report. Anyone can use Hoaxy to explore how claims spread across social media.
- The Daily Dot : Fake News Sites ListNOTE: This list is not exhaustive and may be updated at any time. A compiled list of fake news sites to watch out for.
Images - tools for determining authenticity
- Google Reverse Image SearchWithin the Google images search box is a camera icon that can be used to reverse search an image. Upload an image or paste the URL where it appears and a Google search will show you where else the image has appeared. This tool can be used to trace back an image to its original source and verify if the current use is an accurate representation of the image's context.
- Veracity (iPhone/iPad App)For Apple devices, the Veracity app allows you to perform reverse image search on any image, otherwise known as "search by image".
News outlet codes of ethics and standards
One of the ways in which a news source demonstrates its authenticity and responsibility to its readers is through a publicly accessible code of ethics or standards. A sample of various codes, mission statements and ethics handbooks are listed below.
- NPR Ethics HandbookThe mission of NPR, in partnership with its member stations, is to create a more informed public, one challenged and invigorated by a deeper understanding and appreciation of events, ideas, and culture within the United States and across the globe. To this end, NPR reports, produces, acquires and distributes news, information and other content that meet the highest standards of public service in journalism and cultural expression.
- American Society of Newspaper Editors Code of EthicsA comprehensive list of codes of ethics from 47 different news outlets and professional organizations dedicated to journalism
- Society of Professional Journalists Code of EthicsWhat makes real news real? In part, it's because of journalistic ethics. The Society of Journalistic Ethics provides a code of professional ethics for journalists to adhere to.
- Last Updated: Dec 19, 2023 9:27 AM
- URL: https://library.raritanval.edu/fakenews
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