Evaluate Sources: Fact Checking

Was the material reviewed for publication?

Different types of sources have quite varied fact checking processes they go through before publication. Articles that are peer reviewed or edited before publication are closely scrutinized for accuracy, while a social media post may not examined at all once it has been written.

Where to find

Check the front of a book or periodical the publishes articles for information about the editing, review, and selection process for the source.  When searching in the library database, check for peer-reviewed sources on the search page, or check the journal's page in the database.

In some cases, especially for websites and social media posts, you may need to do some fact checking of your own.  Try to verify the information you're unsure of by finding other articles.  Be careful!  Other articles or posts may all be using the exact same source as the basis for their article.

You could also try fact checking websites such as: