Skip to main content

Juniors: Evaluating Online Sources

As part of the ongoing process for your analysis paper on satire, tonight you will find ONE article that is related to the subject you wrote about last week, print it, and bring it to class.

For example, if the cartoon was on the unexplained "aflockalypse" in Arkansas -- thousands of birds falling from the sky -- then you would look up a news article that reports that phenomena. Your source should be both relevant and reliable.

For a source to be RELEVANT, try the following:
  • Narrow your search by using keyword strings or phrases (in quotes)
  • Google allows users to select tabs -- web, images, videos, news, etc. -- to select the media type
  • Skim titles of publications and articles
  • Narrow down further by adding more specific keywords related to your purpose (i.e. "news" versus "opinion")
  • Finally, print out articles ONLY after you have skimmed them for content
  • Once a source is printed, it can then be highlighted and quoted
For a source to be RELIABLE, consider the following:
  • The source itself -- Who wrote it, and where did it come from? Have you heard of the paper/website/magazine? Who publishes the page you are viewing? Always use the most respectable sources you can.
  • The date -- How recent is it, and if your event/topic didn't happen recently, do you want read a reflection ten years later, or do you need information from the time it happened? On the other hand, if your topic is technology, then it's important to get the latest information possible.
  • The author's purpose -- Is it an opinion piece or is it fact-based? Is the purpose to persuade, or is it to inform? Objective or subjective? Biased articles can be used IF the bias is acknowledged and explained. Otherwise, the reader tends to listen only if he/she agrees with the opinion.
Back to the "aflockalypse" question.... Would an article on theories regarding the deaths be relevant? How about reliable? It depends on whose theories, right? And wouldn't it be important to note that they are "theories" versus "reasons verified by evidence"?

Popular posts from this blog

O Brother, A Response Paper

Hello Freshmen... Your assignment for the weekend is to write a 250-word (one page) response paper on O Brother, Where Art Thou . Please type and format according to MLA. You may choose from the two topics below: (1) Respond to the lyrics of one song from the film. Using your lyric sheet (or the internet ), connect the lyrics of one song to the movie's characters/setting/events. In other words, explain how the lyrics are relevant to the film. (2) Choose one of the historically relevant elements of the movie and look up an article on Wikipedia . Print out the article; then, summarize it and connect it to the movie's characters/setting/events. Be careful not to plagiarize the article, which should be stapled to your reponse. Ideas discussed in class include The Great Depression, con artist, chain gang, Populism (George Wallace, Huey P. Long, W. Lee O'Daniel), Ku Klux Klan (William Joseph Simmons), and George "Babyface" Nelson.
Read more

Monty Python & The Holy Grail

Before you start scoffing and claiming that I am merely killing time until midterms, hear me out. Okay, it's true that this is a perfect time to NOT start anything new, and I do have grading, of course; however, there is more merit to this than you may realize. First, Monty Python -- the British comedy troupe -- has become inextricably associated with all that is "British" in the minds of many. Their educated humor and sharp-minded wit have helped to define what we think of as British comedy, certainly. Their biting satire has taken aim at the British government (and our own), and Britain's monarchy, institutions and social customs. In a sense, their humor (like Shakespeare's) is timeless; no period of history is safe from ridicule (or illumination), and no taboo is too taboo. Second, the movie is a send-up of everything we've studied so far regarding the Middle Ages. They touch on Arthurian Lit and the Grail quest motif (of course), and also feudalism, k...
Read more

Senior End-of-Year Schedule!

Seniors, the end is near, and there are a few assignments left to schedule. Here is a list of everything due in the next two weeks: Career Update - a one-page addendum to your research paper, updating your plans for college and beyond. Be sure to include what you originally planned and if that's changed. Whether plans have changed or not, please explain why and what steps you've taken towards reaching your goal -- i.e. where you've decided to attend and what major you've declared. This is due WEDNESDAY 4/24. Letter to Future Self - this is an OPTIONAL assignment, but I encourage you to take it seriously. As discussed in class, this letter will be sent to you in about five years. Think about what you'd like to tell yourself five years from now. For example, maybe it would be interesting to reflect on your plans at the time, what values you held dear, what you wanted to remember. In addition, you might think about your current likes/dislikes related to pop cultur...
Read more