This chart is premised upon Michael Caulfileld's approach to evaluating information that is used by professional fact checkers. It's known as SIFT.
Each letter in SIFT stands for one of the steps:
WHAT TO DO
Developin trust in mediated information requires effort on our part. While technological advances make it more challenging to determine the accuracy of information, there are a few things we can do whether we're listening to general news sources, reading informative books or articles, talking to others or conducting scolarly research.
Greenhalgh, T., & Taylor, R. (1997). How to read a paper: Papers that go beyond numbers (qualitative research). Bmj, 315(7110), 740-743. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.315.7110.740
WHAT TO AVOID
1. Fake, false, and regularly misleading sites that evoke an emotional response by using distorted headlines and decontextualized or dubious information in order to generate likes, shares, or profits. Examples:
2. Websites that may circulate misleading and/or potentially unreliable information. Examples:
3. Websites that use "clickbait" headlines and social media descriptions. Examples:
Looking for some basic tools to help you verify, cross-check, and compare content you see online to avoid spreading fake news? Here are a few basic open access resources to get you started:
FactCheck.org fact-checks claims made by presidents, members of Congress, presidential candidates, and other members of the political arena by reviewing TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews, and news releases.
Google Safe Browsing Transparency Report allows you to paste a URL into a field, and it gives you a report on whether you can trust that website.
Politifact fact-checks claims by politicians at the federal, state, and local level, as well as political parties, PACs, and advocacy groups and ates the accuracy of these claims on its Truth-O-Meter.
Snopes.com was originally founded to uncover rumors that had begun cropping up in chain emails and message boards and is now highly regarded for its fact-checking.
URLVOID verifies the validity of a website
Handbook is a step by step guide for verifying digital content initially created for reporters and emergency responders.
Web archive that captures websites over time and can be used to verify content history and edits.
Found an image you think may have been manipulated or photo-shopped? Use these tools to check for any digital changes:
Identify parts of an image that may have been modified or photoshopped.
Upload or use a URL image to check the content history or to see similar images on the web.
Identifying the location of a suspicious photo or video is a crucial part of the verification process.
Upload or enter an image URL to the search bar and see a list of related sites. Has plug-ins for your browser.
Crowd-sourced version of Google Maps, featuring additional information.