Via Center for News Literacy

1. Week 8
Sources

2. • Take-home style exam
• Submitted on
Turnitin.com
Midterm • Available November 2
Exam
• Due November 8
• Short answer and essay
on material presented
up to Week 6.
• Study guide now online

3. Says Who?
Critical Evaluation
of Sources interviewed
for News Reports

4. Smart Questions About Sources:
ü What is her/his self-interest?
ü Does anyone else say so?
ü Is it verified fact, or assertion?
ü How would this source know?
ü Who, exactly, is this source?

5. Critical Thinking is…

6. Critical Thinking skills:

7. Why Sources Matter

8. What Are the Consequences
When The Press Gets it Wrong?
U.S. Invades Iraq to Capture WMD

9. Why Critical Thinking About Sources Matters

10. To Be Fair…
"Saddam
Hussein
has
spent
the
be1er
part
of
this
decade,
and
much
of
his
na7on's
wealth,
not
on
providing
for
the
Iraqi
people,
but
on
developing
nuclear,
chemical
and
biological
weapons
and
the
missiles
to
deliver
them."
President
Clinton,
Jan.
27,
1998.

11. To Be Fair…
"Iraq
is
a
long
way
from
[here],
but
what
happens
there
ma1ers
a
great
deal
here.
For
the
risks
that
the
leaders
of
a
rogue
state
will
use
nuclear,
chemical
or
biological
weapons
against
us
or
our
allies
is
the
greatest
security
threat
we
face."
Madeleine
Albright,
Feb.
18,
1998.

12. To Be Fair…
"Fateful
decisions
will
be
made
in
the
days
and
weeks
ahead.
At
issue
is
nothing
less
than
the
fundamental
ques7on
of
whether
or
not
we
can
keep
the
most
lethal
weapons
known
to
mankind
out
of
the
hands
of
an
unreconstructed
tyrant
and
aggressor
…”
Sen.
Joe
Biden
(D,
DE),
Feb.
12,
1998

13. To Be Fair…
"He
will
use
those
weapons
of
mass
destruc7on
again,
as
he
has
ten
7mes
since
1983."
Sandy
Berger,
Clinton
Na7onal
Security
Adviser,
Feb.
18,
1998

15. “The problematic articles varied in authorship and subject
matter, but many shared a common feature. They
depended at least in part on information from a circle of
Iraqi informants, defectors and exiles bent on ‘regime
change’ in Iraq, people whose credibility has come under
increasing public debate in recent weeks.”
May
26,
2004

16. Today: Five Smart Questions About
Sources:
üWhat is her/his self-interest?
üDoes anyone else say so?
üIs it fact, or assertion?
üHow would this source know?
üWho, exactly, is this source?

19. Judging the Reliability of Sources
Independent Sources Are Better Than Self-Interested Sources
Multiple Sources Are Better Than Single Sources
Sources Who Verify Are Better Than Sources Who Assert
Authoritative/Informed Sources Are Better Than Uninformed Sources
Named Sources Are Better Than Unnamed Sources
(Mnemonic Device: I’M VAIN)

20. Judging the Reliability of Sources
Independent Sources
Are Better Than
Self-Interested Sources

21. Self Interest vs. Selfishness
Intellectual
Religion/poli7cs Familial/Roman7c
Financial

22. A Self-interested
source…

23. An Independent source

24. Independence: Rival Praises Finding
Decoded
DNA
Reveals
Details
Of
Black
Death
Germ
Scien/sts
have
used
DNA
lurking
inside
the
teeth
of
medieval
Black
Death
vic/ms
to
figure
out
the
en/re
gene/c
code
of
the
deadly
bacterium
that
swept
across
Europe
more
than
600
years
ago,
killing
an
es/mated
half
of
the
popula/on...
The
Natural
History
Museum
of
Denmark's
Thomas
Gilbert
is
one
of
the
scien/sts
who
tried
to
find
plague
DNA
in
Black
Death
vic/ms
in
the
past
without
success.
He
says
the
new
technique
used
in
this
study
is
exci/ng
and
the
analysis
is
compelling.
"It's
a
great
result.
It
looks
very,
very
convincing,"
Gilbert
says.
"There's
no
reason
why
the
data
shouldn't
be
real."

25. NYT
–
(October
13,
2011)
People
with
eaFng
disorders
like
anorexia
have
this
source
self-­‐interested? in
the
insurance
How
is
opened
up
a new
baKleground
wars,
tesFng
hat
boundaries
of
laws
s
unreliable?
Does
tthe
mean
the
story
i mandaFng
equivalent
coverage
for
mental
illnesses.

26. Independent Sources Are Better Than Self-Interested Sources

27. Independence: A Ruthless Standard

28. Judging the Reliability of Sources
Multiple Sources
Are Better Than
Single Sources

29. Multiple Sources vs. Lone Source

30. Multiple Sources Trump a Lone Source?

31. Reconstructing the Blackwater
Incident in Nusoor Square

32. In Pursuit of Truth
Blackwater shooting

33. Judging the Reliability of Sources
Sources Who Verify
Are Better Than
Sources Who Assert

34. Verifying or Asserting?
The
Tokyo
ci/zens’
group…in
consulta/on
with
the
Yokohama-­‐based
Isotope
Research
Ins/tute,
collected
soil
samples
from
near
their
own
homes.
Some
of
the
results
were
shocking:
the
sample
that
Mr.
Hayashida
collected
under
shrubs
near
his
neighborhood
baseball
field
in
the
Edogawa
ward
measured
nearly
138,000
becquerels
per
square
meter
of
radioac/ve
cesium
137,
which
can
damage
cells
and
lead
to
an
increased
risk
of
cancer.

35. Verifying or Asserting?

36. Sources Who Verify vs.
Sources Who Assert

37. A Corollary to Last Week’s Lesson:
Just Like We
Always ask:
“Did the Reporter
Open the Freezer?”
You can also ask”
“Did the Source
Open the Freezer?

38. Judging the Reliability of Sources
Authoritative/Informed Sources
Are Better Than
Un-informed Sources

39. Authoritative vs.
Uninformed

40. Authoritative/Informed Sources vs. Un-informed Sources

41. Judging the Reliability of Sources
Named Sources
Are Better Than
Unnamed Sources

43. Who Was ‘Deep Throat’?
The Most Famous Unnamed Source in History

44. Who Was ‘Deep Throat’?
The Most Famous Unnamed Source in History

45. Who Was ‘Deep Throat’?
The Most Famous Unnamed Source in History

46. Characterizing Unnamed Sources

47. Vaccines are Dangerous?
Sez Who?

48. Evaluating Anonymous Sources
Transparency
Characterization
Corroboration (evidence/sources)

49. Evaluate The Sources

50. Sources Outlets

51. Evaluate The Source

53. Judging the Reliability of Sources
Independent Sources Are Better Than Self-Interested Sources
Multiple Sources Are Better Than Single Sources
Sources Who Verify Are Better Than Sources Who Assert
Authoritative/Informed Sources Are Better Than Uninformed Sources
Named Sources Are Better Than Unnamed Sources
(Mnemonic Device: I’M VAIN)

54. Key Lesson:
Evaluate Sources
Evaluate Sources
Evaluate Sources

55. Evaluate Sources
To Find Reliable Information
With Which You:
Make a decision
Take Action
Make a judgment

56. Preparing to Deconstruct the News
1) What Do I Know?
2) How Do I Know It?
3) What Don’t I Know?

57. • Take-home style exam
• Submitted on
Turnitin.com
Midterm • Available November 2
Exam
• Due November 8
• Short answer and essay
on material presented
up to Week 6.
• Study guide now online