Once upon a time, we got the news from daily newspapers and the evening news on TV. If we wanted to know something specific, we consulted an encyclopaedia or we visited the library.
Libraries still dispense information. More importantly, we are careful to provide information that is correct, accurate and pertinent to your query. If we are at all unsure about the reliability of the information, we will say so.
The same cannot be said for information found on the Internet. Anyone can post anything online. If it is ‘liked’ and shared often enough to gain virtual traction, that may be all that is needed for it to be believed – whether it is actually true or not.
Sadly, you don’t have to be an extremist or conspiracy theorist to find yourself persuaded by what you read online. We all know normal, otherwise sensible, people who believe the moon landing never occurred, climate change is not a global phenomenon, and Covid-19 is a government-orchestrated hoax.
We understand how daunting it can be to wade through everything available on the Internet to find what you want to know, let alone determine its veracity. There are online tools to help you identify what’s true and what’s not, such as factcheck.com and snopes.com. We’re also happy to help you verify any information you suspect is dodgy.
When in doubt, apply the CRAAP test:
- Is it Current? (When was it written/posted? Has it been updated recently?)
- Is it Relevant? (How does it compare with similar information elsewhere?)
- Is it Authoritative? (Who wrote it? Is the author affiliated with any organisation?)
- Is it Accurate? (Are sources cited? Has the information been reviewed? Pay attention to emotive/inflammatory language and grammatical errors.)
- What is its Purpose? (Is it promoting something? Check for tone and bias.)
For more about this subject, here are some books to get you started:
Off the edge: flat earthers, conspiracy culture and why people will believe anything Kelly Weill (2022)
The new heretics: understanding the conspiracy theories polarizing the world Andy Thomas (2021)
