Newspapers

Consider the source:

• Check the website's mission and contact information.
• Investigate the site's authenticity, and be cautious of spelling mistakes or unusual domain extensions.
• Google the site's name for reports on its authenticity.
• Avoid relying on social media for news; use reputable news sources.

Check the author:

• When assessing an author's credibility, consider their expertise, reputation, and authenticity.
• Look for other pieces they have written and what outlets they have written for.

Read beyond headlines:

• Cross-verify the story on multiple news sites for a more accurate account.
• Good quality reporting will include context, and won't exclude, misrepresent or oversimplify details.
• Are credible sources cited within the story?
• Be sceptical of outrageous headlines designed for clicks.

Examine supporting sources and links:

• Click on the links and check if they seem reliable and trustworthy.
• Determine if the information given actually supports the story.
• Credible news has verifiable facts like data, stats, and expert quotes. Missing these? Question its reliability.

Verify the date:

• Look for a date stamp on the story.
• Confirm if the date aligns with the content of the story.
• Some deceptive sites take stories or pictures from a few years ago and revamp them to fit in a headline with today's date.

Check your biases:

• Consider personal biases that may influence judgment.
• Read news from diverse sources to compare perspectives.

Consult experts and fact-checking sites:

• Be wary if no other credible sources support the claims.
• Cross reference claims with other news sites to verify information.
• Seek advice from librarians or consult fact-checking sites like RMIT ABC Fact Check, AAP FactCheck, PolitiFact or FactCheck.org.

Check visual clues:

• Look for manipulated images, altered logos, or blurry visuals.
• An image may be accurate but simply used in a misleading context. You can use tools such as Google’s Reverse Image Search to identify where the image originally came from and in what context it was used.
• Be cautious of too many ads, as fake news sites prioritise advertising revenue.