Research Guides: Evaluating Information Sources: Background Information & Fact Checking

Reference Works Can Help You...

find overviews or introductions to a subject
identify possible directions for a topic you're exploring
put a narrow topic into context
identify facts, names, dates, etc.

Fact-Checking & Related Resources

Fact Checker
Washington Post
FactCheck.org
Annenberg Public Policy Center, Univ. of Pennsylvania
Fact-Checking
Articles and more from the Poynter Institute's International Fact-Checking Network
Pew Research Center
"...a nonpartisan source of data and analysis" on U.S. politics, media and news, social trends, religion, technology, and more
PolitiFact.com
A project of the Tampa Bay Times. Factual statements by American politicians and those testifying before Congress are rated for truthfulness
Journalist's Resource
"Research on today's news topics" from the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy, Harvard Univ.
Six Questions That Will Tell You What Media to Trust
Tom Rosenstiel, American Press Institute
Web Literacy for Student Fact-Checkers
Creative-Commons-licensed ebook by Michael A. Caufield, Washington State Univ. Vancouver

Find Background Information

CQ Researcher This link opens in a new window
Current events/issues coverage includes full text reports with overviews, historical background, chronologies, pro/con features, and more
Credo This link opens in a new window
Full text articles and images from subject encyclopedias, biographical dictionaries, and other reference works
Gale Virtual Reference Library This link opens in a new window
Full text encyclopedias, biographical dictionaries, and subject-specific reference books
Gale in Context: Opposing Viewpoints This link opens in a new window
Current social issue topic overviews, including pro/con viewpoint essays, academic journal and news/magazine articles, images, videos, statistics, and more
Very Short Introductions This link opens in a new window
Full text overviews of diverse subjects, including ancient warfare, climate, consciousness, economics, game theory, Islamic history, literary theory, privacy, and more from Oxford Univ. Press
Gale in Context: Science This link opens in a new window
Current scientific topic overviews, including selected full text for journal and news/magazine articles, images, videos, interactive data maps, and more
Britannica This link opens in a new window
Full text academic edition of Encyclopedia Britannica and Merriam-Webster Dictionary; includes video and audio clips
Oxford English Dictionary This link opens in a new window
Landmark historical resource that defines and illustrates through quotations the use of English language words from earliest known occurrence to present

Related research guide:

Resources for Statistics
Find statistical data from government websites and other recommended sources

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