CARS
There are a number of ways to evaluate the trustworthiness of a website. CARS is a helpful checklist for evaluating websites.
C - Credibility
- Is the creator/author named? What is their job? Are they a researcher, journalist, or something else?
- If an author isn't named, what do you know about the organization that published the website? The CDC, FDA, and other government agencies don't have named authors for webpages, but still provide valuable, trustworthy information.
A - Accuracy
- Is the website free of spelling errors, grammatical errors, dead links, or other problems?
- Does the article have a publication date? Does the publication date align with the requirements for your assignment?
R - Reasonableness
- Who created the website?
- Does the website avoid advertising that does not seem appropriate?
S - Support
- Is there a bibliography or sources listed? In journalistic content this can look like naming sources and hyperlinks.
