Catholic Studies

Web Sites: Reliability

Not every website is a reliable source of information. Evaluate it before you use it as a source! Here's what to think about:

• Who publishes this Web site?  Is this individual or organization qualified to provide this type of information?  How do you know?
• Do those writing for this Web site have the appropriate credentials to do so?  For example, do the authors have advanced degrees in the subject and/or experience in the field?
• Have you noticed any questionable statements or claims on this Web site that make you doubt the quality of the information on it? 
• How well-written is this Web site?  Are there typos, misspellings, grammatical or mechanical errors that suggest amateur authorship?
• How old is the information on this Web site?  How can you tell?  Does the age of the information affect your use of it?

Serious research can include Web sites, but you need to be selective.  Remember--anybody can post almost anything on the Internet!