Skip to Main Content

How to Determine if an Article is Reliable

This guide will assist determining whether a source is reliable and if it matches the 'popular' or 'scholarly' designation.

How To

Determine if an article
is reliable

Reliable Sources:

provide a thorough, well-reasoned theory, argument, or discussion based on strong evidence

 

Most sources can be categorized as one of these types of sources:

  • Scholarly peer-reviewed articles and books
  • Trade or professional articles and books
  • Magazine articles, books and newspaper articles from well-established publishers
  • Magazine articles, books and newspaper articles written for entertainment purposes
  • Websites and blogs
  • Background sources

Professors typically prefer scholarly peer-reviewed articles and books, but usually accept sources from trade and well-established publishers. Individual websites and blogs can be hit or miss, so be sure to check with your professor or a Librarian before using. Background sources are great for facts, but often do not count towards citation requirements.

 
Creative Commons License

Unless otherwise noted, the content of these guides by Loras College Library, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Some icons by Yusuke Kamiyamane. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.