Web Searching & Evaluation of Information

Jason DupreeAssistant ProfessorMLIS, University of OklahomaBFA, Art Studio, Phillips University

Head of Public ServicesAl Harris Library jason.dupree@swosu.edu

Part 1

Defining theWorld Wide Web

The Internet is…• a worldwide collection of

computer networks • ubiquitous

Web Searching is easy because…..• Speed• Choice• Availability 24/7

• Always get an answer

Web searching is difficult because …

• Organization• Quality control• Reliability

Part 2

Web Resources

Web Resources

4 Categories:

DirectorySearch Engine

Metasearch EngineGovernment Web Tools

Directory

• Electronic Yellow Pages

• Organized into categories

• Point & click searching

Search Engine

• Simply searches• Prominent search

box• Google voted

“Most Outstanding Search Engine” 4 times

• Lycos, the oldest search engine on the web (‘94)

How does Google Search work?

Google Search

• PageRank (algorithm)– 500 million variables– 2 Billion Terms

• Bias?

• Popularity is a Proxy for Importance

Personalized Search

• Google’s algorithm will suggest “what is best for you” – based on past searches.

• It’s as if we looked up the same topic in an encyclopedia and each found different entries.

Personalized Search

• Find information that is most likely to reinforce your own worldview

• We begin to lose dissenting opinion/conflicting points of view

• Yet search seems neutral, objective, unbiased.

Personalized Search & the Internet

• Google is likely to direct you to material with which you already agree.

“a search for proof about climate change will turn up different results for an environmental activist than it would for an oil company executive.”

“democracy requires citizens to see things from one another’s point of view, but instead we’re more and more enclosed in our own bubbles…offered parallel but separate universes.”

Metasearch Engine

• Utilize search engines and directories to compile comprehensive results

• “one-stop” searching

• Dogpile voted “Best Metasearch Engine”

• Mamma, the oldest metasearch engine on the web (’96)

Government Web Tools

• USAGov, (formerly FirstGov) director of federal gov’t websites

• SoonerSearch, a portal to Oklahoma gov’t websites

• Infomine, access to university level research on gov’t info

Wikipedia

Wikipedia

• No Original Research• NPOV (Neutral point of view)• No owners, multiple anonymous

authors• Anyone with Internet access can

create or edit an entry…Anyone

Wikipedia

• Contributors: male, English speaking, denizens of the Internet.

• Problem is not that it disregards the facts, but that it elevates them above all else.

• Most of the content is discussion/ history of edits & not the entries themselves.

Wikipedia

• Participation maps popular, not academic concerns

• It is a working community…but is it a good historical resource?

• Lack of Critical Analysis• Problematic as a sole source of

information • Like all encyclopedias…great place to

start, terrible place to stop. • Benefit may be to its active

participants, not its readers.

Strengths: Web vs. Library

• Web– Current events and

news– Statistics and Other

Information by Gov.’t

– Full-text Resources (expired copyright)

– Pop Culture• TV• Movies• Music

– Opinion– Information about

Organizations & Groups

• Library– Research Based

Books & Articles– Works Cited/

Bibliographies– Full-text Resources– Authoritative &

Peer-reviewed Materials

– Information about People & Cultures

– Easier to Search• Library Catalog• Databases

Surface Web

Ever wonder what you might be missing?

Google2.7 billion searches per month

Indexes a trillion web pagesIndexes 16% of the Surface Web

Indexes 0.03% of the entireWorld Wide Web

Deep Web (or Hidden Web)

NO SEARCH ENGINES ALLOWED

54% of DWis databases

DW is 500 timeslarger than SW

And a 1,000 times

higher in quality too

Anatomy of a URL

Web Domains

• Which one is right?– www.whitehouse.co

m– www.whitehouse.go

v– www.whitehouse.ne

t– www.whitehouse.or

g• Whois.net

– www.whois.net – allows you to conduct detective work on URLs

• .gov• .org• .mil• .com• .edu• .net• .int

Indicates a reliable domain

Web Domain Usage

• Domain name appropriate for the content ?

• Restricted: .edu, .gov, .mil, a few country codes (.ca)

• Unrestricted: .com, .org, .net, most country codes (.us, .uk)

Part 3

Evaluation of Information

When Research Goes Wrong!

Jayson Blair/NYT Plagiarism Dan Rather/False Report on Bush

Photoshoping Martha’s Head Hwang Woo-suk/Human Cloned?

Newspaper

Magazine

Journal

Television

Evaluation of Information

4 Criteria:

AuthorityAccuracy

ObjectivityCurrency

Step 1: Authority

• Books & Articles– Who is

responsible for content?• Author(s)?• Editor(s)?• Publisher• Credentials

offered?

• Newspapers• Writer(s)• Editor(s)• Columnist(s)

• Web Pages– Who is

responsible for content?• Webmaster?• Web team?• Organization?• Institution?• Company?

Step 1: Authority

• Web Pages–

Credentials/Qualifications/Reputation– Who is responsible for content?

• Is it a commercial site?• Is it a government site?• Is it an education site?

Step 1: Authority: Questions

1. Who is responsible for the content? Domain name? What does this indicate?

2. If you don't recognize the name, or there is no name, what type of information is given about the contact information? - Position? - Organizational affiliation? - E-mail address? - Biographical information?

Step 2: Accuracy

• Books & Articles– Can the

information be verified?• Bibliography• Works Cited• Peer-reviewed

(journals only)

• Newspapers• Interviews• Eyewitness

Accounts

• Web Pages– Can the

information be verified?• Links to credible

sites• Copyright• Works Cited• Fact check with a

printed source

Step 2: Accuracy

• Web Pages– Can the information be verified?

• Links to credible sites• Copyright• Works Cited• Fact check with a printed source

Step 2: Accuracy

1. Does the website cite sources used to present its information? What type of sources are they? Scholarly? Popular?

2. Is it possible to verify the legitimacy of these sources?

3. If the site is research-based, does the website clearly identify the method of research and the data gathered?

Step 3: Objectivity

• Books & Articles– Biased or

Objective?• Persuasion/

Emotion• Author’s Point of

View

• Newspapers• Subscriptions ($)• Advertising ($)• Owners• CJR review

• Web Pages– Biased or

Objective?• Opinion/Fan sites• Sponsoring

Organization• Agendas• Political

Propaganda• Web hosting

Step 3: Objectivity

Biased or Objective?• Sponsoring Organization• Agendas• Political Propaganda• Web hostinghttp://english.aljazeera.net/http://www.foxnews.com/ http://www.npr.org/

Do you trust the author or organization providing the information?

Step 3: Objectivity

Do you trust the author or organization providing the information?

Determine what is the aim of the author or organization publishing the site.

What is the purpose of the web site?

1. Is it advertisement for a product or service?2. Is it for political purposes?3. Is it trying to sway public opinion on a social

issue?

Step 4: Currency

• Books & Articles– When was it

published?• Copyright date• Important based

upon subject– Science– Social Science– Allied Health– Education– Pharmacy– Computer Science

• Newspapers published daily

• Web Pages– When was it created

and last updated?• Well maintained web

sites have an indication when it was last updated or modified

• Accessibility– Dead links

• Stability– Changes URLs

frequently

Step 4: Currency

• Web Pages– When was it created and last

updated?• Well maintained web sites have an

indication when it was last updated or modified

• Accessibility– Dead links

• Stability– Changes URLs frequently

Step 4: Currency

1. Is a date clearly displayed?2. Can you determine what the date refers to?

When the page was first written?When the page was first posted on the Internet?When the page was last revised or

updated?The copyright date?

3. Are the resources used by the author current?4. Does the page content demand routine or

continual updating or revision?5. Do the links on the page point to the correct

Internet site addresses?

Remember to Evaluate!

• Authority– Who created it? Who is responsible?– What credentials do they hold? What makes

them qualified to discuss the topic?• Accuracy

– Can the information be verified?– Check the facts!

• Objectivity– How is the information being presented?– Is it objective or biased? What’s the point of

view?• Currency (important based on subject)

– When was it published?– When was it last updated?

End of First Presentation

Thank Youfor listening