Evaluating Web Pages for Argumentation Papers

Evaluating Web Sites for Argumentation Papers

1. Go to the website Death Penalty and the Catholic Church www.americancatholic.org/news/deathpenalty/

What is the name of the organization that publishes this web site? ____________________________________________

What is their position on the death penalty? _______________________________________________

How would you use this website in a research paper? ______________________________________________________________________________

2. Go to the website In Defense of Smokers www.lcolby.com/

On the main web page, look for a link to information about the author of this page. What is this person’s background? __________________________________

Based on his background experiences and education, do you think he would be a good, knowledgeable source of information about health issues related to smoking? Why or why not?
________________________________________________________________________

Would you use the information from this website in a research paper? Why or why not?

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. Go to the website Abortion: All Sides of the Issue at www.religioustolerance.org/abortion.htm

This page says it provides information on all sides of the abortion issue. Do you agree? ________ Why or why not?
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4. Go to the web page Secondhand Smoke Fact Sheet http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/Factsheets/SecondhandSmoke.htm

Who do you think this article is written for?
_____ Researchers ______ General public ______ Cigarette companies

What organization published this article? ______________________________________

Do you think you can believe what they have to say about smoking? ______________

Why or why not? ____________________________________________________________________________

5. Go to the web page Fact Sheet: Mandatory Storage/Trigger Lock Legislation http://www.nraila.org/Issues/FactSheets/Read.aspx?ID=47

What organization published this article? ___________ What is that organization’s position on gun control issues? _________________________________

How would you use this website in a research paper?
_________________________________________________________________________________________

6. FIND A WEB PAGE ON YOUR TOPIC AND EVALUATE IT:

You can search for web pages using a Subject Directory, such as lii.org , or start at web pages such as: www.publicagenda.com www.politics1.com library.sau.edu/bestinfo/Hot/hotindex.htm

Name of web page on your topic: __________________________________________________

Web page address (URL): _________________________________________________________

Author(if one is listed): ____________________________________________________

Background information on author: _____________________________________________________________________________

Is the author reliable/knowledgeable? ______________________

What is the author’s position on your topic? Pro Con Balanced

If a Company/organization publishes the page, what is its name? ________________________________________________________

Does the web site provide information about the organization? _________________

If yes, what does the website tell you about the company? _______________________________________________________________________________

Is this a reliable/knowledgeable publisher? __________________________________

What is this organization’s position on your topic? Pro Con Balanced

What do you think is the purpose of the web site?

________ To provide reliable information
________ To sell you something
________ To convince you of something
________ To entertain you
________ Other (Please describe) ________________________________________

How current is this web page? __________________ When was it last updated? ____________

Is the information on the web site accurate? (Remember, you will need to compare the information you find on the web site with information from other sources known to be reliable.)
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Would you use this web page in your research? _____ Yes _____No _____Maybe

Why or why not? ______________________________________________________________

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