Media Literacy
Quick Tips
Diversify & center your media diet! Use either the All Sides Media Bias Chart or Ad Fontes Media Bias Chart to see the general political leanings of each of the news sources. Be sure to not exclusively read only right-leaning or only left-leaning sources. Be sure to include at least two sources on the center in your "media diet".
Fact check social media content! Anyone can create and share posts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and WhatsApp and see it be shared thousands of times without it being independently fact checked. So don't take everything you see on social media at face-value - use any or all of the 7 or 8 fact checking websites to see for yourself what the deal really is.
Trace image origins! Use right click + "Search Google for this image." to trace the origin of an image. Often, an image will be taken out of an original article or out of context and posted with a new caption to create a completely different story to advance an agenda.
Use the SIFT Method! Stop, Investigate the source, Find trusted (and I'd add varied) coverage, and Trace claims and quotes to its original context. Learn more here.
Fact-checking Sites
From the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania
Run by the St. Petersburg Times, check out the site's "Truth-o-meter"
Check voting records, background, and public statements of candidates from around the country.
Fact Checker (Washington Post)
From columnist Glenn Kessler, focusing on accuracy of statements of political figures "regarding issues of great importance, be they national, international or local."
Fact-checking site for "for urban legends, folklore, myths, rumors, and misinformation."
AP News Fact Checking
Reuters Fact Checking
Learn More
Visit the News Literacy Project to explore how to be informed, not misled.