Internet Research

 While there are many ways that the Internet may help you with your research, there are also pitfalls involved in relying on what you find on the World Wide Web. Always keep in mind that

            1) Information on the Internet is disorganized. In order to use the Internet effectively for research, you have to be resourceful, vigilant, and patient. It takes a lot of time to find useful information.

            2) Information on the Internet is unreliable. It is not as good a resource for scholarly information as the library. Anyone can publish anything to the World Wide Web, and there are no fact-checkers.

            3) Information on the Internet is shallow. You may find information on your topic but with little support of its own. The Internet is filled with sites with snippets of information with little depth, reflection, or interrogation.

In order for you to use the Internet for your Documented Argument, complete the following activity to identify your potential source (remember you only get one). This exercise requires that you think about authority and ideology.

1) Find five different web sites that are related to your topic. Record the titles and the URL here:

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 2). A. From that list, select the two web sites that you think will be the most useful for your research project. List the titles of those two sites here:

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 B. In a sentence or two, give the reasons you selected those two sites as likely resources.

3.) A. Identify the author of these two sites.

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The author may not be a single person but rather an organization (e.g. the American Medical Association, the National Education Association, or the National Rifle Association).

B. If you cannot identify the authors, the webs site will probably not be useful. Why do you think I am suggesting that authorless sites won’t be useful for your work?

You may have to select another site from your initial list to replace one (or two) that you have just disqualified.

4.) Once you have identified the authors of these sites, briefly describe what authority these authors have to provide this information. (Consider their credentials, their education, their qualifications, their publications, their national reputation.)

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5.) What ideology, beliefs, or convictions do these authors have? That is, do they have an agenda or preconceived ideas about this topic? Will they benefit in some way if people believe their information? (For example, a web site that sells diet projects might have a vested interest in providing statistics about weight loss and heart disease. The same information from the American Heart Association might be presented in a different light.) Why do these authors want you to have this information?

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6.) How balanced is the information on the site? If the topic has two sides/positions, do the authors present both? Explain.

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7.) In three or four sentences, identify any doubts you have about these sites as possible resources for your Documented Argument.