Writers Blog 5
One of the things we learned about this week was the SIFT method. I am unsure if I have ever learned this but it does not sound familiar. The steps of SIFT are to stop, investigate the source, find better coverage, and trace claims to the original source. This method is good for checking the information we read and making sure it’s accurate. This is especially important in today’s society where information is often not fully correct or a flat-out lie.
The first step is to stop. Stop and think about whether you know or trust the source. The second step is to investigate the source. While this step sounds intimidating or like a lot of work, it is just seeing where your information is coming from. It is about checking who the author is of an article or who the creator is of a video.
The third step is to find trusted coverage. This is looking for other sources that have covered the same topic or information. This step is important when researching or even if you find a random interesting article. If no one else has talked about it, it is likely false.
Lastly, trace the claims back to the source. This step is very important especially when researching. When researching for a paper for another class I found interesting facts that I wanted to use but then I found other sources that conflicted with the previous information. When I looked at the references for the source, the information did not match up, and I was overall very confused. I decided not to use the information just because it was unclear if it was correct. In any instance of reading information, it is important to go back and check the source.
This method is very important for writing papers or reading general news. No matter what, we should be double-checking the information we come across, especially in a world of common disinformation. In lesson two of the check please readings, the first video mentioned how you could possibly vote for someone based on false information. This is a real problem today with extremely biased news platforms and the spread of disinformation. This just goes along with the SIFT method and double-check all your information. I would hate to find out I voted for someone based on incorrect claims. I also found it interesting in the same video how in the experiment, only the professional fact-checkers could determine correctly which website was more credible. It was interesting that the professional fact-checkers were able to get it right within seconds.
Lesson three was about further investigation. The video discussed searching for expertise. I think this is really important. You want to make sure that you trust where the information is coming from. I think it’s important that when you’re reading something from someone, they have expert knowledge of what they’re talking about. I wouldn’t want to read a scientific article from someone who is not credited with anything science-related.
The information we learned this week was really valuable and has gone along with everything else we have learned. Check your sources, check for biases, and do further investigation.
