It is essential to be able to think intentionally and critically about media messages you see or experience so that you do not become a victim of a scam or propaganda, nor do you perpetuate such mis- or disinformation.
This page will share some games you can play to learn about the types of disinformation practiced in media today as well as learn some skills for foiling attempts at manipulating your thinking as well as evaluating sources for inclusion in your work.
SIFT (from Mike Caulfield This link opens in a new window) is a helpful acronym for initially (and quickly) evaluating online source credibility, and stands for:
Modified from Mike Caulfield's SIFT (Four Moves) This link opens in a new window, which is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License This link opens in a new window.
Later, when you determine that the site is worth your time, you can analyze the source's content more carefully.
There are numerous ways to "SIFT" (as described above). These "four moves" from Web Literacy for Student Fact-Checkers This link opens in a new window by Mike Caulfield will help you "SIFT."
When you first come across a web source, do a quick initial assessment, much like a fact-checker does. Fact-checkers don't spend too much time on a website; instead, they quickly leave that site to see what others have said about the site.
(Adapted from “Four Moves,” Web Literacy for Student Fact-Checkers This link opens in a new window, by Mike Caulfield)
This section was adapted from the Los Angeles Valley College Library LibGuide Information Evaluation: What is the SIFT Method This link opens in a new window and the Rowan University LibGuide Evaluating Online Sources: A Toolkit. This link opens in a new window
If you like playing games to hone your web evaluation skills, try some of these! Just click on the image to get started.
Spot the Troll, created by Clemson University's Media Forensics Hub, asks YOU to examine images of real social media content and decide whether it's from a legitimate account or an internet troll. |
Click on the image above and play Factitious to see how skilled you are at recognizing dubious information while learning techniques to evaluate news sources on the web. Keep track of strategies you learn as you play. |
Choose Your Own Fake News is an interactive "choose your own adventure" game. Play the game as Flora, Jo or Aida from East Africa, and navigate the world of disinformation and misinformation through the choices you make. Scrutinize news and information about job opportunities, vaccines and upcoming elections to make the right choices! |
The Cranky Uncle game uses cartoons and critical thinking to fight misinformation. The game was developed by George Mason University scientist John Cook, in collaboration with creative agency Autonomy This link opens in a new window. The game is now available for free on iPhone and Android. In the Cranky Uncle game, players are mentored by a cartoon personification of climate science denial. Cranky Uncle explains 14 techniques of science denial, from fake experts to cherry picking and a variety of different logical fallacies This link opens in a new window. |
In Bad News, you take on the role of fake news-monger. Drop all pretense of ethics and choose a path that builds your persona as an unscrupulous media magnate. But keep an eye on your ‘followers’ and ‘credibility’ meters. Your task is to get as many followers as you can while slowly building up fake credibility as a news site. But watch out: you lose if you tell obvious lies or disappoint your supporters! |
Do you know about source evaluation? Can you spot bias? Do you know how to investigate sources? Are you a pro at finding other evidence and tracing claims? Prove it today to earn the Shapiro Library Skeptical Searcher Badge! Click on the icon above to get started. |
Fake or Real?The all-new NewsWise headlines quiz! |
This challenge was created by First Draft This link opens in a new window, an organization whose mission is to protect communities from harmful misinformation. They work to empower society with the knowledge, understanding, and tools needed to outsmart false and misleading information. This interactive exercise will help you verify images, places and accounts that you find online. One of the quickest ways to verify content online is by using reverse image search, and a bit of geolocation. We'll need Google Images and Google Maps to complete this challenge, so be sure to have those open and ready in another tab. (This challenge is best on a desktop/laptop) Click on the image above to get started, and keep track of the strategies you learn along the way. |
If you like geolocation of images, try this challenge by clicking on the image above. Searching multiple engines:
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Developed by the creators of the Calling Bullshit Project This link opens in a new window, this activity aims to "make you aware of the ease with which digital identities can be faked, and to help you spot these fakes at a single glance." Click on the image above to read about the game, and then click "Play" in the upper right corner to begin. |
This course by Reuters News Agency titled "Identifying and Tackling Manipulated Media" has three "chapters": Manipulated Media; Identifying Deepfakes; and Tackling Manipulated Media. Each "chapter" has a "Test Yourself" exercise. Click on the image above to get started. |
Below is a media bias chart produced by a nonpartisan group, Ad Fontes Media This link opens in a new window. Notice the designations along the top as the chart categorizes media sources from extremely liberal to extremely conservative. Notice the criteria down the side from "Original fact reporting" to "Contains inaccurate, fabricated info." When you find an article you are unsure about, check out the source it came from using the Media Bias Chart. This would correspond with the second step of the S.I.F.T. evaluation method: Investigate the source.
For the most recent version of the Media Bias Chart (Version 6.0), visit Ad Fontes Media's Interactive Chart This link opens in a new window.