Tutorial on Library Research

After reading the sections and watching the video on this page, you should be able to: 

1. Explain how to use the TRAAP method to evaluate sources.
2. Explain why the Media Bias Chart is useful and how to use it. 
3. Identify and explain several types of media bias.

The content on this page supports the following frame(s) from the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education : 

1. Authority is Constructed and Contextual

As the videos on the previous page (Types of Sources) in this Guide explain, academic books and journals are written by academics for other academics. The videos also explain that the vast majority of scholarly sources go through some type of review process. Although not perfect, this process is reliable enough that you don't have to evaluate academic sources for credibility. 

The videos on the previous page (Types of Sources) also explain that non-academic sources, also called "popular" sources, are written by journalists or free-lance writers for the general public. Examples of popular sources are newspapers and magazines. Many popular sources go through a review process that maintains their quality. 

When you're deciding whether to use a particular source in your paper, the question you're asking is whether the source is appropriate to use in your paper. Educators have come up with many different tools for students to use to determine whether a source is appropriate. The video below explains one of these tools: the TRAAP method. In the next section, I've included a link to another tool for evaluating sources from the Harvard Guide to Using Sources . In the third section, I've included two websites with media bias charts that will help you evaluate news sources.

Learning how to evaluate sources takes time and practice. You'll probably have questions as you're developing your skills. Remember that you can ask me, or another librarian; that's why we're here!

The TRAAP method involves analyzing the following features of a source in order to determine whether the source is appropriate to use in your essay. The acronym TRAAP stands for: 

• T = Timeliness
• R = Relevance
• A = Authority
• A = Accuracy
• P = Purpose

The Harvard Guide to Using Sources  includes a section on Evaluating Sources . These three pages are particularly relevant:

1. Questions to Ask About All Sources 
2. Evaluating Web Sources  
3. What's Wrong with Wikipedia? 

One of the first types of research papers that students write at NOVA is an argumentative essay on a current event or social issue. If you search the Web for a topic on a current event or social issue, such as climate change, many of the results that you get will probably come from news and social commentary websites. Many of these websites have a political bias. This doesn't mean that you should disregard them automatically, but it is important to know whether a website has a political bias. A quick and easy way to get a sense of which websites have a political bias is by checking the Media Bias Chart by Ad Fontes Media. 

The Media Bias Chart is available in static and interactive versions. Below is a link to the interactive version:

• Interactive Media Bias Chart  by Ad Fontes Media

The names of popular news and social commentary organizations are plotted on the Chart. The horizontal axis (side to side) represents the level of political bias that an organization has (based on an analysis of the articles published by the organization). The vertical axis (up and down) represents the level of news value and reliability that an organization has (again, based on an analysis of the articles published by the organization). 

Notice that The Associated Press (see their About  page and News  page) and Reuters (see their About  page and News  page) are located at the top and in the middle of the Chart. This indicates that these organizations produce articles that have low political bias and high news value and reliability. 

A company named AllSides also produces a media bias chart. Below is a link to theirs:

• Media Bias Chart  by AllSides

Other helpful resources that you'll find on the AllSides website are:

• Media Bias Ratings 
• How to Spot 16 Types of Media Bias