I found a site, but is it reliable?

So now you know a little bit about finding sites, but how do you know if they are any good? This is important, because if your students don't cite reliable information, then their papers will read more like the National Enquirer than the Washington Post.

The article Evaluating & Using Web-Based Resources suggests that you consider three things when determining the reliability and accuracy of an online resource:

1. Authority - Was the site created by an institutional or individual authority on the given subject? Is the information biased?
2. Domain - Take note of who hosts the site. Commercial organizations (.com) can be biased as can free postings by individuals (e.g. geocities.com).
3. Consistency - Is the site consistent with itself? Does the site agree with other sources, particularly authoritative sources?
4. Not mentioned in the article but also important is Timeliness. When was the page last updated? Does the material on the page depend on when it was published? Etc.

All four must be taken into account. Do not assume that a site written by someone who appears to be an authority and hosted by a legitimate domain--like a university (.edu)--is reliable. Is it consistent with other sources? Here's an example of something that isn't reliable that appears to be.