Comm. - Journalism - Media

Why Sources Matter

Last year, I helped a student, Judy, who was surprised by her professor's COMM 1500 research paper requirements. She found it difficult to choose the types of sources her professor wanted to see (and she didn't like the grades she was getting). When she stopped by the Library I helped her learn how to identify good sources of information. This is what I shared:

Credibility

Credibility means that the source relies upon facts, the author has credentials and a background in that field, and the source is reviewed by others to ensure that everything is correct. When I told Judy about this definition, her eyes glazed over! Sometimes definitions can be true, but not helpful. A more helpful way to think about this idea is to ask the following questions about your sources:

• WHO provides the information?  Do the authors have expertise or credentials?
• WHAT information are the authors presenting? What about it makes it reliable?
• WHY are the authors sharing this information?  What is its purpose?  Is there any evident bias?
• WHEN was the information published?  Is it outdated, or does that even matter?
• WHERE did you find the information?  Is it associated with a reliable institution or with a fringe group?
• HOW do the authors prove their claims?  Is there any documentation or attribution (citations)?

What if you still don't feel confident in choosing credible sources?

You should probably look at the source type. All sources are published differently and this can affect their credibility. Here's a quick summary of the different source types you might use in COMM 1500:

• Scholarly / academic (peer-reviewed) journal articles: has been double-checked by scholars before publication.  For more see this guide.
• Academic books: a book that has been reviewed by an editor who is a scholar and which follows academic standards
• Trade or professional-related articles: an article by a professional in the field designed to help the average worker solve problems 
• Magazine articles and newspaper articles: written by professional journalists in the field (according to journalism ethics) for the public

Finding Good Sources

Did you know that the most credible sources often cost money to view?  Has it been paid for?

This can cause problems when you research because less credible (free) sources on the Web are easier to access and often come up first in your search results. Our Library pays publishers to let you read the most credible sources for FREE in our databases.

Next Steps

Continue working through this page to practice evaluating sources or go to the next tab to learn more on how to find credible sources.

Practicing Identifying Credible Information, an example

1. Let's say you are researching if it is a good idea to own an exotic pet, specifically a capybara, in Utah, and you want to know more about them. Or you just want to know more about exotic pet laws in general.
2. Look at the table below to see examples of a search result on this topic:
   1. A Google search with the terms: capybara pet Utah 
   2. A Library Database ProQuest Central search with the terms: capybara pet  (excluding Utah)
   3. A Library Database ProQuest Central search using the terms: exotic animals  ownership
3. If you click on the captured images of each source you will be able to read them and evaluate their content. Notice that:
   1. The sources found in ProQuest Central are more robust. They are made to help you learn about a topic and discuss that issue.
   2. The third Animals article is an academic source with a lot of references/citations, the authors really want you to feel confident that their research has been fact-checked. It is an example of a scholarly journal article, but happens to be open-access.
   3. The source found on Google is easy to read and focuses on Salt Lake City but it doesn't have citations or any other ways for you to learn more about this topic. It even has an outdated link to a Utah government site.  
   4. The sources found in the Library Databases are there to help you meet the expectations of your teachers and are the building blocks of a successful presentation or paper.  There are also other Library databases you can try which are not shown here.

1.  Found using Google	2.  Found in a Library Database: ProQuest Central	3.  Also found in ProQuest Central
City Cast Salt Lake website	The New Yorker (title link is the Web version)	The Academic journal is called Animals
APA Citation of this website made using a form at MyBib.com: Can You Keep a Capybara? (2023, Aug 22). City Cast Salt Lake, Urban Almanac. Retrieved March 7, 2025, from https://saltlake.citycast.fm/urban-almanac/can-you-keep-a-capybara  (A popular Web post with not much authoritative substance.)	APA Citation of the ProQuest Central version: Shteyngart, G. (2025, Feb 03). Capybara, Mon Cœur. The New Yorker, https://libprox1.slcc.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/magazines/capybara-mon-cœur/docview/3168043005/se-2  Here is the open Web link of this article: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/02/03/how-the-capybara-won-my-heart-and-almost-everyone-elses  (New Yorker is a credible, published and paid-for source.)	APA Citation from ProQuest Central: Díaz, R. A., Sevillano, V., & Marcelo Hernán Cassini. (2022).  Do People Care about the Origin of Wildlife? The Role of Social Stereotypes on Public Preference for Exotic Animals. Animals, 12(17), 2160. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12172160 (An Academic Journal Open Access article that is peer-reviewed and very credible.)

These results may give you an idea of why it is useful to use special Library databases, and not just rely on Google searches alone.  Why limit your results to the smaller amount of credible sources found on the Open Web?