Be a bias buster

• Explore different kinds of cognitive biases:  List of Cognitive Biases

Questions to ask about the source (book, website, magazine, journal, or newspaper):

• What is the purpose of the source? (Does it inform, persuade, present opinions, report research, or sell a product?

• Who is the publisher of the source? (Is it an organization, association, or company?)

• Who is the intended audience of the source? (Is it for the general population or for a select group of people?)

• Where is it published? (Is it local, regional, national, or international?)

Questions to ask about a specific article or landing website:

• Who is the author? (Is an author identified? Are any credentials listed? Is the author qualified to speak on this topic? What other topics has the author written about? Does the author belong to a partisan organization that may influence point of view?)

• What is the purpose of the article? (Is it a review, commentary, editorial, informative article, research article, etc.?)

• What kind of supporting material is offered? (Does the author quote research studies, statistics, or use personal anecdotes or experiences? Is logic applied when drawing conclusions? Are deceptive arguments used?)

• What kind of language is used in the article? (Are inflammatory, loaded, or emotionally-charged words used?)

Additional links that help us think about bias:

• WikiHow: How to Recognize Bias in a Newspaper Article

• AllSides: Follow the "News" or "Issues" sections to see how individual news stories and sources are rated on a range or liberal, center, or conservative.