Evaluating digital sources

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With the ease of editing and publishing content online, it's not always straight-forward to locate the original author of the work you are reading.

Be careful where you source your information.

These are the sources that you rely on to build your arguments, to help support your ideas on your chosen topic.

Since your tutors will factor in the strength of your evidence, you are more likely to achieve higher marks when you have screened your sources for trustworthiness and appropriateness.

Consider this scenario

A student is looking to add statistical evidence to their essay.

In this case, the assignment is about sustainability in the UK fashion industry, and involves looking up the proportion of clothing that goes to waste when ordered, and returned, online.

To what degree are the below sources appropriate for this assignment?

Click through the arrows to read background information about each source.

Microphone against an orange and purple background.

Twitter

'30% of the clothes that people return are thrown in landfill. Think carefully about the brands that you use before your purchase them. Read more here.’ [posted 2 weeks ago]
Account: Sustainable fashion influencer
About the author: An advocate of ethics in the UK fashion industry. Within the tweet, they have included a link to a report published by a global research firm a year ago.

Instagram

‘30% of returned clothing goes to landfill when sent back retailers.’ [posted 1 day ago]

Author: Charity
About the author: They are a large UK-based organisation who has carried out research about unwanted clothing donated to charities. This post includes a link to their research reports carried out a month ago.

How appropriate is each source in relation to this assignment?

Here we are considering the authority, currency and potential accuracy of the information.

Questions that you could ask:

Who is communicating this message?
When was this information last published?
Where is this information coming from?

Twitter
Instagram

Authority

Look up the credentials of the influencer. Assess whether their qualifications and experience in the fashion industry matters in relation to the information they are sharing. What part of the fashion industry do they speak about? Do they have the authority to speak about this?

Would it be better to go to the original research report?

Currency

The date of the Tweet matters less in this case, as the information that you will be using is from the research report. Considering the report is two years old, check whether new data is available.

Accuracy

Check the statistics in the Tweet against the number in the original report. Investigate how the data was collected in this report.

It's important to check, in case the information has been interpreted differently by the influencer.

Authority

Checking the authors credentials can help you assess whether their experience makes them suitable for you to consider using their work.

Currency

Find the statistic within the report, and check back to the post to ensure the information is the same. Though the Instagram post is current, does it bring any additional, new information compared to the original report?

Accuracy

This is second-hand information. If you go back to the original report, you may want to check whether the data is from the UK? Is it suitable to use this statistic if the data is only representative of clothes from non-profit organisations specifically?

You must check these details, otherwise it may not be appropriate to include in your assignment.

Downloadable checklist

These are just some of the factors that you should consider before using a digital source. Use this resource to review the other areas to consider for your work.

Evaluating digital sources - checklist