How To Separate the Bulls From the Bearers of Truthfulness(P-1)

During the course of my web journeys, I occasionally stumble across a site worthy of being designated a gem. The "Virtual Chase" (provided by the law firm of Ballard, Spahr, Anderson and Ingersoll) truly deserves that honor. This mega-site is designed to enable the web researcher to validate the truthfulness of the claims made by the thousands of sites one can encounter in the research process.

The discussion on IQ (Information Quality) is the hub of the wheel that makes this site a must read for all net users. Their "Checklist" is the beginning of a thorough examination process. [Checklist- http://www.virtualchase.com/quality/chec... This process is so important that this entire article is devoted to analyzing and implementing "Checklist" recommendations: A. Determine objectivity- the author of the "Virtual Chase" makes it clear that veracity imposes no obligation to topic objectivity: in fact we should expect many sites to provide a spirited argument favoring one side. It is the quality of the information they employ that we question. How to determine the orientation of the Webmaster is the key to this puzzle. "Virtual Chase" advises the use of Network Solutions' Whois search engine [http://www.networksolutions.com/cgi-bin/... ] to determine who controls that domain. Knowledge of domain ownership can truly open the eyes of the student to the real objectives of the site. Many times site names are designed to create a diversion from the real intent of its owners.

B. The next step under objectivity is to find, decipher and analyze the site's statement of purpose. The "Virtual Chase" provides examples of different site statements. The first one has an objective intent. (http://securities.stanford.edu/about/cav... Compare this first statement of purpose to one alleged to have a biased intent. (http://galen.library.ucsf.edu/tobacco/ci... The Webmaster also provides a number of unlabeled examples for the researcher to hone his/her intellectual acuity in this vital area of mission statements.

2. Read the site's documentation information: Make an effort to identify key footnotes-and follow up author's name with a quick search engine check. Check to see if the site also appears in print version and attempt to find reviews of the print version. The "Virtual Chase" suggests that you even carry out an investigation of how the site's documents are put on line. They use the Avalon Law Project @ Yale as an example. (http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/help/h... -Sloppy transfer processes can indicate potential errors and an internal deficit in regard to the attitude of the examined site's creators.

3. Ascertain the reputation of the Author and Publisher: Does the Author and publisher have established track record? If not check some of the footnotes and pursue other works to ascertain their existence and the validity of earlier works. Another helpful tool aimed at measuring vested interest is "Who Owns What" from the Columbia School of Journalism. ( http://www.cjr.org/owners/) The first item you encounter on their web page is an important essay by Mark Crispin Miller on the tremendous concentration of ownership and power in the media industry. The whole guide is sufficiently provocative to cause the astute observer to ponder whether or not we have achieved de facto censorship in this crucial industry.

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