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Evaluating Information Sources

What is the SIFT method?

The SIFT method was created by Mike Caulfield, a digital literacy expert at Washington State University. All SIFT information on this page is adapted from his materials with a CC BY 4.0 license. The SIFT method identifies four steps that allow you to determine whether or not a source is credible. SIFT stands for 

  • Stop before you read
  • Investigate the source
  • Find better coverage
  • Trace claims, quotes and media to the original context.

You can watch tutorials describing each step in detail. The video below provides a broader overview of the method.

The SIFT method tutorial