Kōkiri Learn

Background reading · English

Can I trust it? Checking sources before you use them

Five questions that sort solid evidence from shaky claims, and the trick fact-checkers use called lateral reading.

Your argument is only as strong as its evidence. One made-up statistic can make a decision-maker doubt everything else you wrote. So before a fact goes into your argument, check it.

Five questions for every source

  • Who made it: a person, a company, a government agency, a campaign group? What do they know about this topic?
  • When: is it recent enough? Speed-limit data from 2009 may not describe your road today.
  • Why: is it trying to inform, sell, persuade or entertain? A company selling bottled water has a reason to say tap water is risky.
  • Evidence: does it show where its facts came from, or just say 'studies show'?
  • Cross-check: can you find the same fact in a second source that isn't copying the first?

    • Read sideways

    Professional fact-checkers don't read a website top to bottom to decide if it's trustworthy. They open a new tab and search for the organisation's name to see what others say about it. This is called lateral reading, and it takes about a minute. A site can look professional and still be run by people with something to sell.

    Good starting points in Aotearoa

    Official statistics from Stats NZ, council reports, research from universities and public research organisations, NZHistory and Te Ara, and news organisations that correct their mistakes publicly are all places to start. Even then, note the author and date.

    Record it as you go

    Write down the title, author or organisation, date and link the moment you use a source. Adding them at the end is slow, and you'll forget where half your facts came from.

    Sources and further reading

    Written for Kōkiri Learn students in our own words. Check facts against the sources.

    Used in: Crafting the Argument