– Internet is littered with filth and lies
– On the internet, no one knows you’re a dog
– Journalists must ferret out lies and ensure their report is fair, accurate, complete and transparent
– Don’t accept Google searches at face value, no matter how fast you need to be
– Online audiences want the latest information, and they want it now
– Know how to pose a good question
– ‘The’ is pointless in a word search as so many websites have that word
– Searching: nouns are better than adjectives; made a specific term if you want a specific result; use quotation marks; who, what, where and when do better than why or how.
– Google is king, followed, if not way back, by Yahoo.
– The Web is square one, but as journalists we must dig deeper
– Home your search by using quotation
– Use a – before a word in Google to exclude it
– Good reporters clearly say what they are seeing, but wonder about what they are not
– Find sources on social media
– Used to be pubs and city hall – now Twitter and other social media
– Google and Technorati have blog search options
– Amateur multimedia can be useful, by providing pictures or video from someone who was there
– Collect emails and a few details about certain people for future sources
– By putting bits about yourself on social media, you show yourself as a real person and trustworthy
– WhoIs links owners and sites
– Network Solutions gives names and numbers
– Websites reflect the people or organisations that created them
– Information on a website may only be true when it was printed
– Look at the sources used – are they credible?
– RSS – Really Simple Syndication
– Many sites publish RSS automatically when they post new information
– RSS can be found with the icon