Criminology News
Unlike scholarly sources (like academic books and peer reviewed journal articles), popular sources (like newspapers, reviews, blogs, tweets, etc) are not original research, instead tending to be either opinion-based or written about other people’s original research.
These materials are fine to be used to illustrate a point, or for otherwise current news, but not to build your argument.
Evaluate web sources very carefully before including them in your research. The main conditions for evaluating websites are:
- Who is the author? It is important to check the author's credentials to determine whether he/she has the knowledge and authority to supply credible information. Check to see if any contact details are provided.
- How current is the information? See when the document was created and when it was last updated.
- What is his/her interest in the material? Can you detect any bias in the content and are you able to determine the purpose of the site? Check the address to identify the type of organisation producing the document. Be aware the commercial interests and some politically motivated sites may not represent a balanced view.
- What sort of content is there? Can the content be considered comprehensive and of good quality? Does it provide links to other documents? Check on the audience the information is aimed at (e.g. primary school students or university students).
- Newsbank - Access Global Newsbank This link opens in a new windowACCESS 'THE WEST AUSTRALIAN' and 'THE AUSTRALIAN' NEWSPAPERS.
Access more than 12,800 U.S. and global news sources, including political science, journalism, English, history, environmental studies, sociology, economics, education, business, health, social sciences and more.
- Australia & New Zealand Newsstream This link opens in a new window
Access leading Australian and New Zealand newspapers. Combining content from Fairfax Australia and Fairfax New Zealand, News Limited, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and APP newswires, ANZ Newsstand provides the very latest local, regional and national news. - International Newsstream This link opens in a new windowProvides the most recent news content outside of the US and Canada, with archives featuring newspapers, newswires, and news sites in active full-text format. Includes The Times (London), The Bangkok Post, El Norte, Financial Times, The Guardian, Jerusalem Post, South China Morning Post, The Daily Telegraph, Asian Wall Street Journal, and the BBC Monitoring series of publications.
- National Library of Australia - Digitised Newspapers This link opens in a new windowContains digital reproductions of newspapers, journals, books, maps, personal papers, as well as archived websites and other born-digital content. It also brings together records and digitised content from libraries, museums, galleries, universities, archives, data repositories and other organisations around Australia.
- TVNews This link opens in a new windowIndexes Australian television news, current affairs and selected documentaries from the free-to-air networks with links to the digitised video content in a compressed format.
TVNews is updated daily, with stories appearing on an evening news broadcast generally being available for access the next morning. - US Newsstream This link opens in a new windowAccess the most recent premium U.S. news content, as well as archives which stretch back into the 1980s featuring newspapers, newswires, blogs, and news sites in active full-text format. Offers exclusive access to the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, and co-exclusive access (with Factiva) to The Wall Street Journal.
Fake news is not new, but increasing discussions of "fake news" have surrounded political campaigns and the rise of satire news publications.
It is important to be aware that not all "news" published on the internet is reliable, and similarly, that not all news claimed to be "fake news" is in fact fake. Just because you disagree with the news piece doesn't make it fake.
Fake news can include content created by non-news organisations to drive web users towards ads (i.e. clickbait) or to spread false information (rumors, conspiracy theories, propaganda etc).
There are a number of websites devoted to fact checking news. A select few include:
Advocates of factual information in the global fight against misinformation.
A joint fact checking project between RMIT University and the ABC.
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Climate FeedbackA worldwide network of scientists sorting fact from fiction in climate change media coverage.
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Citizen Evidence LabCreated by Amnesty International. Focus on validating video content.
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Full FactThe UK's independent fact checking charity.
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FactCheck.orgA project of the Annenberg Public Policy Centre. US focus.
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Washington Post Fact CheckerA fact checking site with a focus on American politics.
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SnopesThe Snopes.com web site was founded by David Mikkelson, a project begun in 1994 as an expression of his interest in researching urban legends that has since grown into the oldest and largest fact-checking site on the Internet, widely regarded by journalists, folklorists, and everyday users.