Media and Information Sources lot of the information being passed

around is biased and inaccurate.

1. Library
4. Indigenous media and information
 library materials may be either
 These are original information
digital or physical in form. Library
created by a local group of people.
can include a collection of books,
This also refers to content about
periodicals, newspaper, manuscripts,
indigenous people that may be
films, maps, prints, documents, CDs,
distributed through dominant forms
cassettes, videotapes, e-books,
of media or through forms of
audiobooks, and other formats. It
communication unique to their
requires common skill set in
people group.
searching and accessing information
 Are highly credible because they
from libraries.
are near the source and are seldom
 Libraries of published books are
circulated or profit. Indigenous
often considered highly reliable,
media are channel for change,
accurate, and valuable, books and
education, and development because
documents from dominant sources
of its direct access to local
are often peer reviewed. ISSN or
community.
ISBN registration ensures that
standards were followed in
Reliability
producing these materials.
 Information is said to be reliable if it
2. Internet
can be verified and evaluated. Others
 Information found on the internet
refer to the trustworthiness of the
may be quite varied in form and
source in evaluating the reliability of
content. Accessing information on
information.
the internet is easy because
 Skills in determining the reliability
documents on the web is widely
of information.
available.
a) Check the author. The
 Accessing information on the
author’s willingness to be
Internet is easy but requires more
identified is a good indication
disciple to check and validate. It is
of reliability.
more difficult to determine its
b) Check the date of
reliability and accuracy. Factual
publication or of update.
and fictious data are often merged
White the information may
together. Sources always have to be
be true, it may not be reliable
validated.
if it is outdated and may have
3. Alternative media
lost relevance.
 The rise of alternative media and c) Check for citations. Reliable
information and other alternative authors have the discipline of
forms of communication and citing sources of their
distribution have become popular. information.
These include social media, blogs, d) Check the domain or owner
and flash mob performances. of the site or page. The
 These alternatives forms provide domain .edu and .gov are
greater freedom and power to reserved for academic
ordinary individuals and are a institutions and the
quicker way of distributing government, respectively.
information. The downside is that a Information from such sites
 are presented with caution
and are usually well
grounded. Site owners may
have an agenda that affects
the manner by which
information is presented.
e) Check the site design and
the writing style. Credible
sources take time to make
their information accessible
and easy to comprehend.
Accuracy
 Accuracy refers to the closeness of
the report to the actual data.
Measurements of accuracy varies,
depending on the type of
information being evaluated.
Forecasts are said to be accurate if
the report is similar to the actual
data. Financial information is
considered accurate if the values are
correct, properly classified, and
presented.
 Skills in determining accurate
information.
a) Look for facts
b) Cross-reference with other
sources to check for
consistency.
c) Determine the reason for
writing and publishing the
information. Check if the
author is object or learning
heavily on a certain point of
view.
d) Check for advertising.
Advertisers may use related
information to market their
product.
Value
 Information is said to be of value if it
aids the user in making or improving
decisions
Authority
 Much of the information we gather
do not come from a primary source
but are passed on through secondary
sources such as writers, reporters,
and the like. Sources with an
established expertise on the subject
matter are considered as having
sound authority on the subject.
Timeliness
 Reliability, accuracy, and value of
information may vary based on the
time it was produced or acquired.
While a price of information may
have been found accurate, reliable,
and valuable during the time it was
produced, it may become irrelevant
and inaccurate with passing of
time (thus making it less valuable).
Other information may be timeless,
proven to be the same in reliability,
accuracy, and value throughout
history.
It may be difficult to fully determine the reliability,
accuracy, value, and timeliness of any information,
as well as authority of the source, literacy in media
and information benefits from the development of
these skills.