In general, for all formats:
- Who is responsible for the intellectual content? Consider authors, publishers, producers.
- Does the publisher produce other resources on this topic?
- Is the author credible or an authority on the topic?
- How do you know if someone has authority or credibility? Think about what makes someone an expert on a particular subject. Look for credentials, keeping in mind which credentials you would consider most valuable in judging expertise on this topic.
- Do they have advanced education in the discipline?
- Have they been working in the field for many years?
- Do many others consider the author to be an authority? For example, have you found that other sources quote this author?
- Search the catalog and periodical databases to determine what else the author has written, or look up the author in the Gale Biography in Context database.
For books:
- Look for author(s) credentials on cover, flaps, or back of the book, or in the introduction.
- Locate reviews of the book. A well-written professional review will address the authority of the author.
- If the book is very new, reviews may not be readily available. Locate reviews of other books written by the author (if there are any).
- Is the publisher an organization, publishing house, vanity press, university press, or is it self-published?
- University presses tend to publish books or journals with articles who are recognized experts in their fields.
- Look at the publisher’s website to see if any additional information is provided about the author.
For periodical articles:
- Is the author listed or is the article not signed or anonymous?
- Is the author a well known authority on the topic covered? Has the article been cited by other authors (use a citation index)?
- Are the author’s credentials listed? Scholarly articles may include the author(s) degrees and additional authority information.
- Search the catalog and periodical databases to determine what else the author has written, or look up the author in the Gale Biography in Context database.
- Locate reviews of books written by the author (if there are any).
- Look at the periodical itself: Is the publisher an organization, publishing house, vanity press, or university press?
- University presses tend to publish books or journals with articles who are recognized experts in their fields
For websites:
- Is the responsible party an individual, an organization, or a company? How do you know? Examine the URL closely.
- If no author is listed, break down the web address to determine responsible party
- What do you already know about the author or responsible party?
- Look for information provided on the site under the “About us” or “Our company” or “Our Mission” portion of the website
- Is there contact information provided for the author or responsible party?
- If it is an organization or association, look it up in The Gale Directory Library online database
- If it is a company, do a company search in Business Source Complete (online database).
- Who owns the domain? Enter the URL in a domain registry: Allwhois: http://allwhois.org/.