Evaluating Online Information

1. Imagine you are doing research on gender and sexuality in Sailor Moon and find the following webpages. 

     Magical Girl Transformation - Analysis

     Prince Charming by Day, Superheroine by Night?

Which of these two pages is a better source for your research and why? Remember to think about the following:

• Who is the author and what are their credentials, education, or expertise?
• Does the topic of the article match your research topic?
• Is it a scholarly article or a popular article?
• Why was this article written? Is the author trying to convince you of something, sell something, or educate readers?

Reading Strategies for Academic Articles

Let's take a closer look at the Prince Charming article. Read through the first four paragraphs (everything before "Queering the Hero(ine)'s Journey"). Then discuss the following questions with a partner:

• What sources is the author analyzing?
• What questions or main topics is the author exploring?
• Where is the thesis statement (or the author's main idea)? 
  • Is there more than one sentence that could qualify?
• BONUS: What ideas do you have for a research angle or topic responding to this article?
  • Are there questions the author raises that you want to explore further or dispute?