Introducing the SIFT Method
 Infographic showing the steps of SIFT: Stop, investigate the source, find trusted coverage, trace claims, quotes and media to the original context.](https://libapps.s3.amazonaws.com/accounts/2161/images/sift.png)
SIFT is an evaluative method developed by Mike Caufield, a digital literacy expert, for evaluating online sources, particularly online news and social media posts. Before selecting a web source to use in your research or share on social media, use the following four moves to determine how reliable and valid its claims are. SIFT is a kind of lateral reading, which is a method of fact checking by looking at other sources for verification.
The four moves — Stop, Investigate the Source, Find Better Coverage, and Trace Claims, Quotes, and Media to the Original Context — will help you become a more savvy information user and choose higher quality sources.
Below you'll find basic information and a brief, introductory video for each of the 4 moves.
1. STOP
- Check your emotions.
- Do you know and trust the author, website, or source of the information?
- If not, use the fact-checking techniques below before determining whether to use the source.
2. INVESTIGATE THE SOURCE
3. FIND BETTER COVERAGE
- Focus on verifying the claim the source makes.
- Seek out the best, most in-depth coverage of the information.
- Use sources such as Google Scholar & Google News to find additional sources that corroborate or refute the claims made by the original source.
4. TRACE CLAIMS, QUOTES, & MEDIA TO THE ORIGINAL CONTEXT
- Find the original context and gauge the accuracy of the version you saw.
- Search Google News for relevant stories.
- Reverse image search to find the original image.
- Consult fact-checking websites such as Snopes.
Source: Mike Caufield. SIFT: The Four Moves. https://hapgood.us/2019/06/19/sift-the-four-moves. License: CC BY 4.0.
For further information about SIFT, see the link above or take Caufield's three-hour online minicourse.
Checking Facts
- FactCheck.org
A nonpartisan, nonprofit “consumer advocate” for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics. Monitors the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews and news releases. 
Use LinkedIn to verify information about the author of a source.- Media Bias / Fact Check
The most comprehensive media bias resource on the internet. Currently lists 1800+ media sources in their database. - Politifact
A fact-checking website that rates the accuracy of claims by elected officials and others who speak up in American politics. - Snopes
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, one widely regarded by journalists, folklorists, and laypersons alike as one of the world’s essential resources. - Washington Post Fact Checker
Created by The Washington Post, this site serves to “truth squad” the statements of political figures regarding issues of great importance, be they national, international or local.
Identifying Bias
- How to Detect Media Bias (FAIR)Guidelines for detecting bias in media from Fairness in Accuracy & Reporting (FAIR).
- AllSides
Exposes bias and provides multiple angles on the same story so you can quickly get the full picture, not just one slant. - Media Bias Chart (Ad Fontes Media)Provides static and interactive media bias charts. Create a free account for access to the full interactive chart.
- Media Bias / Fact CheckThe most comprehensive media bias resource on the internet. Currently lists 1800+ media sources in their database.
Verifying Photos
The simplest way to find further information about an image is to right-click and select Search image with Google.
If you are unable to search by right clicking on the image, the following steps provide alternative ways of running the same search to do a reverse image look up.
1. Go to images.google.com.
2. Click the camera icon in the search bar
3. Search by uploading the image file or dragging and dropping it into the search box for Google Lens (see below) or paste the URL for the photo into the search box and click search.
Note: To find the URL for an image, right click (PC) or control + click (Mac) on an image and copy the image URL by clicking Copy Image Address (Chrome, Firefox, or Safari) or Copy Image Link (Edge).
4. View results. Google Lens will then display other places where the same image has been used on the web. Pay attention for whether an image is being used out of context or to mislead readers.
5. To find the original image, click the link for Find Image Source at the top of the screen.
TinEye is an online tool for searching by image and finding where that image appears online.
Go to www.tineye.com
Upload the image or paste/enter the image URL in the search box. Click the magnifying glass icon to search.
Note: To find the URL for an image, right click (PC) or control + click (Mac) on an image and copy the image URL by clicking Copy Image Address (Chrome, Firefox, or Safari) or Copy Image Link (Edge)..
View results. Note: You can sort images by Oldest First to find the earliest instance of the image.
