The SIFT method is a form of lateral reading and was created by Mike Caulfield, a digital literacy scholar who focuses on how misinformation and disinformation spread. The SIFT method was designed to investigate digital sources like websites, images, audio clips, and videos. When using SIFT, you may only act on the first two steps, S and I, and get the information you need to evaluate the source.
When you find a website that you are interested in reading or using as a source for your assignment, before you start reading anything STOP and consider these questions:
Don't share or post until you have more information about the website.
As you investigate you may need to revisit this step and decide if you should spend more time investigating the website or move on from the website and how much time and depth should you dedicate to this information.
Use your Google skills to investigate a source of information. This investigation is not an in-depth dive into the history of an author or organization, but is designed to give you a general idea of what something is about.
When you land on a website you are unsure about open a new tab in your browser and Google them.
Don't blindly trust the "About Us" pages on a website. Remember, they will only tell you the good stuff and they will avoid anything negative.
Sometimes when you investigate the source you'll find that the source is sufficient for your needs and you can continue with your reading of the source and integration into your assignment.
If you can't determine the reliability of a source you will need to find a trusted and credible source to get accurate information on the subject.
"Trusted" sources should have:
The Media Bias Chart can help you recognize publications that may present more biased information.
Most stuff you see on the web is not original reporting or research. In most cases, the more a story circulates by re-reporting and reposting, the more distorted and warped it becomes. It is often stripped of its context, which can distort the meaning.
Tracing a image, claims, quotes, and other media back to the original source can help you ensure the information is being accurately presented.
These short videos hosted by Mike Caulfield give a short introduction to the steps in the SIFT method.
This SIFT Guide and text is adapted from Michael Caulfield's "Check, Please!" course and website and is licensed under CC BY 4.0.
SIFT graphic is adapted from “SIFT (The Four Moves)” by Mike Caulfield, licensed under CC BY 4.0