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Keep Calm and Read Laterally! A Lateral Reading Tutorial: Dos & Don'ts

Learn about the Lateral Reading strategy for evaluating digital information and become a more critical consumer of information.
Self-assessment (Anonymous Poll): Have you ever relied on any of the following markers to distinguish reliable information from the unreliable?
Page layout (e.g. a professional-looking webpage): 0 votes (0%)
Ads (e.g. no ads on the page): 0 votes (0%)
Language (e.g. content written in professional language without errors): 0 votes (0%)
Quotes (e.g. links to authoritative references): 0 votes (0%)
Images (e.g. good quality images used on the page): 0 votes (0%)
Page URL (e.g. a legit-looking URL in .org domain): 0 votes (0%)
Logo (e.g. a well-designed logo on the website): 0 votes (0%)
About page (e.g. a well-written About Us page): 0 votes (0%)
Total Votes: 0

Don'ts

Many websites look really legit when we read them vertically, because our attentions are often and only on the superficial markers. And that’s what the people behind the sites want us to see. All of the above options are examples of superficial markers. So, when we read vertically, it is often hard to distinguish reliable information from the unreliable.

Dos

Ask 3 Questions

Let's move beyond the superficial markers and engage with three questions:

1. Who is behind the information?
2. What is the evidence?
3. What do other sources say?

Use Them to Evaluate

There are plenty of online sources we can use to look into a site or claim. We recommend you to start with them: 

1. Wikipedia
2. Credible news sources
3. Fact-checking sites, for example:

These useful sources may not be always perfect, but they are very good starting points if we’re just trying to learn about a source, especially an unfamiliar one.

 
The use of electronic resources must comply with the Appropriate Use of Electronic Resources Policy and Singapore Management University Acceptable Use Policy