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Online credibility in the news

Online credibility in the news. Kristina Courtnage Bowman Writing and Presentation for Digital Media COM586 May 15, 2007. Questions to consider. How do readers judge credibility of online news content?

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Online credibility in the news

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  1. Online credibility in the news Kristina Courtnage Bowman Writing and Presentation for Digital Media COM586 May 15, 2007

  2. Questions to consider • How do readers judge credibility of online news content? • What issues specific to the online environment do news organizations face regarding credibility? • How can news organizations improve their credibility online?

  3. Perception of credibility of online news sources • Findings of “Report: Online News Widely Accepted as Credible” by Howard I. Finberg. Feb. 1, 2002. • Online readers are more concerned about accuracy than timeliness.

  4. Public perceptions • 95.9 percent of public say separation between advertising and editorial content matters to a news source's credibility • 40 percent confident they can discriminate between advertising and editorial content • Trust and confidence increases with amount of time spent at site

  5. What should online news sites consider? • Effect of hyperlinks • Ability to link to source information and other background information • No control over links to outside sites • Effects of immediacy • Balance between being first and accuracy of information • Ease of use

  6. Issues of concern for online news sites • Corrections • Possibility for anonymity and pseudonyms • Editing stories that are already posted online • Standards for multimedia content

  7. How can online news sites improve credibility? • Belo Interactive Online Credibility Survey at dallasnews.com, July 9-19, 2004. • 70 percent likely to believe an Internet news source is credible if it’s associated with a print or broadcast organization they are familiar with.

  8. Improving credibility • 69 percent said they believe pop-up ads make a news site less credible. Nearly as many said the presence of ads with sound (60 percent) or video (58 percent) made an online news source seem less credible.

  9. Improving credibility • If a site’s information is consistently accurate, complete and fair, readers are more likely to believe it credible. • Readers are becoming more savvy when distinguishing internal from external links, but sites should still be wary of where they send readers outside their site.

  10. Improving credibility • News sites must maintain ethical standards that have long been applied to print publications • Avoid real and perceived conflicts of interest • Separate news and advertising departments

  11. Bibliography • Belo Interactive. “Online Credibility Survey.” Dallas News (2004), http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spe/credibility/. • Finberg, Howard I. “Report: Online News Widely Accepted as Credible.” Poynter Online (February 1, 2002), http://www.poynter.org/content/content_view.asp?id=3509.

  12. Bibliography • Tucher, Andie. “Why Web warriors might worry.” Columbia Journalism Review 36, no. 2 (July/August 1997): 35-36, http://proquest.umi.com.offcampus.lib.washington.edu/pqdweb?did=12975226&sid=1&Fmt=3&clientId=8991&RQT=309&VName=PQD.

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