While searching for videos on the Internet, it is important to evaluate them for their credibility. In the boxes below, you will learn how to evaluate videos to discern whether something you locate on your own is something that is credible and may be used as a source for this assignment.
The CRAAP test will help you evaluate information you find on the Internet. Ask yourself these questions to evaluate and determine the credibility of a site as a whole or particular information on a site.
Currency: the timeliness of the information
Relevance: the importance of the information for your needs
Authority: the source of the information
Accuracy: the reliability, truthfulness, and correctness of the content, and
Purpose: the reason the information exists
There are a few clues right in YouTube that will help you perform an initial quick assessment of the credibility of a video. It is still advisable to perform other tests but answering these questions first will help determine if you should move on to the other tests or move on to other videos.
How many views does it have (given the topic)?
What is the ratio of thumbs up vs. thumbs down on the video?
Does the creator/producer have a YouTube channel and the capability to subscribe? How many subscribers are there?
Does the video have a transcript or does it offer closed captions?
Are comments turned on? If on, what are they saying?
This page from Colorado State University Libraries does a great job pointing out everything to look for when specifically evaluating movies, videos, or film clips.