Case studies

Verification: The Basics


About this course

When a violent protest, mass-scale accident, or natural hazard unfolds, information tends to get jumbled, causing fear and confusion. With the growing use of technology, we have witnessed innumerable false and fake stories being shared on social networks, including photoshopped images, or reuploaded diced videos from unrelated events in the past. With increasing frequency, journalists are required to master the skills and expertise to handle the information that circulates on the Internet and elsewhere.

Complementing our recently launched resource, the Verification Handbook, this course will provide the basic knowledge and techniques of verification in the digital age.

In this course, you will learn:

  • The mindset, values, and basic approaches of verification in the networked world.
  • What open verification is, best practices, and some examples of how it’s being done.
  • The challenges of verifying information during a crisis, with tips for preparation and training.
  • The key techniques of verifying UGC, such as how to verify provenance, source, date, and location.
  • Ethical considerations and how to ensure to protect your source.
  • Appropriate crediting and labelling, including best practices for attributing the UGC you use.

In a nutshell

Skill level

Beginner

Duration

1 hr 47 min

Subtitles

English

Students enrolled

N/A

Course introduction


Meet your instructor: Craig Silverman


Meet your instructor: Claire Wardle


What you’ll learn

  • The mindset, values, and basic approaches of verification in the networked world.
  • What open verification is, best practices, and some examples of how it’s being done.
  • The challenges of verifying information during a crisis, with tips for preparation and training.
  • The key techniques of verifying UGC, such as how to verify provenance, source, date, and location.
  • Ethical considerations and how to ensure to protect your source.
  • Appropriate crediting and labelling, including best practices for attributing the UGC you use.

Craig Silverman

Media Editor

I tutor: Case studies

Biography

Craig Silverman is an award-winning journalist and author and one of the world's leading experts on online misinformation, fake news, and content verification. He is the media editor of BuzzFeed News where he leads a global beat covering platforms, online misinformation, and media manipulation.

Claire Wardle

U.S. Director

I tutor: Case studies

Biography

I am an expert on verification and misinformation online.

Similar courses

Covering issues
Doing Journalism with Data: First Steps, Skills and Tools

Paul Bradshaw, Steve Doig, Simon Rogers, Nicolas Kayser-Bril, Alberto Cairo

Data visualisation
Charting Tools for the Newsroom

Maarten Lambrechts

Resources
Managing Data Journalism Projects

Jacopo Ottaviani

Data analysis
Mistakes We Made So You Don't Have To: Data Visualisation, Journalism and the Web

Jonathon Berlin

Best practices
Bulletproof Data Journalism

Stijn Debrouwere

Data collection
Cleaning Data in Excel

Maarten Lambrechts

subscribe figure