ShmoopTube

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Edited at https://subtitletools.com

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The internet is a glorious place,

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but it's also an icky pit of misinformation, [Images of internet warning, Grumpy cat, and Justine Bieber rises from the pit]

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propaganda, and straight-up lies.

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Sending somebody to the internet to research...

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without giving them the tools to evaluate...

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what they're reading is kind of like sending someone to climb Mount Everest... [A guy in swimming attire slides down from a mountain]

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in swim trunks and flippers. It's just not...

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right. But when we're doing academic...

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research, we have to make sure our sources... [A pop singer pops up and starts dancing in library]

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are legit.

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Now how can we tell?

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First of all, we have to make sure the materials are written by...

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recognized experts in their field.

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Somebody's Uncle Steve might have fifteen... [Uncle Steve monitors work on the construction site]

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years of experience in H bak repair,

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but that doesn't make in an expert in mechanical engineering.

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An expert in something generally,

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has multiple degrees in their field... [Gary Smith is very happy to have so many degrees]

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and a whole bunch of publication trailing...

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in their name.

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Also, we have to make sure the materials underwent a...

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process of peer review.

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This means that other experts in the field [A team of experts discuss the issue]

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powwowed about a piece of writing

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before it was published.

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Not much stuff online goes through...

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this process, so beware.

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Unless we're talking primary sources, using materials... [Bunch of old magazines and books pop up on the screen]

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that are reasonably recent,

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well that could also be important, that doesn't mean...

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that a source published in 2012

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is automatically more reliable than a source published in 1996. [Books for solving Rubiks cube appears on the screen]

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But it does mean that you shouldn't rely on a...

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biology textbook from the 1950s...

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becuase they didn't figure out what DNA looked like...

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until the end of that decade.

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Before we get into the more specific standards... [A professor shows swirl for demonstrating DNA]

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we have to use for online research,

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we wanna make something crystal clear.

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Both online sources and print sources...

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require a careful process of evaluation... [The words 'online' and 'print' drops in guy's hands]

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and verification.

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Every single printed word we read, other...

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than the ingredients listed for salted peanuts,

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which is just peanuts and salt, [Label lists ingredients of salted peanuts]

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has a purpose and a bias.

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It's our jobs as researchers understand the...

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full context of what we're reading,

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even if it's in the trusted, vaunted [The student tries to search for information in encyclopedia but in vain]

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Encyclopedia Britannica.

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That used to be really popular. Ask your grandparents.

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Anyway, online sources need a little bit of...

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extra attention. They way that they're published... [A lady pats her laptop]

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makes it difficult to find important information...

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like the author, publisher, date, and citations.

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There are great sources out there on the web...

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waiting to be discovered but it's kind of a minefield. [A bomb explodes]

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If we google "civil war hsitory,"

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we'll get curated primary sources collections from...

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the Smithsonian Museum, [Photos of Smithsonian Museum appears]

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but we'll also get blog posts written by...

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confederate reenactors.

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These two sources were not created equal. [Soldiers cleans their guns]

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Besides asking those questions when assessing sources,

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we should always think critically, right?

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Like a lot of times it's better to trust a .org site... [A girl is in dilemma about .org and .com]

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more than a .com site.

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.Orgs are funded by your tax dollars...

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generally and government bureaucrats kind of... [The girl dances after receipt of donations to her site]

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manage 'em, and .com companies...

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have to pay their own rent, so they got to sell a lot of ads...

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and get a lot of volume to actually, you know, [A guy is frustrated and hits the laptop]

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pay for things.

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But here's a mnd blowing example showing that not...

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all .orgs are our friends.

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The official website for the non-profit dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr.... [Website for Martin Luther King Jr. legacy appears]

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and his legacy is called The King Center.

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It can be found at [The king center logo pop up]

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check it out.

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It's well researched, highly respected,

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and totally legit. [Martin Luther King Jr. waves at the crowd]

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But there's another site, which we advice...

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no one to visit, that can be found at [Human skull video plays]

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Looks like a legit url, right? Pretty official?

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Well, it's run by a white supremacist group...

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that wants to spread false information...

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about MLK and the Civil Rights Movement. [Members of MLK protests for their rights]

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The lesson? Don't go to the internet without a...

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healthy sense of suspicion, and a... [A bomb detecting squad member views computer]

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you know, maybe a hazmat suit.

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