Web Credibility in Online Journalism
A
Senior Thesis Showcase
Whitney Downing
Maryville College Class of 2009
Maryville College Class of 2009
Web sites and the Internet have always been of great interest to me. As a teenager I taught myself the basics of web design using tutorials and examples found online. I have since expanded my personal interest into a lucrative freelance web design business that has taught me a great deal about how we use the Internet. While designing a site, my main concern is how to present ideas. Web sites offer a forum for communication, and by mixing written and visual design, I try to create an appealing source of information for viewers. Because of the nature of the web, anyone can make a web site about any topic they choose; however, it is often difficult to discern whether or not that information is credible.
When writing a formal paper, we are encouraged to use scholarly and credible sources. Published books, journals, and papers are considered viable sources of information, but the Internet as a source is still questioned. Until recently, I could not cite web sources for any of my school papers. Now, I find I can use web sources, but they must be credible. What makes a credible web site? What standards do we use to determine if a site is a good source, scholarly or otherwise? What aspects of a web site make it trustworthy as a reliable source?
This senior project defines good practices for determining site viability for journalistic web sites.
While a great deal of this project will be in written format, I plan to take the study to the next level by launching a fully functional web site to showcase my findings. My writing and research will be included in the sections of the site, along with examples and linked content. Because my eventual aim is to obtain a job in the web development community, it would be to my benefit to have a site to bolster my resume and prove that I can put my knowledge into actions. A web site has distinct advantages over just a written work, especially in this field, as I can easily incorporate examples into my project and provide a more interactive method to reading my study. The site will utilize what I learn about web credibility in its design and layout, and be hosted on an active server.
The first part of my project focuses on a definition of credibility. I use my research to examine what is seen as credible, and apply it to how the Internet is used as a medium. I examine design and layout of web sites that correspond with credible non-web media, and compare how online sources are viewed compared with paper sources. In this section, I also use information I gain from interviews with authorities on the subject. I look at data from studies conducted by research groups about web credibility. The trends identified by those studies inform my definition, and help me to delineate guidelines to finding and using credible sources. The second part of my project will be the web site, where I show what I have learned by applying it to my own work and by critiquing other web sites for credibility.
This
study will blend empirical data that I find with theoretical deductions
about credibility that I gain from my interviews and readings. Much of
my empirical data will come from studies done by
Another study that I would like to use is a survey done by Princeton
Survey Research Associates
on consumer concerns about web site credibility. I also plan to cite
other, smaller research projects to bolster my analysis. Ziming Liu of
Another example of a study I plan to cite is by Kenneth C.C. Yang of The University of Texas, regarding Taiwanese users’ assumptions about the credibility of news blogs. Other literature related to my research include Understanding Web Credibility: A Synthesis of the Research Literature, a comprehensive look at web credibility by web development scholar Jonathan Lazar, Gabrielle Meiselwitz, and Jinjuan Feng.
This project blends my Writing and Communications major with my Computer Science minor. My ability to successfully mix my studies will help me with this Senior Project, which requires that I be able to focus on multiple areas of study at once.
I have written for Maryville College’s student publication, The Highland Echo, for five semesters thus far, as well as serving as The Highland Echo’s Web Editor for the past four semesters, during which time I have redesigned the entire web site. In the winter and summer of 2007, I interned and wrote for the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) Communications department; my stories appeared in the lab’s internal newspaper, the ORNL Reporter. I also studied Web Accessibility with the Information Technology Services Division during the summer internship, which allowed me to work with software exclusive to my study interests, as well as with people who were involved with web development. These experiences have groomed me to be able to focus both on good writing procedures and web development practices. This Senior Project will not just be a static rite of passage for my undergraduate degree—it has the potential to contribute to my career far beyond my college years.