What does that mean?
How a source was created and for what purpose tells you a lot about how it fits into your research need.
- Newspapers and magazines have a staff of editors.
- Why do they choose to publish the articles that they do?
- Who writes for magazines and newspapers?
- Who reads these articles and for what purpose?
- Academic journals are peer-reviewed before publication.
- Who writes in these publications?
- Who decides what gets published in these journals?
- Who reads these articles and for what purpose?
- Think of a source you read on the Web to get news or information.
- Who writes for that source?
- Who decides what gets hosted or posted on that site?
- Do you pay for access to that site?
- How do they make their money to employ staff and stay up and running?
- Can you tell who the intended audience is and what their interests are?
