While skimming this week’s assignment, I found it very interesting on what misinformation can be prevented strictly by the trustworthiness of the site. Well today I decided to analyze two news agencies and determine for myself how trustworthy they are

When it comes to finding trustworthy sources of information, the Trust Project has outlined eight key indicators to consider. These indicators are Transparency, Best Practices, Author Expertise, Type of Work, Citations and References, Methods, Diversity and Inclusions, and Story Selection/Political Affiliation.

First, let’s take a look at AZFreeNews.com, which seems to contain a majority of the indicators which would make it trust worth and some that make it not so much. Right away, they show transparency by providing a link to their About page which lists the names of their staff, as well as their mission, policies, and contact information. This helps to establish credibility, as it allows us to learn more about who is behind the website and what their goals and values are. AZFreeNews.com also provides a code of ethics for their journalists and staff, which shows that they are committed to upholding ethical standards. This is an important factor in establishing trustworthiness.

When it comes to Author expertise, AZFreeNews.com provides the qualifications and expertise of their staff. This is a great indicator of trustworthiness, as it shows that the website is staffed by experienced professionals who know what they’re talking about. They also make it clear that their stories are based on facts and that they strive for accuracy and fairness in their reporting and provides links to their “Credibility and Accuracy” page which lists the sources they use. This is a good sign that the website is committed to producing quality content.

Unfortunately, the news agency does not provide any information on their methods of reporting. This is a red flag, as it would be much more reassuring if they provided more information on their methods. It also does not provide any information on their diversity and inclusion policies or initiatives. This is a major red flag and could make some viewers skeptical of the website’s credibility. They also don’t provide any information on their political affiliation or story selection. This is a major red flag, as it would greatly improve their trustworthiness if they provided more information on this.

Overall, AZFreeNews.com is missing some important indicators of trustworthiness, such as Methods and Diversity and Inclusion. To become more trustworthy, they should provide more information on their methods and diversity and inclusion policies, as well as their political affiliation and story selection. If they do this, then AZFreeNews.com will be much more trustworthy.

Finally, I took time to analyze the trustworthiness of the East Arizona News and their website at https://eastarizonanews.com/. I can confidently say that of the eight indicators of trustworthiness listed by The Trust Project, six are present. The site displays author/expert bios, a clear mission statement, and contact information. It also has a list of sources, a policy of corrections and clarifications, and clearly labeled advertising.

However, the site is missing a best practices policy and a commitment to diverse voices.

Their absence has a huge impact on the trustworthiness of the site. The trust project indicators are designed to build trust, and the presence of several of them certainly helps. The absence of the two missing indicators, however, is a red flag. Without a best practices policy, it is difficult to know what standards the site adheres to, and without a commitment to diverse voices, it is difficult to know if all perspectives are being represented.

I believe there are other indicators of trustworthiness that are not on The Trust Project’s list. For example, a website should have credible and reliable content, and it should follow established ethical journalism practices. Additionally, the website should have a transparent system for how it handles complaints or grievances.

To become more trustworthy, the website could incorporate the two missing indicators. The site could also create a page dedicated to ethical journalism practices and complaints/grievance procedures. Furthermore, the website should strive to feature content from a variety of sources and perspectives, and should make sure to verify information before it is published. All of these steps could help make the website more trustworthy.

Overall, each website’s trustworthiness is subjective based off how you feel about the information presented. While I can apply my own research by utilizing the trust indicators its all dependent on you whether the byte of information, I provided is reputable and unbiased. But then again I guess it all comes down to trust.