Skip to Main Content

Fake News

Definitions

News Literacy is the ability to use critical thinking skills to judge the reliability and credibility of news reports, whether they come via print, television, the internet or social media (Digital Resource Center, Course Pack).

Other Resources

Current Issues

Guide to help students research current events topics and think critically about information found.

Mistakes Were Made (but not by me)

Why we justify foolish beliefs, bad decisions, and hurtful acts.

Quiz

Beyond the Truthiness: Information as a Conversation

"And that brings us to tonight's word: Truthiness. Now I'm sure some of the word-police, the "wordanistas" over at Webster’s, are gonna say, "Hey, that's not a word!" Well, anybody who knows me knows that I am no fan of dictionaries or reference books. They're elitist. Constantly telling us what is or isn't true, what did or didn't happen...”

– Stephen Colbert, October 17, 2005, The Colbert Report

Lee, Samantha and Shana Lebowitz. "20 cognitive biases that bcrew up your decisions." Business Insider, 26 Aug. 2015, 12:38, www.businessinsider.com/cognitive-biases-that-affect-decisions-2015-8.

Currency

  • What is the publication date or last date updated?
  • Is the content timely, useful, and valid for your information need?

Authorship

  • Who wrote the content?
  • What makes that individual author or organization qualified to write it? What other information about the author is included?
  • Who sponsored the content?

Purpose

  • Is the purpose of the content to inform, to entertain, or to promote a product or service? 
  • Who is the intended audience?
  • Does the information seem credible? If so, can you check the information against another resource (i.e. book, journal article, newspaper, etc.) for credibility?

Objectivity

  • Is content biased?
  • Are opinions balanced or does the author have an agenda?
  • How does the bias influence the information?

Writing Style

 

 

 

  • Does the information contain a bibliography, references, or a comprehensive list of sources supporting its theme, topic, or agenda?
  • Is content presented at an appropriate level for an academic research paper?
  • Does the supporting information fit your research need?
  • Is the work complete, or is it a summary of other work?
  •  

Frequently Asked Questions

Your LSCS ID serves as your library card and gives you easy access to the library's online resources from off-campus, the Fitness Center on-campus and may help you obtain student discounts from community stores and shops that offer one. For off-campus access to eBooks, articles, and streaming video from the library's databases, use the 14-digit barcode number on the back. You will also use your student ID to add cash to your Print Account so you can copy and print in the Learning Commons.

Go to the circulation desk of any Lone Star College Libraries or Learning Commons. You will need a photo ID and you will need to be registered as a student. Of course, we also provide IDs to faculty and staff!

If you're an online only student, complete the form at http://www.LoneStar.edu/library/card. Make sure you use your LoneStar email address, and a Learning Commons employee will send you a barcode number to access the library's online resources!

You will need to set up a Print Account  and then add money to it:

  1. Signing in to any print release station to set up your print account.
  2. Adding funds:
    • Use your LSCS ID (issued since June of 2015) to add exact cash at an Add Value station. (Need a new ID? see #1).
    • OR, go to MyPrintCenter and select the Add Funds link to add a minimum of $5 using your debit or credit card or PayPal account. Note: PayPal funds may take a little longer to show up in your account. You will find a link to MyPrintCenter under the Quicklinks in your MyLoneStar portal.

The Learning Commons has two high-end book scanners that can be used to email a document, print, and more.

No, the space is designed for various study needs with the use of furniture. We have two instruction labs that when not in use with a librarian teaching a class are available for use. LIB 118 may be used as an overflow group or individual study space. LIB 120 is an absolute silent study space. During finals week, both labs are absolute silent spaces.

In order to find books and other materials in a library, we have to have a way to organize it all to make it easy for you to find. Librarians manage large collections by giving each item an identifier. Think of it like the book's license plate number. We use databases called the catalog to search for these items. Once you have chosen which item you want, you need to find on the page the book's call number. This is the license plate or classification number. This is how you will be able to find it on the shelf.

The Lone Star Libraries use the Library of Congress classification system. It was created in the twentieth century to help organize the world's largest collection of material that is housed in Washington D.C. It is alpha-numeric, which means that it uses letters and numbers to help organize all the information into twenty-one broad subject categories. You will find that most academic libraries use this classification system. The great thing about having books well organized is that you'll be able to find more material on the shelves around the book that you went to find.

Public libraries and school libraries tend to use the Dewey Decimal system, which only has ten subject classes that simply use numbers.

In the library's online catalog, you can search for books and other material at all the LSC-Libraries, Harris County, and Montgomery County libraries. Once you find an item that Kingwood does not have, you can request the item by clicking on the Place Hold button on the right-hand side of the screen. A pop-up window will appear and will ask you for your Library Card number and Pin.

  • Your library card number is the 14 digit number above the long barcode on the back of your student ID (the top set of numbers).
  • Your pin is the last 4 digits of the phone number that you provided when you got your student ID. If you have forgotten it, you may call the Circulation team to see if they can remind you of the number or reset it (281-312-1693). 

Below are your borrowing privileges: 

Item Loan Period Number of Times you may Renew Fines
Circulating Book 2 weeks x 2  $0.25/day
Circulating Videos 2 weeks x 1 $0.25/day
Reserve Items 2 HOURS permission required $0.50/HOUR

If a checked out item is overdue, your check out privileges is suspended. You will have a hold on your academic record until the overdue material are returned and fines are cleared.

If the item is damaged , lost, or stolen, you will be charged the cost of replacing it.