Stop and consider:
•Scan the contents.
•What do you know of the source?
•Is it reputable?
•What is its purpose? What is your purpose?
•Gauge your reaction to any claims.
•What is the coverage – in-depth or partial?
•When was it written?
•Conduct a separate search on the source.
•Use Wikipedia or do a Google search to find more information about that source that wasn’t written by the source.
Find other sources on the topic:
•See what other sources are reporting on this topic and the type of coverage provided.
•Does the information match what you were initially reading?
Trace the facts:
•Is evidence of any claims properly cited and accounted for?
•Can you trace these back to the original source and are these reputable?