Writing Spaces 3

Using the Questions to Determine Credibility
Just by looking at the homepage, it is clear that the Humane Society of 
North Texas sponsors and maintains the site. After clicking on some of the 

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more specific links on the top of the page, you locate some press releases 
that name individual authors and their titles. For example, if you clicked 
on the item “Newsroom” from the drop-down menu under “Home,” then 
on the press release titled “We Like Big Mutts and We Cannot Lie (Ok-
Cats, Too)!,” you will be directed to the page shown here in Figure 3. 
Notice that the author is Cassie Lackey, who is the Director of Commu-
nications for the Humane Society of North Texas. Because Lackey works 
for the Humane Society of North Texas, she likely has access to accurate 
information about this organization. Her role as Director of Communi-
cations is to inform the community about news related to the Humane 
Society, so from what we can tell so far, she appears to be a credible author 
(see figure 3).
Figure 3. “We Like Big Mutts and We Cannot Lie (Ok-Cats, Too)!” press release 
was found by following the “Newsroom” link from hsnt.org. The release discusses 
a partnership with several organizations that will allow them to fly larger dogs to 
other states to be adopted, thus increasing rates of adoption. Source: The Human 
Society of North Texas.

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While it appears as if this source has a credible author, we should look 
for other clues to help us feel certain about its credibility. The extension 
.org in the URL indicates that this Web site is not set up for commercial 
purposes—that is, not for deriving profit from the activity on the site. In 
fact, the central features of the site are the menu items at the top of the 
home page: Adopt, Services Volunteer, and Donate. The information ap-
pears very straightforward and oriented toward a clear purpose: to help 
people adopt animals or volunteer their time and money to help homeless 
animals. 
By now, it’s easy to conclude that hsnt.org may be a useful source if you 
live in the North Texas area and want to focus your research on local ani-
mal shelters. But, you can’t hang your hat on just one source.
After browsing through several local animal shelter sites, you expand 
your search and click on the Web site for the People for the Ethical Treat-
ment of Animals (PETA): www.peta.org. The banner has a direct slogan: 
“Animals are not ours to experiment on, eat, wear, use for entertainment, 
or abuse in any other way.” That slogan provides some insight into the mis-
sion of the organization. The breadth and depth of information you find 
here is impressive: feature stories, news briefs, files on a series of animal 
cruelty issues, factsheets, blog posts, and a sizeable collection of videos. It is 
here, however, that a peculiar approach to presenting information becomes 
prominent, namely, the extensive use of celebrities to attract attention and 
(hopefully) advance the organization’s cause.
You might also notice that on this site a lot of effort is put into raising 
awareness about animal cruelty and stirring grassroots activism. You will 
find tips for activists, templates of correspondence to send to public offi-
cials, and news of upcoming events. Does that constitute a bias? Well, it 
definitely points to a well-shaped agenda, and you need to recognize that, 
whether you agree or disagree with the mission the site is promoting. With-
out doubt, some of the material you come across can be considered contro-
versial. Therefore, when you consider the question, “Are all the statements 
believable?” think not only about your own assessment of the material but 
also about what your audience may think. If your audience believes that 
some of the source material you choose to include in your paper is not be-
lievable, then your credibility will be damaged. After carefully evaluating 
PETA’s Web site, you will likely decide that while it contains some useful 
and credible information, you will need to use this site with care and ac-
knowledge its agenda.

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All information that you have discovered so far is valuable, but you 
know that to write a well-informed research paper, you’ll have to search 
further.