WEB PAGE EVALUATION

TUTORIAL

Comparing of two advertising websites

Lori Gadberry

A D M O N G O I S A G O V E R N M E N T C R E A T E D W E B S I T E , F E A T U R E D O N S C H O L A S T I C O N L I N E . T H E G O A L O F T H E W E B S I T E I S T O E D U C A T E T E E N S T O B E C O M E M O R E M E D I A L I T E R A T E .

B U Z Z L E . C O M I S A W E B S I T E T H A T O F F E R S I N F O R M A T I O N O N A VA R I E T Y O F T O P I C S , F R O M A D V I C E F O R T E E N A G E R S T O R E T I R E M E N T P L A N N I N G . C H E C K O U T T H E “A B O U T B U Z Z L E ” PA G E – I T ’ S V E R Y S T R A N G E .

This is a

government created

website, specifically

by the

It is endorsed by

Scholastic

The author is listed simply as

Charlie S.

“Our authors write on what

interests them and on what

they know..” – claims that all

articles are backed by

research, but I don’t see any

citations or references

COMPARING AUTHORITY

Admongo.gov Buzzle.com

Published by the FTC

Goals are to:• Raise media awareness• Teach critical

thinking/analytical skills• Help kids become

informed consumers

Provides an email and

government site link

There is no email for Charlie S.

He is on Buzzle because he

likes to write about subjects

that interest him

His interests and hobbies are:

“I play cricket, chess and go for

a long drive. I love luxurious

cars.”

COMPARING ACCURACY

Admongo.gov Buzzle.com

There is no date of

publication

There is no date of any

updates

All links work, and are

maintained by partner

agencies and organizations.

All information is up to date

Published 8/17/2010

There is no reference

to updates

All links work

Information seems up

to date

COMPARING CURRENCY

Edmodo.gov Buzzle.com

COMPARING OBJECTIVITY

Admongo.gov:

Very detailed

States main goal is to protect consumers

It is non-profit and offers to outside advertising links

The goal of boosting advertising literacy are met by providing:• Information for parents• Free lesson plans• Teacher training videos• Interactive games for students

COMPARING OBJECTIVITY

Buzzle.com

Somewhat detailed

Main goal: “So go through the advertising techniques for

kids mentioned below to understand things better.”

The advertising techniques he talks about are purely

based on opinion. No research is provided to back up the

techniques.

There are 8 advertisement links on this page

MY PREFERRED SITE

The choice is easy. To teach my students about media

literacy, I would choose Admongo.gov. Not only does

this site provide a variety of resources for parents,

teachers, and students, but it also was created by a

government agency that wants to protect consumers

from advertising tricks. The advertisements that are

on the website are fake and were created as part of

the lessons. Buzzle.com seems a bit like a joke to me.

I do not recommend that site.

REFERENCES

Federal Trade Commission’s Admongo.gov: http://ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/admongo/index.shtml

Kapoun, J. (1998, July). "Teaching undergrads WEB evaluation: A guide for library instruction.". College and Research Libraries News, 522-523. Retrieved July 12, 2012, from http://olinuris.library.cornell.edu/ref/research/webcrit.html

S., Charlie (2010). Advertising Techniques to Attract Kids. Retrieved from http://www.buzzle.com/articles/advertisingtechniques-for-kids.html