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Annotated Links: Hoax and Parody Sites

Help us grow this resource! These pages contain links to web resources that many find useful in bringing 21st Century Information Fluency skills into the classroom. If you have suggestions for additional sites (or if any of these sites are not working) please write us: help@21cif.com

O'Connor, Dennis. Literary Dialogs: Shakspear's Early Plays [website]. San Diego (CA): 21st Century Information Fluency [cited 9 April 2013]. Available from the Internet: LINK

A phony site about William Shakespear (sic) used to test evaluation skills. The site contains a variety of information that needs to be fact checked, including the credentials of its author, Marcus Letter. The site has broken links and a number of other Red Flags.

Boese, Alex. The Museum of Hoaxes [website]. San Diego (CA): The Museum of Hoaxes, 1997, 2003- [cited 13 March 2013]. Available from Internet: LINK

Regular news about cons and hoaxes makes this website an interesting stop. This is commercial website, dedicated to selling the author's book. The list of Internet hoax sites is valuable, but some links are out of date. As far as the author's credibility, little is known about the elusive Mr. Boese.<

Forsyte, Joel. The Ova Prima Foundation [Website]. : Ova Prima Foundation : 2000 [cited 13 March 2013]. Available from the Internet: LINK

A pseudoscientific organization dedicated to the egg? The site has a straight face and a bent sense of reality.

Wiseman, Ken. Evaluating Web Sites in K-12 Education. Website. Arlington Heights (IL): Wiseman Tech, February 2004- [cited 13 March 2013]. Available from the Internet: LINK

Popular presenter Ken Wiseman offers this page of evaluation links, which includes an extensive list of hoax sites.

Snopes.com: Urban Legends Reference Pages. Web site. [cited 13 March 2013]. Available from the Internet: LINK

The definitive Internet reference source for urban legends, folklore, myths, rumors, and misinformation.

POP! The First Male Pregnancy [Website]. RYT Hospital-Dwayne Medical Center, 10 March 2001- [cited 13 March 2013]. Available from the Internet: LINK

This is an exceptionally well done hoax site. The use of technology and design elements lends this site 'visual' credibility. Following the links provided on this site will lead you to additional hoax pages done with the same high graphics standards. Using the Link: feature found on many search engines, including our Search Wizard, reveals the self-referring nature of the site. You'll have to dig deeply with a skeptical eye to find the proof you need to debunk this site!

The Institute of Delicious Whale Research [Website]. [cited 13 March 2013]. Available from the Internet: LINK

This is a self proclaimed parody site on whale research. It makes a good challenge for finding the author and publisher, analyzing the language to determine whether the site is a parody for or against whale research and/or hunting, and to find the site that is being parodized.

Lake Michigan Whale Migration Station [Website]. [cited 20 October 2015]. Available from the Internet: LINK

This Facebook page provides reports of whale sightings in Lake Michigan. It is a real challenge to find the author and publisher. Best use is to analyze the comments to determine what people think of the site.

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