Sources: How I conduct research & choose sources for projects
Recent posts are more well sourced than earlier posts on this site but almost all at least link to the Wikipedia page for the films and topics. I start all research on Wikipedia and then use that to inform what sources I should look for via search engines, large publications, and non-fiction works. I'm also fortunate to live near a really good library system and utilize my card to access books, more publications, and sites like Kanopy with libraries of documentaries.
From topic specific information to breakdowns of media and even lists of movies grouped by various parameters Wikipedia is a great place to start research. I know in school they drilled it in that it is a heinous hellscape of falsity but every claim is sourced directly on the same page, linked and all with a record of when the article has been updated and by whom.
Some of that same information is hard to find on academic sites meant to share distilled information from a trusted source. I haven't broken completely free of my teaching however and still verify all of the claims by visiting the source myself or by finding additional sources to validate the claim. I also use Wikipedia as a jump off point to know what other topics might be interesting to include in a review.
Kanopy is a service that allows you to stream a crap-load of content for free. You can sign up through your local library or some universities if your establishments hold it down like that. I'm fortunate and do have access to Kanopy via my local library system. I've been able to find obscure movies, niche topic documentaries, and regular expected titles I would've assumed too popular for a public access style business model.
The one caveat is you cannot view unlimited amounts of films each month. With a set number of tickets allocated you essentially purchase a pass to a film with those tickets that then replenish at the start of the next month. In many ways it's similar to a library card but for a streaming service.
Search engines have come to replace encyclopedias, dictionaries, thesauruses, and some formats of informational text. Granted the original idea is that the search engines link to those sources which the user validates. Now, with an AI generated answer built into most web query results right above 2-5 layers of ad results, the user doesn't have to take additional steps to think or becomes so annoyed they don't wish to.
Additionally the highest results are typically the highest bidders and companies with money to invest in SEO ranking strategies. In the pursuit of the best information to answer a query this muddies the water as well as the information and the quality of sources. For these reasons I prefer using DuckDuckGo over Google for most of my search queries. Sometimes, like when using Maps, Google is still far superior but everything else is comparable.
Another tool provided by my and many other local library systems (seriously, look into your counties library system and what subscriptions or services they offer) is Libby. Libby allows you to check out digital books and audiobooks that you can read on the app. The titles automatically return when they are due unless you renew a set number of times, the same process as the library just online.
I find the eBook comprable to others online but actually prefer the audiobook over others. You're able to fast forward and rewind really quickly with a timeline feature that separates by small time increments. It also allows you to speed up the audiobooks. Libby also allows for holds to be placed on items and informs how long of a wait a hold will be when it is made.
Finding out what viewers and critics think about a movie is a review specific source but nonetheless important. to support or refute an argument in a post. Some sites that I visit to accomplish this feat are: Reddit, IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, YouTube comments sections, social media hashtags or posted content, and any other place that people share opinions and are semi distinguishable between real and fake accounts.
Conversations are always taking place about movies all over the internet, be it message boards, comments sections, threads, or posts critique of media is an internet and particularly social media pass-time. There's rarely a shortage of opinions available on most movies with a mid-sized audience or larger, especially horror movies and franchises, which are particularly active online.
Despite my lack of love for Google search in the current form I appreciate apps like Google Scholar and still utilize it for projects, particularly deep dives. This is with the caveat however that if you have access to journals it's way more fun and less frustrating. You can additionally search case law using Scholar but despite the barriers to access you can still find quite a few sources from peer reviewed journals or university research projects that have published full PDF versions of their papers.
This comes in particular use for longer projects about topics far above my level of expertise like gender, history, psychology, spirituality, and many media studies. I've found some pretty cool information from published theses, research projects, and college level coursework chosen by departments.
EVALUATING SOURCE INFORMATION
SMELL TEST FRAMEWORK
SOME LOGICAL FALLACIES / FLAWED ARGUMENTS
 Slippery SlopeUsually a negative argument that one thing will directly lead to another thing without evidence. Making a claim about a series of events that will lead to one major event. |  Hasty GeneralizationPreconceived notions and an unwillingness to question or challenge those notions. Applying an unsubstantiated fact to an entire group, topic, or thing without evidence. |  Post hoc ergo propter hocThe argument that if one event happens then another event happens the first event caused the second event. Often used in politics to blame a previous administration or office over another. |
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 Bandwagon AppealIdentifying something a group believes and using that to persuade someone to agree with an argument. |  Straw ManAs opposed to addressing the argument someone describes an often hypothetical scenario for the other person to address instead. |  Moral EquivalenceTaking one thing that is benign or rather harmless and comparing it to something egregious or motivated by ill intent. An unfair and inaccurate comparison. Saying someone you disagree with is "as bad as Hitler" is a fallacy of moral equivalence. |
 Begging the ClaimThe argument appeals to a claim that is not sound. Saying wool sweaters are better than sweatshirts because of wool does not inform why wool is better. |  Ad hominemRather than arguing against the positions, claims, beliefs, and statements of the other party an attack is levied against that party's character. Oftentimes these attacks claims aren't based in evidence. |  Red HerringDeployed in a conversation to switch the subject away from the other party's argument. Wanting to focus on an issue one can argue well rather than the current topic. |
 Genetic FallacyArguing that because something is related to another thing it is inherently the same as the original thing. |  Either/OrEnding up at a conclusion because an argument is oversimplified into 2 sides rather than a plethora of sides. |  Circular ArgumentAn argument is used to support itself with no other arguments, thus being circular. |