In chapter six of the book unSpun: finding facts in a world of disinformation the authors, Brooks Jackson and Kathleen Hall Jamieson, warn us about drawing fast conclusions from little evidence. The chapter starts with an example of this. In the 1970's two different articles titled “Do Crows Use Automobiles as nutcrackers?” were published. Two different authors wrote about experiences they had were a crow had used an automobile to crack open a nut and also to break apart a piece of fruit. As a result of the article some people became convinced that crows had exceptional intelligence and could use cars to crack nuts. Years later it was proven that crows were no more likely to drop a nut in font of a car, than they were to drop a nut in a vacant parking lot. The authors give us many other suggestions through out the chapter on how to avoid spin.

They suggest that in order to avoid spin we must have an open mind and consider all the facts.
They warn us that it is easy to be led astray by people who are well known.
We need to be careful about so called studies, because it could be nothing more than someones guess.
In order to evaluate weather a study is reliable or not, ask yourself: Who's behind the info, is the source angry about something, how did they get their info, how old is the data, what was the assumption made, how much guess work was involved?
The authors suggest that the source should come with a critical eye.
Just because an ad is heard over and over, doesn't make it true.
They suggest that even information from a reliable source may be misleading unless someone can duplicate the results.
FactCheck.org has a guide to testing evidence. 1) Is the source highly regarded and widely excepted? 2) Is the source an advocate? 3) What is the source's track record? 4)What method is used? 5) Does the source show its work? 6) Is the sample random? 7) Is there a control group? 8) Does the source have the requisite skill? 9) Have the results been replicated, or contradicted?
The authors also suggest that we be careful when jumping to conclusions. Always ask what's the evidence.

In chapter eight Jackson and Jamieson give us some rules to follow to better help us determine whether or not the facts and information we are receiving is true.

Rule #1: You Can't be Completely Certain- Here they remind us that there is no such thing as absolute certainty.
Rule #2: You Can Be Certain Enough- Although we are able to be 100% certain, we can be certain enough to weigh the facts and make reasonable decisions.
Rule #3: Look for General Agreement Among Experts- They suggest that we can be fairly certain that our facts are right, if they are widely accepted by all sides of authority.
Rule #4: Check Primary Sources: This is as simple as checking and comparing your sources, such as the newspaper and the news broadcasts. Primary sources are more reliable than second hand.
Rule #5 Know What Counts- Be certain of what your facts represent, and what the numbers mean.
Rule #6: Know Who's Counting- We need to know who's behind a statement before we decide how much weight to give it.
Rule #7: Seeing Shouldn't Necessarily Be Believing- Personal experience and even our own memory can mislead us. The authors warn that we can't even be 100% sure of what we see.
Rule #8: Cross-check Everything That Matters-Going to two or three sources can give you a much more accurate conclusion to what is the truth. When checking your evidence, apply the same rules that are used for evidence in trials. Give greater weight to swarn testimony and less weight to those who stand to profit. The authors suggest that we also give greater weigh to confessions that hurt to admit. We need to look for transparency and remember that sometimes the evidence isn't as definite as it is made out to be.
FINAL RULE: Be Skeptical, but Not Cynical- Do not assume that everything you are been told is false, just don't be afraid to demand evidence that supports the facts.