Hi peeps!
I am fairly new to Steemit and I would like to discuss how to properly document, cite and link sources. I am a bit frustrated with the hype versus the reality of what makes up original content here on Steemit. I am speaking about the seemingly successful posts that people upvote without really reading the article, checking the sources, or considering the origin of the content. It's important to know how to read critically, and how to determine where the source of information comes from.
For instance, many "stories" that I see are just links to contents on the web. They aren't original, nor do they even try to name the source although it's evident when you see the link to youtube, then try to match the name of the submitter. Or there are the wonderful articles full of lovely photos (not credited), where the word content is verbatim to an article on the web by a different author.
Dude! A source is meant to provide background on where you obtained facts. Copying the article word for word is PLAGIARISM. It doesn't matter how you dress it up with fancy quotes, large font, cool photos, etc. If it is not your ORIGINAL work, that needs to be credited top of the page with a note saying that this is not your writing, filmography, photo, research, etc.
Or, as explained in this wonderful post here, https://steemit.com/steem/@grittenald/copy-paste-steal-cite-your-sources, you may quote the lead paragraph with a link to the source. Putting a link to an article and burying it at the bottom of the page as a "source" is misleading the reader into believing that you are responsible for writing the article. Sad!
There are tons of articles on wiki about how to credit photos, and how to document your own work. Be proactive and responsible. Here is an interesting link that discusses how to cite an online article.
http://www.wikihow.com/Cite-an-Online-Article
Anything less than this is at best shoddy work that should not be rewarded by Steemit, and at worst, unethical. It's a cheat to your followers and to the people who worked so hard to create the content in the first place.