The news cycle these days can sometimes be frustrating in its varying political biases, especially if you’re looking to read moderates unbiased news. Thankfully, with a little self-education, you can take matters into your own hands and train yourself to identify bias in news articles and understand the author’s point of view. To learn more about the top three tips that can help you decipher and understand a wide variety of news articles, read on.

1. Cross-Check Information

If you come across a statement in an article that doesn’t seem quite right, don’t just rely on your own intuition or take the author’s word for it. Try cross-checking that information with other sources, and see whether others have stated similar or different things. Be sure you’re looking up well-established, reliable sources as your baseline for comparison.

2. Learn About the Author

Even if the statements in a given piece are factual and the sources are reliable, the author’s point of view could have a big impact on the way an issue is presented. Try looking up the author and finding out more about their background, affiliations and usual perspectives. This could help give you insight into the angle of the article.

3. Examine Assumptions

Finally, even if the author’s surface-level argument holds up, it may rest entirely on unchallenged assumptions. After all, if the base of their argument doesn’t hold water, the rest of their argument can’t, either. Try reading the piece again and see if any of the author’s statements rely on implicit assumptions, and whether those assumptions are right or wrong.

With today’s constant news cycles, it can be hard to digest all the information and form your own opinions. Luckily, a little self-education can go a long way! Try using these three top tips the next time you come across a news article that seems biased in one way or another, and you’ll feel confident in your ability to break it down.