Evaluation of General Sources

This post will discuss two sources of information about the same controversy. One of the major discussions in the art history world is the preservation/conservation of art, and how lacking funds or know-how can destroy invaluable history. One of the more recent scandals regarding poor conservation and it's consequences is the treatment of the historic ruins of Pompeii. One discusses a collapse in 2011, while another discusses Pompeii's recovery from the 2010 and 2011 scandals. Two of the more reliable sources regarding the most recent uproar over Pompeii's continuous decline would be The Wall Street Journal's article titled "While Pompeii Crumbles" and the Smithsonian's "The Fall and Rise and Fall of Pompeii".

While Pompeii Crumbles 

Screenshot from "The Wall Street Journal", September 3rd via Wall Street Journal online

The website url is ".com" for the Wall Street Journal, which hints less credibility than a .gov or .org, simply because .com's tend to be able to be run by anyone. The Wall Street Journal tends to fluctuate in it's credibility, so the article should be taken with a grain of salt. The author is Francis X Rocca, the Vatican correspondent for the Wall Street Journal who also has worked for the National Catholic Reporter, the Catholic Herald, and other news groups (primarily in the religious field). The text was last updated January 12th, 2011. This means there is a risk that the information is outdated or incorrect, and all obvious links lead to other unrelated articles or are sponsored. There is one graphic, which is the image I have taken a screenshot of above. It depicts a destroyed structure from the House of Gladiators, which collapsed in 2011. Rocca seems critical of the Italian government, but manages to remain mostly informative and not overly one-sided. He recognizes both the Italian government's failings but also the lack of resources they've had to work with and failings on the museum's side as well. The museum probably would have the most to gain, since there is a central focus on lack of attendance (which means lack of funds.) As mentioned before, there seem to be no links citing other resources or information in the text of the article.

The Fall and Rise and Fall of Pompeii

Screenshot from "The Smithsonian Magazine", September 3rd, via The Smithsonian Magazine online

Again, the url here is a .com. However,  Smithsonian Magazine is more highly regarded than The Wall Street Journal. The author is Joshua Hammer. Hammer is a freelance correspondent who frequently writes for the Smithsonian, and has written for many magazines such as The New York Times, National Geographic and more. He has won several awards for his journalism and has written several well-acclaimed books. The page was last updated July of 2015, making the sources more likely to be accurate. Again, there is a lack of links to other pages within the text and only are links to other articles. The article is mostly informative, and does not seem to promote much aside from further conservation efforts for Pompeii. There are many pictures within the article, and many show pictures of the ruins or artifacts, including the one I took a screenshot of. The article does a good job of remaining unbiased, though the beautiful descriptions of the ruins benefit the museum as it paints a tantalizing picture of Pompeii and it's neighbor Herculaneum. There are no extra links leading to further readings, but frequently quotes and cites well-respected scholars.