An authoritative website is
one that is usually created and maintained by a professional
organization, a research institution, or government agencies. Therefore,
most authoritative websites end with the extensions .gov, .org, .edu.
However, some authoritative websites do have .com extensions. In order
for a website to be considered authoritative, it should provide contact
information for the person creating and maintaining the site as well as a
current copyright date. It should also provide information about the
person or organization that assumes responsibility and accountability
for the information provided on the site. Most authoritative sites will
also include a physical address and phone number. If you can not find
out who provides the information for the site, the credentials of the
person providing the information, or contact information you should be
leary of using the site for research purposes even if the word
"official" is used on the site name.