2.3.2. Listing articles from printed journals, magazines, and newspapers

Periodical publications, such as journals, magazines, and newspapers, are regularly published sources focused on more or less specific topics of interest. You will often cite individual articles from such publications, especially if your research project requires more current perspectives within the field. To find perspectives from a variety of periodicals, most researchers use library research databases, which house digitized versions of articles from print publications. Consider also locating the websites for periodicals in your field. Such sites may actually be required for citation of articles acquired online, but they also may be useful for learning about the authority of the source. If you do choose to access periodical articles online, the listing on the References page will need to include online retrieval information, which is covered in Section 2.3.3. No matter how you access the periodical article, though, you will need to consider the details discussed in this section.

What information to record:

Besides noting specific pages containing material you reference, record these key details from the byline of the article, cover of the issue, or its table of contents:

• The authors of the source, including first and middle initials listed on the article’s byline.
• The publication date for the issue with the article, including month and day when available.
• The title of the article, including subtitles.
• The type of article (in particular, editorials, letters to the editor, and reviews).
• The name of the periodical and, for newspapers, the place where it is published.
• The volume and/or issue number (but not needed for newspapers).
• Any indications that the issue is a special edition.
• The page or pages where the article appears in the issue.

As you record the key details listed above and draft your reference‐list entry, ask these questions to make sure you are recording all the relevant information and formatting the citation correctly:

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Are you listing an article from a newspaper?

After the author (or title, if unsigned), list the full issue date, putting the year first, a comma, then month and day (if given). After the article’s title (or date, if unsigned), list the periodical’s name (italicized), a comma, p. or pp., and the article’s pages. If the periodical name does not indicate the publication city, list it in parentheses after the name.

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Are you listing an article from a peer-reviewed journal?

After the author, provide only the year of the volume for the date. After the article’s title (or date, if unsigned), list in italics the journal’s name, a comma, then the volume (italicized), another comma, and page numbers for the article (no p. or pp. in this case). If the journal restarts pagination with each issue in the volume (or, issue pagination), identify the issue in parentheses (but no italics) immediately after the volume.

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Are you listing a magazine article?

Always provide the full issue date. If no volume or issue is listed, then format the rest of the entry like a newspaper article; otherwise, like a journal article.

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Is the article unsigned?

List the title of the article first, before the date. The periodical name goes immediately after the date, followed by the standard details about issue and pages.

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Is the article a review, editorial, or other special genre?

Describe the genre in square brackets ([. . .]) after the article title. For reviews, include a reference to the title of the work being reviewed followed by the names of those given primary credit for the reviewed work.