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ENGL 101

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What Kind of Sources Do You Need?

Always follow your instructor's guidance regarding sources! If you have multiple options- use this chart to determine what information sources best suit your need.

Choosing Your Information Sources

Source	Best For	Intended Audience	Watch For/Consider
Newspapers	Newspapers are best for: Daily local, national, and international news, events, and editorial coverage Contextualized statistics and photojournalism Record of events and quotes from experts, officials, and witnesses	Newspapers are intended for a general audience	When using newspapers, you should watch for and consider that: Authors usually aren't subject matter experts, though they may consult experts (search for these experts in databases to find scholarly works) Breaking stories are often fragmentary and conflicting, corrections are likely to follow There is often an editorial bias
Popular Magazines	Popular magazines are best for: Current information Short, easy to understand articles (including analysis, interviews, opinions, etc.) Photographs and illustrations	Popular magazines are intended for a general audience, or those with a specific, recreational interest (e.g. sports, fashion, science, etc.)	When using popular magazines, you should watch for and consider that: Authors aren't usually experts Sources may be cited informally (these can be used to find better sources) If there are no sources, you should be cautious There is typically an editorial bias
Professional/Trade Magazines	Professional/Trade Magazines are best for: Current information related to a profession or trade Specialized articles related to a particular discipline or profession (including context and analysis)	Professional/Trade magazines are intended for members of a professional organization or professionals/scholars with similar interests	When using professional/trade magazines, you should watch for and consider that: Articles vary between short and easy to lengthy and highly specific Author expertise varies, pay attention to this Sources may be cited informally If no sources are cited, be cautious Has characteristics in common with both popular magazines and scholarly journals There may be bias
Scholarly/Academic Journals	Scholarly/Academic Journals are best for: Recent research on a topic Focused, peer-reviewed articles written by experts Data, statistics, charts, and graphs Bibliographies of other sources	Scholarly/Academic Journals are intended for scholars, researchers, and practitioners in a particular field. While college students can learn from journal articles the primary audience has a high level of expertise and familiarity with specialized vocabulary.	When using Scholarly/Academic Journals, you should watch for and consider that: Terminology and/or data may be difficult for novices to interpret There may be a bias Not all research is created equal
Books	Books are best for: Comprehensive overviews of a topic Background and historical context Bibliographies of other sources	Popular books are intended for a general audience and are often written by journalists, pundits, or professional writers. Scholarly books are written by subject matter experts and are often detailed and discipline-specific in their language and approach.	When using books, you should watch for and consider that: The author's level of expertise on a topic matters- determine why you should trust them Some information is timeless, but sometimes the date of publication matters There is always almost bias, what is it, and how does it influence the writing?
Websites	Websites are best for: Government data and information Company information Open Access resources Quick answers to general info questions News articles	While the vast majority of websites are intended for a general audience, some are intended for expert audiences, PubMed or PubChem for example.	When using websites for your studies, you should watch for and consider that: If you cannot determine who is responsible for the information and why you trust them- don't trust them. If a website fails to cite sources—don't trust them. There is almost always a bias, what is it, and how does it influence the information?

Adapted from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign resource, Select the Best Information Source

Last Updated: Oct 6, 2023 12:10 PM
URL: https://libguides.olympic.edu/ENGL101
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Subjects: English

Tags: composition, english101