If you don’t have one of the core elements, skip it and move to the next element.
CORE ELEMENTS |
EXAMPLES: |
HOW IT CAN VARY |
OTHER |
AUTHOR |
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2 authors: Heilig, Heidi, and Sophie Hildegarde. 3+ authors: Heilig, Heidi, et al. No author? Skip that element and move to Title. |
“Author” can mean lots of things: editor, actor, online creator (username), translator, corporate author, etc. instead of an “author”. Just pop that title after the name (ex: Smith, Derrik, editor) or list the username (@erinthelibrarian).
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TITLE OF SOURCE |
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Italicize titles. If your source is part of a larger source (ex: you’re citing a chapter of a book, an article from a periodical, an episode from a tv show), put the smaller part in quotes and italicize the larger part.
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Use upper- and lower-case letters (no “all caps”) Capitalize major title words (leave lower case: a, an, of, the, or, at, etc.) |
TITLE OF CONTAINER
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Similar to the above examples: Time Magazine, Game of Thrones, YouTube… these are all containers (larger sources) that contain smaller things (your particular source).
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Sometimes your source will be nested in multiple containers (example: an episode of a documentary that is on a particular online channel). Cite as many of these containers as you can in your citation. |
Ex: “Forever Prison” is an episode of Frontline, published by PBS. So: “Forever Prison” and Frontline are the containers, PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) is the Publisher. |
OTHER CONTRIBUTORS |
Usually directors, editors, introducers, translators, etc. Adapted by Jim Smith,
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VERSION |
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NUMBER |
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Some journals use a volume/issue numbering system; some just use numbers. |
If your source uses a different numbering system than shown here, include the number along with something in front of it that clues the reader as to what it means. |
PUBLISHER |
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Publisher is omitted entirely when appropriate: If the publisher and author/editor are the same The source is a periodical and has that container listed in the citation A website that provides access, but doesn’t actually create the content (i.e.: YouTube, which is the Container, not the Publisher) |
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PUBLICATION DATE |
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Sometimes you’ll only find a year, sometimes you’ll find a month, day and year. Cite what you find, and/or what makes the most sense to help your reader track down your exact source. |
Use “day mo. Year” for dates that include those three elements. Look for the most recent publication date. Copyright and publication date are not always the same thing. |
LOCATION |
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The “location” depends on whether your source is print, electronic, “live” (in person), etc. |
If you’re including a URL, omit the “http://" or "https://” from your citation. If your source includes a permalink (i.e., a permanent or persistent URL), use it instead of the URL that appears on the address line of the browser. |