Yale Center for Teaching and Learning

Citing Miscellaneous Sources

How to Cite Miscellaneous Sources


Microform: Microfilm & Microfiche

MLA:
Sutherlin, Robert N. “Organize Your Stock Associations.” Rocky Mountain Husbandman 5 June 1879: 2. Microform. Work Progress Administration for the Livestock Industry 36 (1942): Reel 1, Microfilm 250.
[author, by last name.] [“article title.”] [original publication title] [original publication date: page number.] [medium.] [collection title volume number] [(collection year):] [specific microform information (such as reel, fiche, number, etc.).]

APA:
Sutherlin, R. N. (1879, June 5). Organize your stock associations [Editorial]. Rocky Mountain Husbandman, p. 2. In Work Progress Administration for the Livestock Industry 36 (1942) [Microfilm]. (Reel 1, Microfilm 250).
[author, by last name, initial.] [(publication date).] [article title, no quotation marks] [original publication title, “p.” page number.] [In collection title & volume] [(collection year) [medium].] [(specific microform information).]

Chicago:
15. Sutherlin, “Organize Your Stock Associations,” 2.
[fn. #.] [author last name, “title,” page quoted.]
[Shortened Chicago reference; see More Notes on Chicago Style for more information.]

“Microform” is the general term for documents reproduced in reduced size on transparent media such as microfilm (which comes in rolls) or microfiche (small sheets). Most sources you access as microforms will have originated as printed materials. Generally speaking, follow the directions for citing the original source, but add the information necessary to access the source on microfilm or microfiche. This may include a name for the microfilm service, volume number, year, and any letters or numbers identifying the specific film roll or fiche number.


CD-ROMs

MLA:
Clute, John and Peter Nicholls. “End of the World.” The Multimedia Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. Danbury: Grolier, 1995. CD-ROM.
[author, by last name.] [“section title.”] [CD-ROM title.] [city: publisher, year.] [medium.]

APA:
Clute, J., & Nicholls, P. (1995). End of the world. In The multimedia encyclopedia of science fiction [CD-ROM]. Danbury, CT: Grolier.
[author, by last name, initial.] [(date).] [section title] [In CD-ROM title] [[media].] [city, state using the two letter postal abbreviation without periods: publisher.]

Chicago:
27. Clute and Nicholls, “End of the World.”
[fn. #.] [author last name,] [”title.”]
[Shortened Chicago reference; see More Notes on Chicago Style for more information.]

Citing CD-ROMs is probably most similar to citing an article in a book. Both call for author, article or section title, title of the larger work, and date of publication. Both MLA and APA style expect that you identify the medium of recorded sources (in this case, CD-ROM) in your listing.


Film & Video

MLA:
Labyrinth. Dir. Jim Henson. Perf. David Bowie, Jennifer Connelly. Henson Associates, 1986. Sony Pictures, 2009. Blu-ray.
[title.] [Dir. director.] [Perf. main performers.] [production company, release year.] [distributor, distribution year.] [medium.]

APA:
Lucas, G. (Producer), & Henson, J. (Director). (1986). Labyrinth [Motion picture]. United States: Henson Associates.
[producer & director, with titles.] [(year).] [title] [[format].] [production country: production company.]

Chicago:
28. Henson, Labyrinth.
[fn. #.] [director last name, title.]
[Shortened Chicago reference; see More Notes on Chicago Style for more information.]

Conventions for citing film and video productions are less fixed than those for print and even many online sources. This ambiguity is caused in part by the group nature of such productions: even if you identify a writer, producer, or director, a performance almost never has the single authorship of a written text or single image. Your citation should always include the same basic elements (as described below), but their order can vary—especially concerning the first item listed.

A solid basic format includes title, director’s name, and the name of one or two lead performers. Also include the distributor and release date. If you’re working from a video, DVD, or Blu-ray, MLA style adds the words “Videocassette,” “DVD,” or “Blu-ray,” followed by the release date of the video. For films accessed on the internet, MLA style includes the sponsoring site, the word “Web,” and date of access (e.g. Netflix. Web. 2 Apr 2013.).

Modified Format

Because academic essays may focus on different aspects of a film or television production, citation conventions can vary. This is especially true of MLA style, which will be more common in courses that ask you to analyze movies. If you focus primarily on one person’s work in the film, you may decide to list by that person’s name, followed by an abbreviation of their role. Then list the title and the rest of the information described above. (Example below in MLA style; adjust as needed for other styles.)

Bowie, David, perf. Labyrinth. Dir. Jim Henson. Henson Associates, 1986. Blu-ray. Sony Pictures, 2009.


Television, Radio Program, or Music Video

MLA:
“Occupation.” Battlestar Galactica: Season 3. Writ. Ronald D. Moore. Dir. Sergio Mimica-Gezzan. Universal Studios, 2010. Blu-ray.
[“program title.”] [album or series title.] [Writ. writer.] [Dir.director.] [distributor,] [distribution year.] [medium.]

APA:
Moore, R. D. (Writer), & Director, S. Mimica-Gezzan. (6 October 2006). Occupation [Television series episode]. In Ronald D. Moore (Producer), Battlestar galactica. Los Angeles, CA: The Sci-Fi Channel.
[writer, by last name, initial (Writer),] [& Director, director.] [(original airdate).] [program title [format].] [In producer (Producer),] [series title.] [location of original distributor: original distributor.]

Chicago:
29. Moore, “Occupation.”
[fn. #.] [artist or writer last name,] [“shortened title.”]
[Shortened Chicago reference; see More Notes on Chicago Style for more information.]

Conventions for citing television and radio productions are less fixed than those for print and even many online sources. This ambiguity is caused in part by the group nature of such productions: even if you identify a writer, producer, or director, a performance almost never has the single authorship of a written text or image. Your citation should always include the same basic elements (as described below), but their order can vary—especially concerning the first item listed.

A solid basic format includes title, writer’s name, director’s name, and perhaps the name of one or two lead performers. For programs accessed on the internet, MLA style ends the citation with the sponsoring site, the word “Web,” and date of access (e.g. Hulu. Web. 2 Apr 2013.). Note that APA style includes the city and state where the program was aired, because some programs are modified for different markets.

Modified Format

But because academic essays may focus on different aspects of a radio or television production, citation conventions can vary. This is especially true of MLA style, which will be more common in courses where you analyze these programs. If you focus primarily on one person’s work in the production, you may decide to list by that name, followed by an abbreviation of their role. Then list the title and the rest of the information described above. (Example below in MLA style; adjust as needed for other styles.)

Sackhoff, Katee, perf. “Occupation.” Battlestar Galactica: Season 3.
Writ. Ronald D. Moore. Dir. Sergio Mimica-Gezzan. Universal Studios, 2010. Blu-ray.

Note: If substantial time has passed between the original air date and the date you viewed the program, you may want to list the original date just after the title, leaving the date you viewed at the end of the citation.


Music or Sound Recording

MLA:
David Bowie. “Life on Mars.” Hunky Dory. RCA Victor, 1971. Vinyl.
[artist.] [“title of piece.”] [title of album.] [production company, 1971.] [medium.]

APA:
Bowie, D. (1971). Life on mars. On Hunky dory [Vinyl]. London, England: RCA Victor.
[writer, by last name, initial.] [(copyright year).] [title of song [Recorded by artist if different from writer].] [On title of album [medium].] [city of production, country: production company.]

Note: APA style lists the city and state (using the two letter postal abbreviation without periods) for U.S. production companies and the city and full country name for production companies outside the United States.

Chicago:
30. Bowie, “Life on Mars.”
[fn. #.] [artist,] [“title.”]
[Shortened Chicago reference; see More Notes on Chicago Style for more information.]

Conventions for citing music and sound recordings are less fixed than those for print and even many online sources. This ambiguity is caused in part by the group nature of such productions: even if you identify a writer, producer, or director, a performance seldom has the single authorship of a written text or image. Your citation should always include the same basic elements (as described below), but their order can vary—especially concerning the first item listed.

A solid basic format includes the artist’s name, the title of the piece, and the title of the longer work (if you cite one song from an album or CD). Also include the production company and release date.

Modified Format

But because academic essays may focus on very different aspects of a music or sound recording, citation conventions can vary. This is especially true of MLA style, which will be more common in courses where you analyze these texts. If you focus primarily on one person’s work in the production, you may decide to list by that name, followed by an abbreviation of their role. Then list the title and the rest of the information described above. (Example below in MLA style; adjust as needed for other styles.)

Scott, Ken, prod. “Life on Mars.” Hunky Dory. RCA Victor, 1971.


Art, Photographs, & Illustrations

MLA:
Gozzoli, Benozzo. Chapel of the Magi. 1459. Palazzo Medici-Riccardi, Florence. The Chapel of the Magi in Palazzo Medici. By Franco Cardini. Florence: Mandragora, 2001. 40-41. Print.
[artist.] [title.] [year created.] [owner, city.] [book source, if used.] [By book’s author.] [city of publication: publisher, year.] [page where image appears.] [medium.]

APA:
Gozzoli, B. (1459). Chapel of the magi [Fresco Series]. In F. Cardini, The chapel of the magi in palazzo Medici. Florence, Italy: Mandragora, 2001, pp. 40-41.
[artist.] [(year created).] [title of artwork] [[type of work].] [In book’s author,] [book source, if used.] [city of publication, country: publisher, year,] [“pp.” page where image appears.]

Note: APA style lists the city and state (using the two letter postal abbreviation without periods) for U.S. publishers and the city and full country name for publishers outside the United States.

Chicago:
31. Gozzoli, “Chapel of the Magi,” 40-41.
[fn. #.] [artist last name, “title,” page where image appears.]
[Shortened Chicago reference; see More Notes on Chicago Style for more information.]

Listing images is probably most like citing an article in a book, with the artist, title, and the museum that holds the work taking the place of author, article title, and book title. If you view the work in person, all you need to add in most cases would be the date the work was produced.

If you use a reproduction or illustration from a printed or Web source, simply add the publication information for your source after you identify the artwork. Follow the other instructions on this website for the relevant kind of source. Note that MLA style asks for information both on who owns the work and on any source you used for a reproduction; APA style asks only for the source you used to retrieve the image.


Unpublished Written Materials

MLA:
Senn, Milton. Report on the Yale Child Study Center. 1962. TS. Sally Provence Papers, 1951-1991, Box 24. Yale U, New Haven.
[author, by last name.] [title or other description.] [date of composition.] [TS or MS.] [collection name, number.] [institution, city.]

APA:
Senn, M. (1962). Report on the Yale Child Study Center. Unpublished report. Sally Provence Papers, 1951-1991, Box 24. Yale U, New Haven, CT.
[author, by last name, initial.] [(date of composition).] [title or other description.] [format.] [collection name, number.] [institution, city, state using two letter postal abbreviation without periods.]

Chicago:
32. Senn, Report Yale Child Study Center, Box 24.
[fn. #.] [author last name, shortened title, page or file #.]
[Shortened Chicago reference; see More Notes on Chicago Style for more information.]

As with all citations, the goal in listing unpublished materials is to make it easy for readers to track down your sources, if necessary. If the materials are available from a library or collection, list them first by author. Include a title or any other distinguishing material, as well as any numbers assigned by the collection to help catalog the materials. Identify the institution that holds the collection. Note: “TS” (“typescript”) indicates typed materials; “MS” (“manuscript”) indicates handwritten ones.

Privately Held Unpublished Material

For unpublished material that is not housed in a public collection, each of the three citation styles has different conventions. MLA style allows you to list unpublished material even if it’s not housed publicly; add “Author’s private collection” at the end of your listing. Chicago style recommends a full footnote at the point of citation, but no listing in the Bibliography. (See Email and Instant Messages for a similar example in Chicago style.) In APA convention, only sources that can be publicly accessed are listed in your References. If you use materials in your private possession, APA style dictates that you refer to them this way in your paper and not list them at the end.


Lectures & Live Performances

MLA:
Garber, Marjorie. Lecture on Shakespeare’s Othello. Literature and Arts 4-41–Shakespeare, the Later Plays. Harvard U, Cambridge. 10 Mar 1982. Lecture.
[speaker, by last name.] [title or other description.] [sponsoring event or course name.] [institution, city.] [performance date.] [performance type.]

APA:
Identify as lecture or performance in your paper. Do not list in your References.

Chicago:
33. Garber, “Lecture on Othello.”
[fn. #.] [speaker last name, shortened title.]
[Shortened Chicago reference; see More Notes on Chicago Style for more information.]

A solo performance or a lecture is cited by the performer’s name. Include a title, if any, or a short descriptive word to identify the format. (Lectures with titles are listed with quotation marks; don’t use quotation marks if you are just using a descriptive phrase.) Include the location and date of the performance. If the event is part of a conference, course, or lecture series, you may add that after the performance title. Use this format when you quote or paraphrase part of your professor’s lectures in your paper.

If your paper cites a performance by two or more people, or the production of a play or other previously published or recorded work, what you list first depends on which element of the production your paper focuses on. This ambiguity is caused in part by the group nature of such productions: even if you identify a writer, producer, or director, a group performance never has the single authorship of a written text or image. See the discussion of film and video for discussion of a similar example.

In APA style, you do not include in your list of References any source that can’t be retrieved by your reader. If you refer to a lecture or performance in your paper, cite it as such in your text, and do not list it at the end.


Interviews, Conversations, & Discussions

MLA:
Wallack, Nicole. Institute for Writing and Thinking. New York City. 7 June 2006. Advisory Board Meeting.
[speaker.] [sponsoring event.] [location.] [date.] [format.]

APA:
Identify as conversation in your paper. Do not list in your References.

Chicago:
34. Nicole Wallack, Advisory Board Meeting, Institute for Writing and Thinking, New York City, June 7, 2006.
[fn. #.] [author full name, discussion format,] [sponsoring context if any,] [location, date.]

Note: Chicago style footnotes give full information for unpublished discussions, but does not list them in the Bibliography.

It’s probably obvious that the authority of material that comes in private conversations varies greatly with the status of the source. What someone says may be useful as a source of opinion, but can seldom be relied on as definitive information, unless you’re speaking with a recognized expert. And even in these cases, the informality of conversation makes most people much less careful about checking facts and conclusions, rendering the information less authoritative. Most discussions should probably be treated as popular rather than scholarly sources. See Scholarly vs. Popular Sources for more information.

But some discussions will be relevant to ideas you’re developing (especially class discussions), and some of the people you talk to will have useful knowledge of the topics at hand. In addition, even talking about your own ideas can be an invaluable way to develop them further, and this benefit is not restricted to conversations with experts. If you talk with friends or classmates, you may gain new insights for your writing, and you may wish to acknowledge other speaker’s contributions to your work. Doing so is not simply a matter of giving credit where it’s due, but can also serve to add texture to your ideas by articulating alternate positions—exploring such alternatives, briefly, can enhance the impact of your primary argument. The following other sections of this guide may be helpful in thinking about how to employ ideas that arise in conversation: Why Cite?Scholarly vs. Popular Sources, and Sources that Other People Suggested.

How to Cite Discussions & Conversations

If you quote or paraphrase what someone said during a meeting, class discussion, or private conversation, list the citation by the speaker’s name. Follow that with a short description of the discussion format (such as “Private conversation”). If the conversation is part of some organized event—like a class meeting—include that information.

In APA style, you do not include in your list of References any source that can’t be retrieved by your reader. If you use material from a discussion in your paper, cite it as a personal communication in your text, and do not list it at the end.

Note: As discussed in the section on How To Quote, it’s often useful to identify your source in the body of your paper (and not just in your citation or footnote); this identification is especially important when you use discussions. If you give a sense of what kind of source you’re using, the reader will be better able to understand the context of your evidence. The discussion of Special Demands of Internet Sources examines the importance of contextualizing your sources.

Also note: Most people consider conversations to be private. Even if the discussion involves more than one person, a decent respect for privacy suggests that you secure the speaker’s permission before making the material public. The discussion of Special Demands of Internet Sources examines the importance of respecting a source’s privacy.


Sources That Cite Other Sources

MLA:
Hoy, Pat C. II. “The Narrow, Rich Staircase in Forster’s Howard’s End.” Twentieth Century Literature 31 (1985): 221-235. Print.
[author of article, by last name.] [“title of article.”] [title of journal.] [volume number] [(year):] [full page numbers for article.] [medium.]

APA:
Hoy, P. C. II. (1985). The narrow, rich staircase in Forster’s howard’s endTwentieth Century Literature 31, 221-235.
[author of article.][(year).] [title of article, no quotation marks.] [title of journal] [volume number,] [full page numbers for article.]

Chicago:
35. Forster, Howard’s End, quoted in Hoy, “Narrow, Rich Staircase,” 224.
[fn. #.] [quoted author, title,] [“quoted in” accessed author, “shortened title,” page number.]
[Shortened Chicago reference; see More Notes on Chicago Style for more information.]

The example above is from a critical article where Pat C. Hoy II quotes sections of the novel Howard’s End, written by E. M. Forster. If the source you’re reading quotes another text, and you want to use that quoted material in your own essay, you must give credit to the author who originally selected the quotation. So if Pat Hoy quotes E. M. Forster, and you want to use the same Forster quotation, you must give Hoy credit. You can acknowledge this several ways: add the phrase “Pat Hoy quotes Forster’s…” before your quotation; add the phrase “qtd. in Hoy” in parentheses after the quotation; or add what’s called a discursive footnote at the bottom of the page explaining that Hoy’s work led you to the Forster selection. For more information about these different methods, see Signaling Sources. In each of these cases, you would also include the bibliographical information necessary to help the reader find Hoy’s piece.

Some writers try to bypass this obligation by looking briefly at the original source (in this case Forster), either online or by checking the book out of the library. If you end up using different material and making a different argument, you may still want to credit Hoy for leading you to consult Forster. See Sources that Other People Suggested for more information. If you quote the same language Hoy did, even after consulting the original work yourself, it’s dishonest to pretend that Hoy did not lead you there. And, as discussed in Why Cite?, it’s also usually a mistake. There’s every chance that your discussion of Forster can be enhanced by incorporating Hoy’s attention, especially if you’re careful to extend or respond to his insights. You may be surprised how effective it can be both to give credit and also to differ with an author in the same gesture: “In his attention this passage, Hoy suggests…. But looked at in light of my previous argument, it seems clear that….”

Bibliography Padding

Besides wanting to claim credit for finding the significant passage, some writers might disguise their debt to Hoy as a way to pad their bibliographies. If you quote Hoy in one place, but then quote Forster as if you read that text yourself, you can make it look as if you used two sources and not just one. Please resist this temptation. For one reason, you misrepresent the work you’ve done. But perhaps more damaging, if you quote without acknowledgment the exact passage another writer discussed, there’s a very good chance that your argument will be subtly turned in an unintended direction. You are much more likely to develop your own ideas—and therefore to grow as a writer and thinker—if you acknowledge the second author and respond to his or her use of the passage. See Why Cite? for more discussion about entering the ongoing conversation about a topic.


Sources Suggested by Other People

MLA:
1. My use of Bouvard here was prompted by Jessica Scott’s “Judgment Day Everyday.” Mercer Street, Ed. Alfred E. Guy Jr. 2001. 50-54. Print.
[footnote mark] [brief explanation] [publication information—do not list Scott in Works Cited.]

APA:
1. See Scott (2001).
[footnote mark] [brief reference, and list Scott in References.]

Chicago:
36. My use of Bouvard here was prompted by Jessica Scott’s “Judgment Day Everyday.” Mercer Street, Ed. Alfred E. Guy Jr. 2001. 50-54.
[fn.#.] [brief explanation] [publication information—do not list Scott in Bibliography.]

If the source you’re reading quotes another text, and you want to use that quoted material in your own essay, you must give credit to the author who originally selected the quotation. See Sources that Cite Other Sources for more information. But even if you focus on different parts of the second text, and make a different argument, you may still want to give credit to authors who lead you to other sources. In the example above, you may end up focusing on very different aspects of Bouvard’s text than Scott did, leading you to quote different passages and to make your own argument. But if it was reading Scott’s piece that gave you the idea to look at Bouvard, you may want to acknowledge her help.

In the MLA example above, credit is given by the use of what’s called a discursive footnote (a footnote that adds information that isn’t part of the central argument). Since you don’t use Scott directly in the essay, you would include the publication information in the footnote, rather than in your Works Cited. In the APA example, only the author’s name and date are given in the footnote. In this instance, you would include the publication information in the References. But you can use the briefer version for MLA and the fuller version for APA; the format for this kind of acknowledgment is not rigidly defined. If you want to call even more attention to Scott’s influence, you could add the phrase that gives her credit directly into your paragraph. In that case, follow the instructions on how to cite that kind of source (in this case, an Article in a Book).

Ultimately, every thing you read can lead you to something else, and it would be possible to go overboard in acknowledging the web of texts that have influenced you. But especially for beginning academic writers, it can be quite gratifying to make visible the conversation of ideas you’ve entered into and which has resulted in your current paper.


Critical Editions

MLA:
Machiavelli, Niccolo. The Prince. 1532. Ed. & Trans. Robert M. Adams. Norton Critical Editions. New York: Norton, 1992. Print.
[author, by last name.] [title.] [original publication date.] [editor & translator, by first name.] [series name.] [city of publication: publisher, year. medium.]

APA:
Machiavelli, N. (1992). The prince (R. M. Adams, Ed. & Trans.). Norton Critical Editions. New York, NY: Norton. (Original work published 1532)
[author by last name, initial.] [(year).] [title] [(editor & translator.).] [series name.] [city of publication, state using the two letter postal abbreviation without periods: publisher.] [(Original work published date)]

Chicago:
37. Machiavelli, Prince, 45.
[fn. #.] [quoted author, shortened title, page number.]
[Shortened Chicago reference; see More Notes on Chicago Style for more information.]

Critical editions print in one book a text as well as scholarly responses to it and other information useful to understanding the text (such as letters from the author). This kind of sourcebook is most common in the humanities, but may also be found in other disciplines. If you use material from a critical edition, you should cite it the same way you would cite an Article in a Book or a Preface, Foreword, or Introduction.

But like Sources that Cite other Sources, critical editions can sometimes tempt a writer to pad his or her bibliography. In the example above, if you cite Machiavelli in one place, but then cite one of the critical articles as if you read its original publication, you can make it look as if you found sources in two different locations. Please resist this temptation. First of all, in nearly every case, disguising your use of the critical edition will constitute unnecessary busywork, as almost any professor who wants you to use critical sources will be glad to see you consulting a critical edition. And on a simpler level, it’s just wrong to deny credit to the editor of the critical edition for selecting the very readings that you’ve found helpful in developing your argument.