Hamilton Heights High School Library

Please refer to your Writer's Ink book for citation guidelines. Listed below are some examples that are generally confusing or include information specific to our school. The format for electronic databases generally follows the same format as print sources, then you add the database you used, the place and date of access, and the URL. There is no standard format for web sites, so you must often look to find the author/creator's name. Remember, you must evaluate all information found on the open Internet for accuracy and credibility before using it.

MLA CITATION FORMAT FOR PAID DATABASES

MLA Format for a newspaper or magazine article from Newsbank

Authorlastname, First. “Individual Title of Article.” Original Magazine or Newspaper dates and pages of print source. Database. Place you accessed it, city, ST. date you accessed it <http://www.addressofsite.com>.

Example from Newsbank:
Wilcox, Shawn. “Distance Learning is Growing.” Newsweek 27 April 2004: 126-131. Newsbank Newsfile Collection. Hamilton Heights High School Library, Arcadia, IN. 29 Mar. 2005. <http://infoweb.newsbank.com>.

MLA format for the databases in Inspire

Inspire has several different databases with names like Master File Premier, Academic Search Elite, etc. Most of them are hosted by a service called EBSCO host, which you have to include in the citation.

Example from an Inspire database:
Murphy, Charles. “What the World Needs Now.” US News and World Report 31 May 2003: 70-74. Master File Premier. EBSCO host. Hamilton Heights High School Library, Arcadia, IN. 29 Mar. 2005. <http://www.inspire-indiana.net>.

(Note: Biography Resource Center is NOT hosted by EBSCOhost so you do not need to include EBSCO host after the title of the database. The rest remains the same in format.)

MLA Format for different types of information from Opposing Viewpoints

The information found at the Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center is mostly the electronic version of books from the Opposing Viewpoints, At Issue, and Current Controversies series. In addition to the electronic version of these book chapters, there are links to magazine and newspaper articles. If you are unsure of which you have (magazine/newspaper article or book chapter), ask a librarian or your teacher.

For newspapers and magazines articles from this site the format will be similar to the databases described above. The major change is that the database section will look like this:
Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Opposing Viewpoints Online.

Example of Newspaper or Magazine from Opposing Viewpoints:
Dumil, Charles. “What Goes Around Comes Around.” The New York Times 23 May 2004: A30. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Opposing Viewpoints Online. Hamilton Heights High School Library, Arcadia, IN. 29 Mar. 2005. <http://www.galenet.galegroup.com>.

Many of the viewpoint and reference essays on this site originally came from the books mentioned above and the books contain chapters that are reprints of articles from other sources. Yes – that is confusing! How it is different from the magazines and newspapers is that you
1. Substitute the original book title for the magazine or newspaper title
2. Substitute publishing information (editor, original book title, edition or series information, publisher information) for the date of the original article.
3. Include information about where the article originally appeared before it appeared in the Opposing Viewpoints or Current Controversies book.
4. Finish the same as the example above (database, access place, URL)

Example of a Book Excerpt from Opposing Viewpoints:
Reitz, Willhelmina. “Abortion is Unethical.” Abortion. Ed. Roman Espejo. Opposing Viewpoints Ser. San Diego: Greenhaven, 2002. Rpt. of “My Opinion on the Abortion Debate.” Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Opposing Viewpoints Online. Hamilton Heights High School Library, Arcadia, IN. 29 Mar. 2005. <http://www.galenet.galegroup.com>.

Click here for a printable version of the information given above.

Landmark Citation Machine -- Gives both MLA (what we use) and APA formats.

EasyBib -- A little easier to use than the other one, but you will have to check the format when finished and add the missing information.

If you do not have your Writer's Ink book with you, try the MLA Citation Format and Examples from the Mariemont HS Library for more examples.