LibGuides: MLA Citation Guide (9th Edition): Magazine Articles

Magazines

For more help, see Tips for Citing Magazine Articles below, and explainers on how to tell the difference between Journals, Magazines, and Newspapers.

Magazine Article from a Library Database

Works Cited List Citation

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Magazine, vol. Volume Number if given, no. Issue Number if given, Day Month Year of Publication, pp. Page Numbers if given. Database Name.

Note: If you are citing an opinion or editorial piece, add the following at the end of your citation: Op-ed.

Note: If the article pages are not in consecutive order, list the first page number of the article followed by a plus (+) sign.

Examples:

One Author

Piore, Adam. “Is Bitcoin Too Big to Fail?” Newsweek, vol. 126, no. 10, 9 Apr. 2021. Canadian Business & Current Affairs.

Two Authors

Kotkin, Joel, and Marshall Toplansky. "A New Age of Reconnaissance: Entrepreneurs are Leading the Way to Space." National Review, vol. 73, no. 5, 22 Mar. 2021, p. 28+. ABI/INFORM.

Three or More Authors

Berman-Vaporis, Irene, et al. "The State of Women." National Geographic, vol. 38, no. 6, Dec. 2020, p. 32+. Gale Academic OneFile.

No Author

"The Zoom Where It Happens." The Economist, vol. 439, no. 9243, 1 May 2021. Canadian Business & Current Affairs.

In-Text Citation

(Last Name Page Number if given) or if there's no author ("Title of Article" Page Number if given)

Examples:

(Lee)

(Kotkin and Toplansky 30)

(Berman-Vaporis et al. 35)

("The Zoom" 2)

Note: If the source has a long title, you may shorten it in your in-text citation by using the first word/phrase from the title.

For more help, see Tips for Citing Magazine Articles below, and explainers on how to tell the difference between Journals, Magazines, and Newspapers.

Magazine Article from a Website

Works Cited List Citation

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Magazine, vol. Volume Number if given, no. Issue Number if given, Day Month Year of Publication, URL.

Note: If you are citing an opinion or editorial piece, add the following at the end of your citation: Op-ed.

Examples:

One Author

Waite, Kevin. “The Bloody History of Anti-Asian Violence in the West” National Geographic, 10 May 2021, www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/the-bloody-history-of-anti-asian-violence-in-the-west.

Two Authors

Seif, Martin, and Sally Winston. "Chronic Indecisiveness: Between a Rock and a Hard Place." Psychology Today, 9 May 2021, www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/living-sticky-mind/202105/chronic-indecisiveness-between-rock-and-hard-place.

Three or More Authors

Smith, Marie-Danielle, et al. "The Rise and Fall of WE." Maclean's, 9 Sept. 2020, www.macleans.ca/longforms/we-charity-kielburgers-scandal/.

No Author

"The Digital Currencies That Matter." The Economist, 8 May 2021, www.economist.com/leaders/2021/05/08/the-digital-currencies-that-matter.

In-Text Citation

(Last Name) or if there's no author ("Title of Article")

Examples:

(Waite)

(Seif and Winston)

(Smith et al.)

("The Digital Currencies")

Note: If the source has a long title, you may shorten it in your in-text citation by using the first word/phrase from the title.

For more help, see Tips for Citing Magazine Articles below, and explainers on how to tell the difference between Journals, Magazines, and Newspapers.

Magazine Article in Print

Works Cited List Citation

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Magazine, vol. Volume Number if given, no. Issue Number if given, Day Month Year of Publication, pp. Page Numbers.

Note: If you are citing an opinion or editorial piece, add the following at the end of your citation: Op-ed.

Note: If the article pages are not in consecutive order, list the first page number of the article followed by a plus (+) sign.

Example:

Mull, Amanda. “Generation Work-From-Home May Never Recover” The Atlantic, Oct. 2020, pp. 30-2.

In-Text Citation

(Last Name Page Number)

Examples:

(Mull 31)

How Can I Tell If It's a Magazine?

Not sure whether your article is from a magazine? Look for these characteristics:

Popular magazines:

Main purpose is to entertain, sell products or promote a viewpoint.
Appeal to the general public.
Often have many photos and illustrations, as well as many advertisements.
Author may or may not have subject expertise.
Name and credentials of authors often NOT provided.
Articles tend to be short –less than 5 pages
Unlikely to have a bibliography or references list

Trade magazines:

Main purpose is to update and inform readers on current trends in a specific industry or trade.
Audience is members of a specific industry or trade or professors and students in that trade or industry
May have photos and numerous advertisements, but still assume that readers understand specific jargon of the profession.
Usually published by an association.
Authors are professionals working in the specific industry or trade.

Articles may also come from journals or newspapers .

How Can I Tell if it's a Journal?

Photo from Flickr under Creative Commons license, created by the.Firebottle

Not sure whether your article is from a journal? Look for these characteristics:

Main purpose is often to report results of original search
Articles usually have a very specific subject focus
May see sections such as abtract, discussion, results, and conclusion
Author of the article is an expert or specialist in the field and often their credentials are listed
Article is intended for students, scientists, researchers and/or professionals instead of the general public
Usually includes a References list at the end

Articles may also come from magazines or newspapers.

How Can I Tell If It's a Newspaper?

Not sure whether your article is from a newspaper? Look for these characteristics:

Main purpose is to provide readers with a brief account of current events locally, nationally or internationally.
Can be published daily, semiweekly or weekly.
Articles are usually written by journalists who may or may not have subject expertise.
Written for the general public, readers don't need any previous subject knowledge.
Little, if any, information about other sources is provided.

Articles may also come from journals or magazines .

Tips for Citing Magazine Articles

Access Date

For all content found on the Web, you must list the date you first viewed the resource. This comes last in a citation. The exception to this rule is that you do not list access date for content found in library databases.

Authors/Editors

An author can be a person but can also be an organization, or company. These are called group or corporate authors.

Database Names

The name of the database will usually appear at the top of the search screen. Note that Elsevier, Gale and EBSCOhost are NOT database names, they are database providers. The name of the database will appear separately.

If you have used the function to search multiple databases at once and therefore do not know the individual database name, enter the name of the database provider (e.g. ProQuest) as the database.

Dates

The format of all dates is: Date Month (shortened) Year. E.g. 5 Sept. 2012.

Page Numbers

If no page number is listed, write n. pag. in the Works Cited list.

If the entire article is only one page, do not include a page number in the in-text citation.

If the article appears on non-consecutive pages (e.g., the article starts on page 5 then continues on page 12), write the first page number and a plus (+) sign. E.g., 5+

Titles

Capitalize the first letter of every important word in the title. You do not need to capitalize words such as: in, of, or an.

If there is a colon (:) in the title, include what comes after the colon (also known as the subtitle).