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Patrias K, author; Wendling D, editor. Citing Medicine: The NLM Style Guide for Authors, Editors, and Publishers [Internet]. 2nd edition. Bethesda (MD): National Library of Medicine (US); 2007-.
Citing Medicine: The NLM Style Guide for Authors, Editors, and Publishers [Internet]. 2nd edition.
Show detailsSample Citation and Introduction to Citing Newspaper Articles
The general format for a reference to a newspaper article, including punctuation:
Examples of Citations to Newspaper Articles
References to articles in newspapers are very similar to those for journal articles (see Chapter 1A Journal Articles). There are 5 major differences:
- Names of newspapers are never abbreviated (e.g., "The Washington Post" not "Wash Post"), although a leading "The" may be dropped if desired.
- The location where a newspaper is published is added to the title if the newspaper title does not indicate it, either within or after the title, as appropriate.
- Section information, if present, replaces volume and issue information.
- Only the beginning page number of an article is included.
- Column location is added.
When a newspaper article has an author or authors, it is said to be "signed." Newspaper articles may be signed either at the beginning of the article or at its conclusion. If the article is signed, begin the reference with the surname (family name or last name) of the author; if the article is unsigned, begin the reference with the title of the article; the use of "anonymous" is not permitted.
The specific edition of a newspaper is a required component of a citation. The same article may or may not appear in different editions, and the text of an article often varies among editions.
Cite an Internet newspaper article as you would a print newspaper article, but with these major exceptions:
- Use the word "Internet" in square brackets as the Type of Medium after the newspaper title
- Include any update or revision date if there is one and a date of citation in square brackets following the date of publication
- When a location (pagination) for the article is not provided, as often occurs, calculate the length of the article using the best means possible, e.g., in terms of print pages, screens, or paragraphs
- Provide the URL or other electronic address of the article
The source for title and other newspaper information is, in order of preference: (1) the title page or home page of the newspaper and (2) the masthead.
Continue to Citation Rules with Examples for Newspaper Articles.
Continue to Examples of Citations to Newspaper Articles.
Citation Rules with Examples for Newspaper Articles
Components/elements are listed in the order they should appear in a reference. An R after the component name means that it is required in the citation; an O after the name means it is optional.
Author (R) | Article Title (R) | Newspaper Title (R) | Edition (R) | Type of Medium (R) | Date of Publication (R) | Section Letter, Number, or Name (R) | Location (Pagination) (R) | Column Number (R) | Physical Description (O) | Language (R) | Notes (O)
Author for Newspaper Articles (required)
General Rules for Author
- List names in the order they appear in the text
- Enter surname (family or last name) first for each author
- Capitalize surnames and enter spaces within surnames as they appear in the document cited on the assumption that the author approved the form used. For example: Van Der Horn or van der Horn; De Wolf or de Wolf or DeWolf.
- Convert given (first) names and middle names to initials, for a maximum of two initials following each surname
- Give all authors, regardless of the number
- Separate author names from each other by a comma and a space
- End author information with a period
Specific Rules for Author
Box 1
Surnames with hyphens and other punctuation in them.
Box 2
Other surname rules.
Box 3
Given names containing punctuation, a prefix, a preposition, or particle.
Box 4
Degrees, titles, and honors before or after a personal name.
Box 5
Designations of rank in a family, such as Jr and III.
Box 6
Names in non-roman alphabets (Cyrillic, Greek, Arabic, Hebrew, Korean) or character-based languages (Chinese, Japanese).
Box 7
Organization as author.
Box 8
No author can be found.
Box 9
Options for author names.
Examples for Author
Article Title for Newspaper Articles (required)
General Rules for Article Title
- Enter the title of an article as it appears in the original document
- Capitalize only the first word of a title, proper nouns, proper adjectives, acronyms, and initialisms
- Use a colon followed by a space to separate a title from a subtitle, unless some other form of punctuation (such as a question mark, period, or an exclamation point) is already present
- Follow non-English titles with a translation whenever possible; place the translation in square brackets
- End a title with a period unless a question mark or exclamation point already ends it
Newspaper Title (required)
General Rules for Newspaper Title
- Enter a newspaper title in the original language
- Do not omit or abbreviate any words in a newspaper title, with the exception of a leading "The" which may be dropped if desired
- Add the location where published if it is not included in the title: Bergen County (NJ) Record and Daily Nation (Nairobi). See Location added below.
- End the newspaper title with a period unless an Edition or a Type of Medium is included
Box 14
Location added.
Edition for Newspaper Articles (required)
General Rules for Edition
- Indicate the edition being cited after the title when a newspaper is published in more than one edition
- Capitalize each significant word and place other words, such as articles, conjunctions, and prepositions in lower case
- Express numbers representing editions in arabic ordinals. For example: second becomes 2nd and III becomes 3rd.
- Abbreviate common words such as edition (see Abbreviation rules for editions)
- Place the edition statement in parentheses, such as (Final Ed.)
- End the edition statement with a period after the closing parenthesis unless the Type of Medium is included
Box 17
Abbreviation rules for editions.
Specific Rules for Edition
Box 18
Non-English words for editions.
Box 19
Both a location and an edition included.
Examples for Edition
Type of Medium for Newspaper Articles (required)
General Rules for Type of Medium
- Indicate the specific type of medium (Internet, microfiche, ultrafiche, microfilm, microcard, etc.) following the title (and edition, if present) when a newspaper article is read on the Internet or appears in a microform
- Place the name of the medium in square brackets and end with a period. For example: [microfiche].
- Add information about the medium according to the instructions under Physical Description below. If the medium is Internet, there is no physical description.
Examples for Type of Medium
Date of Publication for Newspaper Articles (required)
General Rules for Date of Publication
- Include the year, month, and day of publication in that order. For example: 2004 May 5.
- Convert roman numerals to arabic numbers, such as MM to 2000
- Use English names for months and abbreviate them using the first three letters, such as Jan
- End date information with a semicolon unless no section letter, number, or name is found (see No section letter, number, or name is found below). Exception is if using a volume and issue in place of a section (see Optional volume and issue numbers used instead of section information below).
Box 21
No section letter, number, or name is found.
Box 24
Optional volume and issue numbers used instead of section information.
Section Letter, Number, or Name for Newspaper Articles (required)
General Rules for Section Letter, Number, or Name
- Abbreviate Section to Sect.
- Follow Sect. with the letter, number, or name of the section
- Convert roman numerals used for section numbers into arabic numerals, such that II becomes 2
- End section information with a colon
Specific Rules for Section Letter, Number, or Name
Box 22
Section with a name instead of a letter or number.
Box 23
No section letter, number, or name is found.
Examples for Section Letter, Number, or Name
Location (Pagination) for Newspaper Articles (required)
General Rules for Location (Pagination)
- Pagination in a newspaper article differs from pagination in all other types of publications in that only the first page of the article is used
- Give the beginning page number on which the article appears
- Include a letter when it precedes the page number only when using the options provided in Letters before page numbers
- End pagination information with a space
Box 25
Letters before page numbers.
Examples for Location (Pagination)
Column Number for Newspaper Articles (required)
General Rules for Column Number
- Give the number of the column on which the article begins
- Precede the number with "col."
- Place column information in parentheses, as (col. 3)
- End column information with a period outside the closing parenthesis
Examples for Column Number
Physical Description for Newspaper Articles (optional)
General Rules for Physical Description
- Give information on the location of an article and its physical characteristics when the newspaper appears in a microform (microfilm, microfiche, etc.). For example: microfiche 2 of 3 microfiche: color, 2 x 4 in.
Examples for Physical Description
Language for Newspaper Articles (required)
General Rules for Language
- Give the language of publication if other than English
- Capitalize the language name
- Follow the language name with a period
Notes for Newspaper Articles (optional)
General Rules for Notes
- Notes is a collective term for any type of useful information given after the citation itself
- Complete sentences are not required
- Be brief
Examples for Notes
Examples of Citations to Newspaper Articles
1. Standard signed newspaper article
Gaul G. When geography influences treatment options. Washington Post (Maryland Ed.). 2005 Jul 24;Sect. A:12 (col. 1).
Harris G. FDA orders recall of intravenous pumps. New York Times (Washington Final). 2005 Jun 22;Sect. A:12 (col. 1).
Levine S. Obesity increase creating special needs. Miami Herald (Final Ed.). 2006 Jan 4;Sect. A:4 (col. 2).
Fialka JJ. How mercury rules designed for safety end up polluting. Wall Street Journal. 2006 Apr 20;Sect. A:1 (col. 1).
with optional full name
Fialka, John J. How mercury rules designed for safety end up polluting. Wall Street Journal. 2006 Apr 20;Sect. A:1 (col. 1).
2. Standard unsigned newspaper article
Major decline in U.S. deaths is recorded. New York Times (Washington Final). 2006 Apr 20;Sect. A:14 (col. 6).
Woman in L.A. tests positive for plague. Richmond Times-Dispatch. 2006 Apr 20;Sect. A:7 (col. 6).
3. Standard newspaper article with optional volume and issue numbers
Taking steps back to normal after novel rabies therapy. New York Times (National Ed.). 2005 Dec 25;155(53439):23 (col. 3).
4. Newspaper article with author surname showing designations of rank within a family
Maugh TH 2nd. Cancer deaths decline for 1st time since 1930: the drop in U.S. is slight but marks a milestone, as advances catch up with demographics. Los Angeles Times. 2006 Feb 9;Sect. A:6 (col. 1).
McNeil DG Jr. Dogs trained to sniff out cancer: experts skeptical of 99% accuracy claim. Chicago Tribune (Final Ed.). 2006 Jan 17:2 (col. 3).
5. Newspaper article with compound author surname
Perez-Pena R. Chernobyl takes its toll among emigres in U.S. New York Times (Washington Final). 2006 Apr 20;Sect. A:23 (col. 1).
Edersheim Kalb P. Finding out what's in your water. Wall Street Journal. 2006 Apr 20;Sect. D:2 (col. 3).
6. Newspaper article with author surnames having particles or prefixes (give as found in the article)
O'Brian B. For one minority, a bias that's just so not right. Washington Post (Maryland Ed.). 2006 Aug 13;Sect. D:1 (col. 1).
McCollum DG. More abuse victims would tell doctors - if doctors would ask. (Minneapolis) Star-Tribune (Metro Ed.). 1996 Feb 3;Sect. A:23 (col. 1).
LaFraniere S. Angola is hit by cholera outbreak. New York Times (Washington Final). 2006 Apr 20;Sect. A:6 (col. 6).
von Eberstein L. Recovery role cited at NABOR installation. (New Orleans) Times-Picayune. 2006 Jan 22:99 (col. 3).
7. Newspaper article with an organization as author
Bloomberg News. 3 drug makers gain as top sellers keep up pace. New York Times (Washington Final). 2006 Apr 20;Sect. C:13 (col. 1).
Associated Press. Mumps outbreak spreading in Midwest. Richmond Times-Dispatch. 2006 Apr 20;Sect. A:3 (col. 1).
8. Newspaper article with subtitle
Vergano D, Lefort M. Stem cell implants in apes' brains bring warning: panel issues research guidelines and cites the `moral' dimension. USA Today. 2005 Jul 18;Sect. D:4 (col. 2).
9. Newspaper article in a language other than English
Se retractan cientificos sudcoreanos; admiten mentiras sobre la clonacion. La Jornada (Mexico City). 2006 Jan 5;Sect. A:3 (col. 1). Spanish.
Tchernobyl, 20 ans apres: le vrai impact en France. Le Monde (France Metropolitan). 2006 Apr 25:1 (col. 5). French.
10. Newspaper article in a language other than English with optional translated title
Se retractan cientificos sudcoreanos; admiten mentiras sobre la clonacion [South Korean scientists retract themselves; they admit lies on cloning]. La Jornada (Mexico City). 2006 Jan 5;Sect. A:3 (col. 1). Spanish.
Tchernobyl, 20 ans apres: le vrai impact en France [Chernobly, 20 years after: the real impact on France]. Le Monde (France Metropolitan). 2006 Apr 25:1 (col. 5). French.
11. Newspaper title with city of publication added for clarification
Njera C. Warning over diabetes monitors: touch glucose meters have failed to make the grade, says US regulator. Daily Nation (Nairobi). 2006 Jan 5;Sect. 2:23 (col. 1).
McCollum DG. More abuse victims would tell doctors - if doctors would ask. (Minneapolis) Star-Tribune (Metro Ed.). 1996 Feb 3;Sect. A:23 (col. 1).
Tanner L. Junior's chubby cheeks are cute, but they might never go away: study says overweight toddlers likely to keep on those pounds. The Record (Stockton, AZ). 2006 Sep 5;Sect. A:1 (col. 2).
12. Newspaper title with an edition
Stein R. Nonprescription sales of cholesterol drug rejected: FDA panel says risk of side effects outweigh benefits. Washington Post (Final Ed.). 2005 Jan 15;Sect. A:3 (col. 4).
Harris G. FDA orders recall of intravenous pumps. New York Times (Washington Final). 2005 Jun 22;Sect. A:12 (col. 1).
Web site offers checkup on media health coverage. St. Louis Post Dispatch (3rd Ed.). 2006 Apr 17;Sect. A:3 (col. 5 ).
13. Newspaper title with both a city added and an edition
UnitedHealth-PacifiCare deal hailed, deplored. The (Baltimore) Sun (Weekend Ed.). 2005 Jul 8;Sect. E:1 (col.1).
La "gripe del pollo" vuela can las aves silvestres [The "bird flu" flies with the wild birds]. El Pais (Madrid) (Ed. Europa). 2005 Jul 17:28 (col. 1). Spanish.
14. National newspaper without geographic location
Hellmich N. Dieter says "oui!" to French diet. USA Today. 2005 Jul 18;Sect. D:4 (col.2).
15. Newspaper section with letter
Tanner L. Rare drug mix-up can paralyze or kill: cancer therapy alert issued. USA Today. 2005 Jul 18;Sect. D:7 (col. 5).
16. Newspaper section with number
Janega J. Spoonful of cold reality. Chicago Tribune (Final Ed. South-Southwest). 2006 Jan 10;Sect. 1:1 (col.1).
17. Newspaper section with name
Graedon J, Graedon T. Amnesia and cholesterol-lowering prescription drugs. The (Baltimore) Sun (Weekend Ed.). 2005 Jul 24;Home & Family:8N (col. 1).
Kunkle F. Grievance panel seeks reprimand for Gansler. Washington Post (Home Ed.). 2003 Jul 3;Montgomery Extra:10 (col. 1).
18. Newspaper with no section letter, number, or name
Peres J. Second look shows value of calcium. Chicago Tribune (Final Ed.). 2006 Apr 25:1 (col. 1).
La "gripe del pollo" vuela can las aves silvestres [The "bird flu" flies with the wild birds]. El Pais (Madrid) (Ed. Europa). 2005 Jul 17:28 (col. 1). Spanish.
19. Newspaper article with optional inclusion of letter with page number (omitting section)
Krasner J. Doctors wary of BIOGEN MS drug, survey says. Boston Globe (3rd Ed.). 2006 Mar 1:C4 (col. 1).
20. Newspaper article in a microform
A year later, efforts are on to avoid another botched transplant. New York Times (Late City Ed.) [microfilm]. 2004 Feb 22;Sect. L:26 (col.1). 1 reel: black & white, negative, 35 mm.
21. Newspaper article with a dateline
Taking steps back to normal after novel rabies therapy. New York Times (National Ed.). 2005 Dec 25;155(53439):23 (col. 3). Milwaukee, Dec 24.
LaFraniere S. Angola is hit by cholera outbreak. New York Times (Washington Final). 2006 Apr 20;Sect. A:6 (col. 6). Johannesburg, Apr 19.
Siegal N. Mumps epidemic spreads; more vaccine promised. New York Times (Washington Final). 2006 Apr 20;Sect. A:15 (col. 5). Iowa City, Apr 19.
22. Newspaper article with other type of note
Vedantam S. When staying cool seems better than being bad. Washington Post (Final Ed.). 2006 Aug 7;Sect. A:2 (col. 3 ). Part of a weekly series of stories about the sociology and psychology behind news events.
23. Newspaper article on the Internet
Carey B. Psychiatrists revise the book of human troubles. New York Times [Internet]. 2008 Dec 17 [cited 2008 Dec 19];Health:[about 3 p.]. Available from: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/18/health/18psych.html?_r=1&em
Grady D. Jump in doctor visits and deaths in flu season. New York Times [Internet]. 2008 Apr 18 [cited 2008 Dec 19];Research:[about 4 screens]. Available from: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/18/health/research/18flu.html?scp=7&sq=flu%20season&st=cse
Lyderson K. Risk of disease rises with water temperatures. Washington Post [Internet]. 2008 Oct 20 [cited 2008 Dec 19]:A08. Available from: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/19/AR2008101901533.html Article includes a correction.
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