Extended Guide on Citation Tools

The examples below come from the Purdue's OWL MLA website. Please go there for source types not included below.

Article in a Print Magazine

Cite by listing the article's author, putting the title of the article in quotations marks, and italicizing the periodical title. Follow with the date of publication. Remember to abbreviate the month. The basic format is as follows:

Author(s). "Title of Article." Title of Periodical Day Month Year: pages. Medium of publication.

Article in a Web Magazine

Provide the author name, article name in quotation marks, title of the Web magazine in italics, publisher name, publication date, medium of publication, and the date of access. Remember to use n.p. if no publisher name is available and n.d. if no publishing date is given.

EXAMPLE:

Bernstein, Mark. "10 Tips on Writing the Living Web." A List Apart: For People Who Make Websites. A List Apart Mag., 16 Aug. 2002. Web. 4 May 2009.

Article from an Electronic Database 

Cite articles from online databases (e.g. LexisNexis, ProQuest, JSTOR, ScienceDirect) and other subscription services just as you would print sources. Since these articles usually come from periodicals, be sure to consult the appropriate sections of the Works Cited: Periodicals page, which you can access via its link at the bottom of this page. In addition to this information, provide the title of the database italicized, the medium of publication, and the date of access.

EXAMPLES:

Junge, Wolfgang, and Nathan Nelson. “Nature's Rotary Electromotors.” Science 29 Apr. 2005: 642-44. Science Online. Web. 5 Mar. 2009.

Blog Posting

Cite Web postings as you would a standard Web entry. Provide the author of the work, the title of the posting in quotation marks, the Web site name in italics, the publisher, and the posting date. Follow with the medium of publication and the date of access. Include screen names as author names when author name is not known. If both names are known, place the author’s name in brackets. Remember if the publisher of the site is unknown, use the abbreviation n.p.

Editor, screen name, author, or compiler name (if available). “Posting Title.” Name of Site. Version number (if available). Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher). Medium of publication. Date of access.

EXAMPLE:

Salmar1515 [Sal Hernandez]. “Re: Best Strategy: Fenced Pastures vs. Max Number of Rooms?” BoardGameGeek. BoardGameGeek, 29 Sept. 2008. Web. 5 Apr. 2009.

Book with More Than One Author

The first given name appears in last name, first name format; subsequent author names appear in first name last name format.

Chapter in An Online Ebook

According to Purdue OWL's Citation Style Chart (page 5), the citation for a portion of an online book is the following:

Author's Last Name, First Name Middle Initial. "Title of Article." Title of Book: Subtitle of Book. Ed. Editor First Name Last Name. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year. Pages. Web. Date of access.

EXAMPLE:

Adams, Henry. "Diplomacy." The Education of Henry Adams. By Adams. Boston: Houghton, 1918. 104-14. Bartlesby.com. Web. 3 May 2009.

Data and Statistics

Also from Purdue OWL, there are guidelines for documenting data tables and figures in MLA format. Generally, the citation will be:

Authoring Organization. "Title of Document." Title of Website (in italics). Name of Publisher, Day Month Year of Publication. Medium of Publication. Day Month Year of Access.

EXAMPLE:

United States Census Bureau. "Demographic Trends." census.gov. 11 Oct. 2010. Web. 13 Jan. 2011. 

Recorded Films or Movies

List films by their title. Include the name of the director, the distributor, and the release year. If relevant, list performer names after the director’s name. Use the abbreviation perf. to head the list. End the entry with the appropriate medium of publication (e.g. DVD, VHS, Laser disc).

YouTube Videos

From Purdue OWL, based on MLA standards for other media formats, the following format is the most acceptable for citing YouTube videos:

Author’s Name or Poster’s Username. “Title of Image or Video.” Media Type Text. Name of Website. Name of Website’s Publisher, date of posting. Medium. date retrieved.

EXAMPLE:

Shimabukuro, Jake. "Ukulele Weeps by Jake Shimabukuro." Online video clip.
YouTube. YouTube, 22 Apr. 2006. Web. 9. Sept. 2010.