Newspaper Article Citation Mla

So, you need to cite a newspaper article in MLA format? Don’t panic. It’s way easier than untangling a pair of earbuds, I promise.

Think of MLA as a very polite robot. It just wants to know who wrote what, where it was published, and when. Once you feed it those details, you’re golden.

The Big Secret: It’s Just the Basics

First, grab your article. You’ll need the author’s name (last name first, like a phone book from the 90s). Then, the title of the article in quotation marks.

Next up: the name of the newspaper, in italics. Then the date of publication (day, month, year—but abbreviate the month). Finally, the page number—or, if it’s online, the URL or database name.

Let’s see it in action. Say you found a great article by Jane Doe called “Giant Squirrel Stole My Lunch.” It was in The Daily Pecan on October 12, 2023, page A7.

Your citation would look like this:

Doe, Jane. “Giant Squirrel Stole My Lunch.” The Daily Pecan, 12 Oct. 2023, p. A7.

See? No big deal. That period at the end is just the robot’s way of saying, “Citation complete. Awaiting snacks.”

The Online Version: A Little Wild, But Still Tame

Now, what if you found that same article online? Things get just a tiny bit spicier. You still start with the author and the title in quotes.

But here’s the twist: instead of a page number, you include the URL. And please—for the love of all things bibliographic—do not put the “https://” part. Just the www. or whatever comes after.

It looks like this: Doe, Jane. “Giant Squirrel Stole My Lunch.” The Daily Pecan, 12 Oct. 2023, www.example.com/squirrel-lunch. (And yes, that “example.com” is fake. Your URL will be real and probably less silly.)

One more thing: if the article doesn’t have an author? No sweat. Start with the title in quotes. The robot doesn’t judge.

Double-Check Your Work (Without the Meltdown)

Here’s where most people freak out. They obsess over whether the comma goes inside or outside the quotation marks. Calm down, champ. In MLA, commas and periods always go inside the closing quotation mark.

So it’s “Giant Squirrel,” not “Giant Squirrel”, (that would make the robot cry). Also, dates go day-month-year. Not month-day-year. We’re not writing a letter to grandma here.

And if you’re using an article from a database like ProQuest or EBSCOhost? Just treat it like the online version. Drop the database name and use the URL. Or, if your professor is old-school, list the database in italics at the end. Check your syllabus—it’s worth a scan.

Why Bother? Because It’s Your Superpower

Look, citing sources isn’t just about avoiding a plagiarism lecture (though that’s a solid bonus). It’s about showing your work, like a math problem. You’re saying, “Hey, I didn’t just make this up—this smart person said it first!”

It also makes you look ridiculously professional. Imagine your teacher reading your paper and thinking, “Wow, this student respects the 8th edition MLA Handbook. What a legend.”

Plus, if you ever meet that journalist who wrote “Giant Squirrel,” you’ll have proof you read their work. You guys could be best friends. Dreams, people.

One Last Laugh (and a Pro Tip)

Still feeling iffy? Here’s a trick: pretend you’re making a tiny, boring tombstone for the article. The citation is its epitaph. “Here lies Jane Doe’s piece on lunch-stealing squirrels. Published October 12, 2023. May its words live forever in your bibliography.”

Also, don’t forget the hanging indent! In MLA, the second line of the citation is indented half an inch. It’s like the citation is leaning back, relaxing. “I’ve been cited. I’m chill.”

If you mess up the punctuation? The world won’t end. The MLA police won’t knock on your door. Just take a breath, fix it, and move on. You’ve got this.

You’re Ready to Conquer the Works Cited Page

So there you have it. Newspaper article citation in MLA is a breeze. It’s just a little dance between authors, titles, dates, and URLs. You lead, they follow.

Now go forth and cite. Impress your professors. Befriend those squirrels—or at least their journalists. And remember, every citation is a high-five to knowledge. You’re not just writing a paper; you’re joining a conversation that’s been going on for centuries. Pretty cool, right?

You’ve got the power. You’ve got the format. And you’ve got a giant, well-documented squirrel story that will live forever in MLA glory. Smile, cite, and conquer.