Author
A username can be provided in place of a real name. If both username and real name are provided, put the user name first with the real name following in brackets.
Creator information may often be found under a section called "About" for some types of social media, however this is not always standard.
Date
The format of all dates is: Date Month (shortened) Year.
Example: 5 Sept. 2012.
If no date is given, leave that information out of the citation.
Author's Last Name, First Name or Username if real name not provided. "Title of Blog Post." Name of Blog, Blog Network/Publisher if given, Day Month Year of blog post, URL of blog post. Accessed date.
For in-text citations, use (Author's Last Name)
Works Cited List Example |
Naish, Darren. "If Bigfoot Were Real." Tetrapod Zoology, Scientific American Blogs, 27 June 2016, blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/if-bigfoot-were-real/. Accessed 28 June 2016. |
In-Text Citation Example | (Naish)
Note: Blog posts have no page numbers, paragraph numbers or section headings so this information is left out of the in-text citation. |
Host's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Podcast Episode." Title of Overall Podcast, Episode Number if Given, Web Site Hosting If Different From Podcast Title, Day Month Year of Episode, URL of episode. Accessed Day Month Year podcast was downloaded/played.
For in-text citations, use (Host's Last Name)
Works Cited List Example |
Orton, Tyler, and Patrick Blennerhassett. "Lessons From the Brexit." BIV Podcast, Episode 18, Business Vancouver, 28 June 2016, www.biv.com/article/2016/6/biv-podcast-episode-18-lessons-brexit/. Accessed 2 July 2016. |
In-Text Citation Example |
(Orton and Blennerhassett) Note: Because podcasts do not have page numbers this information is left out of the in-text citation. |
Last Name, First Name of video creator or Username of Creator. "Title of Video." Title of the Hosting Website, uploaded by User, Day Month Year of Publication, URL of video.
For in-text citations, use (Last Name of Video Creator)
Works Cited List Example |
McGonigal, Jane. "Gaming Can Make a Better World." YouTube, uploaded by TED, 17 March 2010, youtu.be/dE1DuBesGYM. Accessed 6 Nov. 2017. Note: While the Accessed date is optional in MLA 8th edition, it is good practice to add for any resource found on the web . |
In-Text Citation Example | (McGonigal) |
Note: Only list the creator if they are different from the uploader. If they are the same, start the citation with the title.
"Title of Video." Publisher/Production Company, Date. Title of Library Database, URL.
For in-text citations, use ("Words From Title")
Works Cited List Example |
"I Am Not Your Negro." Kino Lorber Edu, 2016. Kanopy, otis.kanopystreaming.com/video/i-am-not-your-negro. Accessed 1 Nov. 2017. Note: Typically films are cited without an author. Note: While the Accessed date is optional in MLA 8th edition, it is good practice to add for any resource found on the web. |
Example |
("I Am Not Your Negro") |
Note: Because web addresses change often, use the stable version of the URL. It is usually identified as Permalink, DOI, or Share This. For many databases, the URL in the browser bar may contain login and session data and will stop working.
MLA 9th edition (2021) change: Treat films from Kanopy, Netflix, etc. like a DVD or Film
Title of Video. Director's Name. Performers Names. Production Company, Date. Title of Site. URL.
For in-text citations, use ("Words From Title")
Works Cited List Example |
I Am Not Your Negro. Directed by Raoul Peck. Performances by James Baldwin and Samuel L. Jackson. Kino Lorber Edu, 2016. Kanopy. otis.kanopystreaming.com/video/i-am-not-your-negro. Accessed 1 Nov. 2017. Note: While the Accessed date is optional in MLA 8th edition, it is good practice to add for any resource found on the web. |
Example |
(I Am Not Your Negro) |
Twitter Handle (First Name Last Name if Known). "The entire tweet word-for-word." Twitter, Day Month Year of Tweet, Time of Tweet, URL.
For in-text citations, use (Twitter handle)
Works Cited List Example |
@ReallyVirtual (Sohaib Athar). "Helicopter hovering above Abbottabad at 1AM is a rare event." Twitter, 4 Jan. 2013, 3:58 p.m. twitter.com/reallyvirtual/status/64780730286358528?lang=en. |
In-Text Citation Example |
(@ReallyVirtual)
|
Note: Write out the actual Tweet in the citation and keep spelling and grammar the same as in the original, even if there are errors. When quoting the Tweet, beside grammatical and spelling errors in the original Tweet, write [sic] in square brackets to indicate the errors are not your own.
For example, if the Tweet was "It isn't you're fault the media is violent", write: "It isn't you're [sic] fault the media is violent."
Author Last Name, First Name or Account Name. Description of Post. Facebook, Day Month Year of Post, Time of Post, URL. Accessed date.
For in-text citations, use (Author's Last Name or Account Name)
Works Cited List Example |
Rick Mercer Report. Spread the Net Challenge Winners 2016. Facebook, 23 Mar. 2016, 9:00 a.m., www.facebook.com/rickmercerreport. Accessed 26 June 2016. Note: As Facebook posts can be lengthy, describe the post instead of reposting its content. To find the time of a Facebook post, hover your mouse next to the date of the post over the clock icon. It may not be possible to link directly to the specific post itself. |
In-Text Citation Example | (Rick Mercer Report) |
Creator's Last Name, First Name (Username). "Title of Digital Image." Title of Website, Other Contributors, Version, Number, Publisher/Platform, Date of Publication, URL. Accessed date.
For captions, use: Fig. #. Description from: Citation.
For in-text citations, use (Fig. #) or (Creator's Last Name)
Works Cited Example |
mstornadox. "Beatrice Took a Photo." Yoyodyne Industries, Tumblr, 5 Nov. 2014, mstornadox.tumblr.com/post/101904587855/beatrice-took-a-photo. Accessed 9 Nov. 2017. Note: The username was used in place of the real name. |
Caption Example |
Fig. 4. Cat selfie from: mstornadox "Beatrice Took a Photo." Yoyodyne Industries, Tumblr, 5 Nov. 2014, mstornadox.tumblr.com/post/101904587855/beatrice-took-a-photo. Accessed 9 Nov. 2017. Note: If the citation is included in the caption, you do not need to add it to the Works Cited list. |
In-Text Citation Example |
(Fig. 4) or (mstornadox) |
Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Website, Other Contributors, Version, Number, Publisher/Platform, Date of Publication, URL. Accessed date.
For captions, use: Fig. #. Description from: Citation.
For in-text citations, use (Fig. #) or (Author's Last Name) or ("Words from Title or Article").
Works Cited Example |
"It All Started with a Fruit." Rob Janoff, contributions by www.fansofapple.com, robjanoff.com/applelogo/. Accessed 16 Nov. 2017. |
Caption Example |
Fig. 5. Six Apple logos from 1976 to now from: "It All Started with a Fruit." Rob Janoff, contributions by www.fansofapple.com, robjanoff.com/applelogo/. Accessed 16 Nov. 2017. Note: If the citation is included in the caption, you do not need to add it to the Works Cited list. |
In-Text Citation Example |
(Fig. 5) or ("It All Started With a Fruit") |
Commenter's Username. Comment on "Title." Publisher, date, time, URL. Accessed date.
Note: List the username as the author. Add the phrase "Comment on" before the title of the article, video, etc. Use the time listed on or near the comment.
For in-text citations, use (Username)
Works Cited List Example |
Not Omniscent Enough. Comment on "Flight Attendant Tells Passenger to ‘Shut Up’ After Argument After Pasta." ABC News, 9 Jun 2016, 4:00 p.m., abcnews.go.com/US/flight-attendant-tells-passenger-shut-argument-pasta/story?id=39704050. Accessed 6 Nov. 2017. |
In-Text Citation Example |
(Not Omniscient Enough) |
Last Name of the Author of the Message, First Name. E-mail to the Name of the Recipient. Day Month Year of Email.
For in-text citations, use (Last Name of Person Who Sent the Message)
Works Cited List Example |
White, Tony. Email to the author. 26 Sept. 2024. Note: For email interviews, it is not required to state "Email interview." |
In-Text Citation Example |
(White) Note: If the name of the person who sent the message (or was interviewed) is mentioned in the sentence leading into the quote or paraphrased content, you do not need to repeat it in the in-text citation. |
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