MLA Citation Style -- 7TH EDITION

Here are a few examples of how to cite different types of electronic sources, including electronic journals and books.  Most examples come from the Purdue OWL or from the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers.

Consult this section of OWL for more explanation of these examples and additional examples of how to cite electronic (web) sources of various types. Citing web sources can be problematic. The MLA Handbook (p. 182-183, for example) notes that many web sources do not supply all of the information normally desired for a citation. You may have to settle for providing whatever is available and improvising, keeping in mind the concept of providing enough information to help the reader evaluate and get to the source.

Basic Style for Citations of Electronic Sources (Including Library Online Databases)

OWL recommends trying to find the following data for electronic sources you will cite:

• Author and/or editor names (if available)
• Article name in quotation marks (if applicable)
• Title of the Website, project, or book in italics. (Remember that some Print publications have Web publications with slightly different names. They may, for example, include the additional information or otherwise modified information, like domain names [e.g. .com or .net].)
• Any version numbers available, including revisions, posting dates, volumes, or issue numbers.
• Publisher information, including the publisher name and publishing date.
• Take note of any page numbers (if available).
• Medium of publication.
• Date you accessed the material.
• URL (if required, or for your own personal reference).
  (MLA does not require URLs - they should be included only if you think the reader probably wouldn't be able to find the source or if required by instructor.)
  
  

Abbreviations

It may be necessary to use abbreviations for information that cannot be found, such as:

• n.p. for no publisher name
• n.d. for no date
• n.pag.  for no page numbers

This OWL page lists more abbreviations.

The basic format for citing an entire website is:

Editor, author, or compiler name (if available). Name of Site. Version number. Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher), date of resource creation (if available). Medium of publication. Date of access.

The Purdue OWL Family of Sites. The Writing Lab and OWL at Purdue and Purdue U, 2008. Web. 23 Apr. 2008.

Page On a Website

"How to Make Vegetarian Chili." eHow.com. eHow, n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2009.
In this case, no author is provided; the publication date also is not known.


Image

Klee, Paul. Twittering Machine. 1922. Museum of Modern Art, New York. The Artchive. Web. 22 May 2006.

Article in a Web Magazine

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 Online Database

Journal articles from database should be cited like a print version of the article, with the addition of the name of the database in italics, the medium of publication (Web), and date accessed.

Chan, Evans. "Postmodernism and Hong Kong Cinema." Postmodern Culture 10.3 (2000): n. pag. Project Muse. Web. 5 June 2008.

Electronic Book

Laborde, Katheryn Krotzer. Do Not Open: The Discarded Refrigerators of Post-Katrina New Orleans. Jefferson, NC : McFarland & Co., 2010. ebrary. Web.   

      12  Sept. 2011

Child, L. Maria, ed. The Freedmen's Book. Boston, 1866. Google Book Search. Web. 15 May 2008.

YouTube Video

Murphy, Beth. “Tips for a Good Profile Piece.” Project: Report. YouTube, 7 Sept. 2008. Web. 19 Sept. 2008.

Government Publications

If you don't have an individual author name, list the level of the government (United States, Louisiana, etc.) and then the agency that issued the document, followed by the title and other publication details.

United States. Cong. Senate. Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Hearing on the Geopolitics of Oil. 110th Cong., 1st sess. Washington: GPO,

     2007. Print.