Popular, Trade and Scholarly Articles
- Popular, Trade, or Scholarly? [Handout]A guide to the differences in audience, content and purpose of Popular, Trade and Scholarly publications.
Examples: Types of Publications and Articles
- NewsweekNewsweek is a popular magazine. The articles are written for the general public, the writers are paid for their articles (and may be freelance or employees of the publication). This publication is available both in print and online. Generally, you have to pay for full access to all of the articles in the publication.
- IEEE SpectrumIEEE Spectrum is a trade publication. It is published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, a professional association. Articles are written by staff writers and industry professionals. Generally, a subscription is included with a professional membership in the association.
- English Language and Literature StudiesEnglish Language and Literature Studies is a scholarly publication. The articles are written by scholars in the field. Many times, the authors are faculty or researchers from colleges or universities. Scholarly publications have very formal formatting, extensive lists of references, and may be theoretical in nature, or be reporting original research study results. The authors are not paid for their efforts, instead, their articles go through a rigorous peer-review process before they are accepted for publication, and many are rejected.
Would you like to learn more about the Peer Review process used in publishing in scholarly journals? Watch the video below.
Find Articles in Michigan Electronic Library (MEL) Databases
The Michigan Electronic Library (MEL) provides free access to all Michigan residents to several licensed ($$) article databases. You can use there resources to explore topics, and find articles published in scholarly, trade and popular publications on your essay topic.
Click on the mel.org logo to go right to the MEL database page.
- Academic Search CompleteAn interdisciplinary database that provides access to articles from scholarly and popular sources.
- Opposing Viewpoints in ContextAn excellent database to find resources related to social issues. Includes articles, pro/con essays by scholars, videos, statistics and more.
- Newspaper Source PlusNewspapers from the United States and Canada.
Primary Sources
- Digital Public Library of America (DPLA)A national digital library offering resources such as books, images, historic records, and audiovisual materials. The DPLA "... brings these different viewpoints, experiences, and collections together in a single platform and portal, providing open and coherent access to our society’s digitized cultural heritage."
How are library databases different from Google?
Using a library database, either from Wayne State University libraries or MEL, will give you access to published articles and entries from reference books, written by scholars and expert researchers, that you cannot get on the open web through a search from Google.