JRN 315 - Advanced Media Writing

This guide is created specifically for this course. The resources and tools for Advanced Media Writing include sources that are not normally used in other academic classes but approximate what may be useful to media writers in journalism and media professions. There are common elements with academic writing but also some profound differences. This guide highlights some features of the different kinds of tools used.

Call numbers will indicate where an item is in the Library based on its collection. 

Main Collection

• Items in the Main Collection are materials that you can check out.  This Collection is also located on the Upper level of the Library.

Other Collections

• You may note that DVDs and Periodicals have distinct call numbers. These collections are both located on the Main level of the Library as you walk toward the AEC in the northwest corner.

Proprietary databases to which Taylor University subscribes have distinctive differences from search engines such as Google or Google Scholar. A database, generally, is a collection of information organized to provide efficient retrieval of subject matter, specifically scholarly subject matter. They tend to be narrower in scope than Google or Google Scholar. 

Prominent features of proprietary databases generally:

• Cover specific discipline area/s.

• Include academic (peer-reviewed) articles from journals or magazines, electronic books, newspapers, images and research related resources.

• Provide citation information or full text to what may be included in the text of the article (a works cited or bibliography.)

• Are subscriptions for which Zondervan pays. Whereas Google is free some databases are thousands of dollars per year.

Zondervan Library subscribes to over 75 research databases that contain journal, magazine, and newspaper articles on both general and specific disciplines. There are pros and cons for each option. Awareness of the content, organization, precision of search capabilities can save you time and yield the most appropriate and relevant results.

For more information see What is a library database? (Western Oregon University) http://www.wou.edu/provost/library/clip/tutorials/lib_database.htm

What do Librarians have to do with it? 

Librarians are available for assistance:                                            

• one on one research consultation
• formulation of research question              
• search strategy
• identifying appropriate databases
• advanced information seeking (beyond Zondervan)
• help with citations (Zotero); interlibrary loan (ILLIAD)
• other ideas regarding the literature review/research