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Why Use MLA 9 Style for Referencing to Magazines?

How to cite a magazine article MLA is one of the most topical questions for students who are making their baby steps in academic writing. MLA stands for Modern Language Association, which is one of the most popular styles for documentation. Although MLA is mostly used for disciplines in Humanities and Social Sciences, knowing all the nuances of citation is a must for any college or university student. 

When it comes to a magazine, it is a periodical publication in print or on the Web, which consists of articles in a specific subject matter. MLA 9 is a format that is used to cite magazines in most cases. That’s why we are about to provide all the recommendations and relevant information on how to cite magazine articles in MLA 9 correctly. Read on.

Magazine MLA Citation: Information You Need to Include

All you need to know about any MLA magazine article citation is that you need a few relevant pieces of data about a source. In particular, be sure to include the following parts of the most basic entry for a magazine:

  • Author Name(s)
  • Title of the Article
  • Magazine Name
  • Publication Date
  • Page Numbers
  • Container (both MLA 8th and 9th edition)

MLA 9th edition requires an indication of a certain medium, which is called a container. In turn, if you are using the ninth edition of MLA, you have to specify your container data (Print, Web, etc.).

Once you have located your source on the Web, you also have to include the name of the database and the URL or DOI. All of those details of a magazine article are relevant. If you add the differences in the citations to different numbers of authors, citing sources might be complex. That’s why we will now review the general rules for an MLA magazine citation.

General Rules for Citing a Magazine Article MLA

One of the most relevant rules for citing an MLA magazine article is to review two important rules, such as frequency of publication and pagination. By reviewing these parameters closely, you’ll be able to differentiate it from a journal article. Other general rules include but are not limited to:

  • Always abbreviate the months
  • In case the day is unknown, feel free to use the month and year
  • Once you are looking for issue number, consider looking at the ‘Contents’ page
  • Not all magazines have issue numbers
  • Similarly, not all magazines require to indicate the issue numbers
  • If you see no author, feel free to place the title in the first element of your citation
  • Follow MLA 9 rules in terms of the number of authors

Except for these general rules, you should also remember that MLA citations for magazine articles differ depending on the source of publication and the number of authors. For that reason, be sure to read on and get acquainted with different formats of citing MLA magazine articles.

MLA Format for Magazine Articles: Main Types

You should be aware that there is no single citation format for all the magazine articles. It is quite common to distinguish between MLA magazine articles published in print, on a website, on a database, and an online periodical piece. Be sure to read on and get acquainted with all the differences and nuances between these types of magazine content, as follows.

Magazine citation MLA in print

When it comes to the pieces published in print, they are very similar to the process of citing a newspaper. The basic format would include the author of the article, the name of the piece, magazine title, the publication date, and the pages you are referring to.

Basic format:

Author’s Last, First Name. “Article Title.” Magazine Title, Date Month Year, Pages

Example: 

Mead, John. “What Dogs Dream Look Like.” Modern Dog, 12 Apr. 2019, pp. 24-34.

In-text citation:

(Mead 24)
As Mead points out, dogs dream about … (24)

In case you are citing a periodical that enlists volumes and issues, your citation would look like:

Mead, John. “What Dogs Dream Look Like.” Modern Dog,  vol. 12, no 14, 12 Apr. 2019, pp. 24-34.

Citing a magazine MLA from a website

Since most of the modern magazines work with both Print and Web mediums, it is crucial to know how to cite articles that are published on one’s website. In such a regard, be sure to comply with the following basic format.

Basic format:

Author’s Last, First Name. “Article Title.” Magazine Title, Date of Publication, URL. Accessed Day Month Year site was visited (optional)

Example:

Mead, John. “What Dogs Dream Look Like.” Modern Dog, 12 Apr. 2019, https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/lifestyle/what-do-dogs-dream-about. Accessed 13 April 2019.

Citing a magazine article on a database

As it might happen to most magazine articles and other periodicals, they sooner or later become the parts of a comprehensive library or other databases. In case you want to cite an old magazine article that is located within a database, the following format has to be used.

Basic format: 

Author’s Last, First Name. “Article Title.” Magazine Title, Volume Number, Issue Number, Date of Publication, Page Numbers. Name of Database

Example: 

Mead, John. “What Dogs Dream Look Like.” Modern Dog,  vol. 12, no 14, 12 Apr. 1994, pp. 24-34. JSTOR

Online magazine article citation

As we found out before that MLA 9 optionally requires writers to indicate the time when the source was accessed, sources that can only be found online require no such indication. The only requirement to omit this indication is the credibility and validity of the source, which seems to be correct in relation to magazine articles.

Basic format:

Author’s Last, First Name. “Article Title.” Magazine Title, Date of Publication, URL.

Example:

Mead, John. “What Dogs Dream Look Like.” Modern Dog, 12 Apr. 2019, https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/lifestyle/what-do-dogs-dream-about.

MLA Citations and the Number of Authors

You should also remember that MLA, as a format, has different criteria in relation to the number of authors of a particular source. It is quite common for writers and scholars to distinguish between magazine articles that have one author, two authors, no author at all, and three or more authors. Take a look at how these sources are formatted, as follows:

One author

Making a citation for only one author is quite simple since all you have to do is to follow a basic format.

Example:

Mead, John. “What Dogs Dream Look Like.” Modern Dog, 12 Apr. 2019, pp. 24-34.

When it comes to the in-text citations, the following indication is the right way to indicate your source in-text:

In-text citation:

(Mead 24-34)

Two authors

With regard to sources that have two authors, MLA magazine articles have to be formatted accordingly.

Example:

Mead, John., and Weinstein, Tom. “What Dogs Dream Look Like.” Modern Dog, 12 Apr. 2019, pp. 24-34.

In-text citation:

(Mead and Weinstein 24-34)

No author

In some magazine articles, no author can be found. This is especially true with magazine articles that can be found on a database. In such regard, you have to omit the Author’s Name, alongside referring to the title of the article.

Example:

“What Dogs Dream Look Like.” Modern Dog,  vol. 12, no 14, 12 Apr. 1994, pp. 24-34. JSTOR

In-text citation:

(What Dogs Dream Look Like 24-34)

More than three authors

As a general rule that applies to all MLA citations, sources with more than three sources are formatted quite differently when it comes to the in-text citations. Instead of enlisting all the authors, just indicate the name of the first author, followed by et al. Here, take a look at how a typical magazine article with three authors in print has to be cited:

Example:

Mead, John, et al. “What Dogs Dream Look Like.” Modern Dog, 12 Apr. 2019, pp. 24-34.

In-text citation:

(Mead et al. 24-34)

Why You Should Take a Look at EduBirdie’s MLA Citation Generator

If you still feel uncertain about certain elements of MLA magazine article citation after reading our detailed instructions, seeking help is always a great idea. You are always welcome to use EduBirdie’s citation generator. Since this machine can significantly ease your troublesome process of citing your sources, we also have a few more reasons to recommend it. Here are some of them:

  1. It works instantly. Yes-yes, each and every source will be ready in the blink of an eye.
  2. Free of charge. Forget about payments and monthly subscriptions. It’s 100% free for use.
  3. 24/7 access. There are no artificial constraints on how much you can use a citation generator. Take your time!
  4. Easy to use. Just choose the type of your source, followed by filling in its link or title, and click ‘generate.’ Voila, your citation is ready.
  5. Updated. Regardless of whether you use MLA 8th or 9th edition.

You see, with these convincing reasons to choose a citation generator, you can forget about guides and structures. Your bibliography will be completed in just a few minutes!

FAQs on MLA Citations for Magazines

Do I have to cite quotes from magazine articles?

You don’t have to, but you can do it by using basic MLA formatting standards.

What is the structure of MLA magazine article citation in print?

The basic structure of such a citation, as follows:

Author’s Last, First Name. “Article Title.” Magazine Title, Date Month Year, Pages

Can I use EduBirdie’s citation generator for free?

Of course! This is one of the main features of this machine-based tool, which makes it a panacea for all students obsessed with MLA 9th or APA 7th style citations.

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