Other Sources of Information - JOUR502 - Basics of Writing and Editing - Research Guides at University of Maryland Libraries

Resources for Background Research

Try the following resources for background information from articles in scholarly, popular and trade publications:

Academic Search Ultimate
Multi-disciplinary database providing information for nearly every area of academic study. Includes an enormous collection of the most valuable peer-reviewed full text journals, as well as additional journals, magazines, newspapers and books. Multidisciplinary subjects including: social sciences, humanities, education, computer sciences, engineering, physics, chemistry, language & linguistics, arts & literature, medicine, ethnic studies. 1965- present.
America: History & Life with Full-Text
Core American history database now includes unique full-text coverage of nearly 200 journals and 100 books. Information on articles, books, book reviews, and dissertations on U.S. and Canadian history from prehistory to the present. Covers more than 2000 international worldwide. All aspects of historical research. Time span: 1964-present.
Business Source Complete
The world's definitive scholarly business database.
Communication & Mass Media Complete
Covers journals and trade publications in journalism, communication, mass media, and other closely-related fields.
Historical Abstracts with Full-Text
Core international history database now includes unique full-text coverage of nearly 200 journals and 100 books. It also provides indexing for over 1700 journals from 1964 to the present.
SPORTDiscus with Full Text
This database covers key areas of sports medicine and related fields. Content areas range from sports physiology and sports psychology to physical education and recreation. SPORTDiscus is ideal for researchers studying different aspects of kinesiology, fitness, health, and sport studies. Sports, recreation, physical fitness, and sport science. 1975-present with some monograph indexing dating back to 1800.

News Sources (Current)

To locate articles appearing in print and other forms of news media, try the following:

Ethnic NewsWatch
Full-text bilingual (English/Spanish) database of 200 publications of the ethnic, minority, and native press. 1990 to the present. Multidisciplinary - news, culture, and history.
Factiva
Full-text news focusing primarily on business issues. Includes the Wall Street Journal. WARNING: Data mining and excessive downloading are prohibited and such activities cause the suspension of this service.
Nexis Uni
Full-text news reporting from 1980-present from major national and international sources. Note: Articles do not contain charts, tables or graphs. Does not contain the Wall Street Journal.
National Newspapers Core
Full text articles from the Wall Street Journal, Christian Science Monitor, The New York Times, The Sun (Baltimore), and The Washington Post. Covers national, international and local news. The NYT provides text of important speeches and documents; WSJ reports on international finance; and WP offers strong political reporting, editorials and columnists.

State and Federal Government Information

The following resources can be used to locate information on state and Federal laws, regulations, issues and publications:

Congress.gov
Provides the full text of the United States Congress legislation; Congressional Record, committee information, and historical documents. Congress.gov replaced the previously active Thomas.gov.

Congressional Publications
Congressional publications and documents from 1789-present. Includes CRS (Congressional Research Service) Reports from 1916-present. Use the Advanced Search screen to select from a variety of Congressional publications.

Alternatives to Google

Aside from using the Google Advanced Search option and associated facets (Google Scholar, Google Images, Google News, etc.) - here are some suggested search engines to try that may allow you to search other portions of the "invisible" or "deep" web:

DuckDuckGo
A general purpose search engine with enhanced privacy options. Use the !bang feature to better target searches and search results. See the about page for more information.
DeeperWeb.Com
A web search service powered by Google but NOT Google.
Groups results into a word cloud and by facets (news, blogs, etc.).

Other Resources of Note

The following resources may also be useful for locating background information:

Dissertations & Theses Global
Materials from academic publishers, professional societies, pre-print archives, and university institutional repositories. Full-text is available from 1997 to the present.
Google Scholar
Google Scholar searches academic publishers, professional societies, pre-print archives, and university institutional repositories.
Opposing Viewpoints in Context
Fulltext database covering social issues with topic overviews and pro/con viewpoints. Sources include news, journal articles, magazines, media, maps, websites and statistics.

The Future of Information Alliance - Exploring Journalism History Online
This page contains links to a wealth of sources relevant to the study and practice of Journalism. Some will require a UMD account for access, while others are on the open web.