New College Writing Program Library Guide
One Search
Article Databases
The library databases below are the best starting points for your English papers:
Academic Search Premier is a great starting place for any topic. It covers all subject areas, includes articles from both popular magazines and scholarly journals, and has loads of full text. Depending on the topic, many ENG102 students will get all they need from Academic Search Premier.
The most helpful feature of Opposing Viewpoints is that it provides clearly identified pro and con sources for each topic. You can either browse the most popular topics from the first screen, or you can search by keyword. This is a great place to start, but you need to look at other tools also. All of the essays are available full text.
It also provides other useful information about each issue, such as relevant articles from encylopedias, magazines and scholarly journals. Use the tabs at the top of your search results to find these.
CQ Researcher is an excellent source for comprehensive background information on current issues in the news. It is the most reliable place to find balanced, unbiased overviews. These reports are meant to educate rather than influence researchers. But don't let it be your only source!
This link takes you to the CQ Library; from there select CQ Researcher.
Access World News offers newspaper coverage from around the US and around the world (and easier to use than LexisNexis).
Get articles from our local newspaper the Arizona Republic from to 1999 to present. Local information can often be harder to find than national, so ask a Librarian for help if you want it and are not finding it.
Alt-Press Watch is a full text database of selected independent newspapers, magazines, and journals of the alternative press. It provides an alternative to mainstream media perspectives on local, national, and international issues.
Ethnic NewsWatch brings full text coverage of ethnic and minority presses from around the United States. Provides viewpoints and resources you may not find anywere else!
All Research Databases
There are hundreds of additional library research databases.
- Use the alphabetical list if you know the name of the database
- Or use the search by subject menu.
Google Scholar
Google Scholar is a huge index to scholarly publications, NOT the open web. Any subject can be searched in GS and you will find something.
Using the ASU Library's link to GS has an added advantage: access to the ASU Library online full text resources.
Determining the Discipline of a Journal
- Peer-Reviewed Journal ArticlesA quick tutorial on how to find information about a journal title to determine its disciplinary perspective.
- UlrichswebUlrichsweb is a comprehensive database of journals, magazines and newspapers.
Helpful Handouts
- Article Types HandoutThis grid describes the characteristics of popular magazines vs. scholarly journals.
Reading Scholarly Journal Abstracts
The ASU Library acknowledges the twenty-three Native Nations that have inhabited this land for centuries. Arizona State University's four campuses are located in the Salt River Valley on ancestral territories of Indigenous peoples, including the Akimel O’odham (Pima) and Pee Posh (Maricopa) Indian Communities, whose care and keeping of these lands allows us to be here today. ASU Library acknowledges the sovereignty of these nations and seeks to foster an environment of success and possibility for Native American students and patrons. We are advocates for the incorporation of Indigenous knowledge systems and research methodologies within contemporary library practice. ASU Library welcomes members of the Akimel O’odham and Pee Posh, and all Native nations to the Library.
