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Intro to Mass Communication - COMM120 - Sweet

What is the difference between scholarly and popular articles?

To find scholarly journal articles for your research paper, you need to know some features that distinguish scholarly articles from news, magazine, and general webpage articles. These differences exist whether you find the articles through an internet search or a library database.

Comparison of characteristics of scholarly and popular articles
What to Know	Scholarly Journal Articles	Popular Articles (news, magazines, webpages)
Who writes them?	Experts in a field Researchers Scholars or Professors	Reporters or journalists Staff writers Free-lance writers
Who reads them?	Researchers and Experts Scholars (including students) People with knowledge of the topic	General public People who do not have in-depth knowledge of the topic
What do they look like?	"Serious" looking - mostly text, some charts, graphs, or tables Fewer advertisements or illustrations Generally longer articles Articles online or in databases are often in PDF format to appear similar to a print journal See how scholarly articles are organized	Glossy, color photographs Commercial advertisements Easy-to-read or eye-catching layout Articles online often have hyperlinks to other relevant articles throughout the text
What are they about?	Original research studies or experiments In-depth analysis of a specific topic or theory Critical analysis (criticism)	Entertainment and popular culture Current events and news Opinion pieces or articles with an emotional slant
Who reviews them?	Peer reviewers - an editorial board of experts in the discipline	Staff editors and publishers
What are they used for?	Finding current research about a specific aspect of your topic Learning what the experts say about your topic and using it to support your thesis	Broad overviews of current topics Information about popular culture Introduction to an unfamiliar topic
What are some examples?