Finding The News
Introduction
Today's News ~ Post-1980 News
Pre-1980
U.S. News ~ Pre-1980 International News
Ethnic News ~ Paper of Record ~ Where Are the Newspapers?
Early American Newspapers ~ Early English Newspapers
INTRODUCTION
Finding news coverage can be complex and confusing. A variety of
sources exists, and you will use different sources depending on the date of an
event and the geographic location of the event, the perspective desired, the format of the content, and availability and format of indexing or searching capability. Public indexing of many newspapers is a relatively recent phenomenon although some retrospective indexing of major newspapers is underway.
This guide is a brief overview of some major newspaper indexes and full-text newspapers resources. Consult reference staff for further guidance.
Caveat emptor--LOST CONTENT: Be aware that access to newspaper articles can be compromised. Here are two ways:
The Tasini decision. In September 2001, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Tasini et al. v. The New York Times et al. that freelance writers must be paid additional compensation if their work was included in an online database (i.e., LexisNexis). As a result, online database providers removed many freelance-authored newspaper articles from their databases. These articles are available in the print editions.
Different editions: Newspapers often publish different editions for different cities or regions of the country. Articles that appear in one regional edition do not appear in all. Some newspapers also publish separate geographical supplements with unique content. In addition, newspapers publish chronological editions; articles in the early editions may not appear in later editions and vice versa. Usually only one edition is microfilmed. Articles in an online database may not all be from the same edition.
Formats available.
Newspapers and the news are currently available in six formats: online plain text, online PDFs, online direct, microform, CD-ROM, and paper. The Newspaper Formats web page lists the uses and limitations of each format.
TODAY'S NEWS COVERAGE
Until recently, coverage of breaking news was available only through broadcast
and cable television and radio news services. In the last few years, television
news organizations (CNN, MSNBC) have developed Web sites that offer access to
current news, sports, and weather information. Newspapers soon followed suit with
Web sites that offer Web access to many of the stories that appear in the daily
print newspapers, but updated throughout the day. News Sources on the Internet:
The Reference Department maintains a set of links to news services in the
News
Sources section of our Useful
Reference Sources page.
See also Factiva. Dow Jones Reuters Business Interactive LLC.
Factiva is a subscription database that provides access to global news
and business information, including local newspapers, same-day news wires, company
reports, and media programs. You can choose to browse stories and market data
from the major countries worldwide.
Return to the Table of Contents
POST-1980 NEWS COVERAGE
Newspaper indexes and full-text newspapers/news services.
Comprehensive indexing of and full-text access to U.S. and international news by computerized newspaper databases begins for most titles around 1980. The major exception is ProQuest Historical Newspapers which provides searchable full-image databases from the beginning for The New York Times (1851 to 2003), The Washington Post (1877 to 1990), and The Wall Street Journal (1889 to 1989). See more information below.
News services provide news summaries culled from a number of sources.
ABI/Inform Dateline. Ann Arbor, MI: ProQuest. [part of ABI/Inform: click on the "Select multiple databases" link and check this title only]
(Library Gateway--Find Databases)
Regional U.S. business news. ABI/Inform Dateline focuses on hard-to-find local and regional business news coverage of large corporations, privately held companies, local start-ups, executive profiles, marketing, finance, and industry news. Provides access to business information not typically found in national news sources. Contains news and analysis, information on local markets, and more gathered from major business tabloids, magazines, daily newspapers, wire services, and city, state, and regional business publications. Cornell only. List of titles included in this database.
Access World News [was America's Newspapers] and Newsbank Newsfile Collection. New Canaan, CT: Newsbank.
(Or search "newsbank" in the Library Gateway--Find Databases)
Access World News features the full-text content of over 600
U.S. newspapers, each the complete electronic edition of record, and an increasing number of international news sources. Starting dates for each newspaper vary but are listed at the web site.
NewsBank NewsFile Collection offers approximately 500,000 articles selected
from over 500 newspapers, news wires, and transcripts with coverage from 1992 to
present. Between these two databases, users are provided with an index and access
to regional and local newspapers. For example, the Ithaca Journal is covered
from 1992 selectively in Newsbank NewsFile Collection and full text from
late 1999 to present in Access World News. Cornell only.
Alt-Press Watch. Stamford, CT: Softline Information.
(Library Gateway--Find Databases)
Full-text database of selected newspapers, magazines, and journals of the alternative and independent press. Basic or advanced subject searching takes you to in-depth articles on contemporary society, including coverage of the peace movement, ecology and the environment, labor, indigenous peoples, public policy, and grassroots organizing. This coverage of diverse points of view and perspectives complements the reporting in the mainstream press. One of the ProQuest stable of databases. Searched through the ProQuest interface.
LEXIS/NEXIS Academic. Dayton: Mead Data Central.
(Or search "lexis" in the Library Gateway--Find Databases)
LEXIS/NEXIS Academic is an international online news and legal database originally
created for lawyers, businesses, and broadcast and print news organizations. It
contains the full text of a number of large- and medium-size
newspapers around the world; transcripts of broadcast news shows, interviews, and press conferences;
local and state business publications; international wire services; and legal materials. Since
it is updated daily, it is an excellent index to current topics and events. Indexing
for most titles begins in 1980 or after. Academic Universe use is limited
to Cornell students and faculty.
Librarian's Index to the Internet (LII): Newspapers. Coverage varies.
A searchable subject directory of more than 10,000 Internet resources selected and evaluated by librarians for their usefulness to users of public libraries. The media section of LII.org cites, annotates, and maintains links to major aggregators of news and newspapers available free on the Internet.
News Archives on the Web. Coverage varies.
Searchable archives of back issues of newspapers are beginning to appear as Web sites on the Internet. A page of links to these newspaper archive sites is available at http://www.newsd.com/archive/press/. Archives available include over forty newspapers from large and medium-sized U.S. cities.
World News Connection.
(Or search "wnc" in the Library Gateway--Find Databases)
A foreign news service from the U.S. government that provides the text of English translations for international newspaper articles and radio/television broadcasts. Coverage begins in 1997. Be sure to log out after use.
Indexing and full-text articles for major business newspapers (i.e., the Wall Street Journal) and some major U.S. dailies are available in Factiva.
See also ETHNIC NEWSPAPER INDEXES.
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PRE-1980 U.S. NEWS COVERAGE
ProQuest Historical Newspapers.
(Library Gateway--Find Databases)
ProQuest Historical Newspapers offers access to scanned, full-text pages of three major
U.S. newspapers: The New York Times, 1851 to 2003; The Wall Street Journal, 1889 to 1989;
and The Washington Post, 1877 to 1990.
In addition, printed newspaper indexes cover some individual newspaper titles before
1980. For events of national interest in the years before 1980, you can use the
New York Times Index (1851 to date), the Washington Post Index (1971-
), the Wall Street Journal Index (1955 to date), and the Christian Science
Monitor Index (1949 to date) in Olin Reference. The Wall Street Journal
Index is also available in Management and ILR Library Reference from 1958
to date.
New York Times Index . New York: The Times, 1851- .
(Olin Ref 1851-; ILR Ref 1933-)
This semi-monthly printed subject index to the New York Times is cumulated annually. The Index is also useful in locating material in other newspapers because it gives a clue to the date of an event. Brief synopses of articles answer some questions without having to go to the paper itself. Citations include date, page, and column number. The arrangement and subject headings are unique to this index, so check the front of the volume for instructions. You can use this index to follow the course of particular events throughout the year. Narrow topics are often cross-referenced to an article listed under a broader topic.
Personal Name Index to "The New York Times Index" . Succasunna, NJ: Roxbury Data Interface, 1976- .
(Olin Ref + AI 21 .N56)
An index to the volumes of the New York Times Index rather than to the newspaper itself. References are to the date and page of the index volumes. It brings together in a single alphabetic sequence names found throughout the index volumes, including names appearing in index categories such as "Book reviews," "Concerts," "Deaths," "Disappearances," etc. (Sheehy) This index covers 1851-1989.
OTHER INDEXES TO U.S. NEWSPAPERS: See our detailed
list of all U.S. newspaper indexes in Olin Library.
In addition, Olin Library houses a large number of unindexed newspapers from before the twentieth century. See EARLY AMERICAN NEWSPAPERS for more information.
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PRE-1980 INTERNATIONAL NEWS
International News Services:
Keesing's Online: Keesing's Record of World Events. 1960- .
Keesing's Online is the web-based version of Keesing's Record of World Events (1987- , Olin + D 410 .K26) and Keesing's Contemporary Archives (1940-1986, Olin + D 410 .K26). It is the authoritative monthly digest of worldwide political, diplomatic and economic affairs. Published continuously since 1931, Keesing's is the standard for thorough, objective coverage of significant events for every country as well as the major international organizations. Events that may have taken days or weeks to unfold are presented in detailed yet concise reports.
See also LexisNexis Academic (above).
International Newspapers:
Olin Library subscribes to many international newspapers, both in English and other languages. Most of these papers are available in the Newspaper Room, downstairs in Olin Library. The Asian papers can be found in the Kroch Library Asia Collections.
An index to the Times of London is available online:
Palmer's Index to the Times, 1790-1905; The Official Index to the Times, 1906-1980. (search historical newspapers in Library Gateway--Find Databases)
Historical Newspapers Online offers online indexing to the The Times of London from 1790 through 1980. This is the longest run of indexing available for any newspaper.
Examples of major international newspapers with separate print indexes:
Times, London . London: Times Newspapers Ltd.
(Olin Reference; see also the online index in Historical Newspapers Online above)
Subject access is provided for 1785 through 1941 by Palmers Index to
the Times. In addition to providing an invaluable source of information on
world events during this early time period, the index has an obituary section
under the heading "Deaths" which frequently supplies biographical information
not available elsewhere. The Annual Index began, with much more detailed entries,
in 1906, the title changing to the Official Index in 1914. The Times of London
is located in the Newspaper Room (Film 308). The indexes are located in Olin Reference
(AI 21 T58).
Le Monde . Paris: Le Monde, indexed 1944/1945-1951, 1958, 1965-1968, and 1985- .
(Olin Reference)
Le Monde (Film 481) has been published since 1944. It continues a newspaper called Temps (Film 2663), which began publication in 1861. The Index to Le Monde is in Olin Reference (+AI 21 .M741). A searchable full-text version of Le Monde is also available in the Electronic Text Center from 1995; ask at Olin Reference.
OTHER INDEXES TO INTERNATIONAL NEWSPAPERS: See our detailed list of international newspaper indexes in Olin Library.
Another useful resource is this list of Latin American newspapers and news magazines in Olin Library.
Asian newspapers and indexes to Asian newspapers are kept in the Severinghaus Reading Room in Kroch Library.
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ETHNIC NEWSPAPER INDEXES
Black Newspapers Index . Ann Arbor: University Microfilms International, 1977- .
(Africana Reference AI 3 .I365+)
Provides abstracts and comprehensive indexing of all significant articles in eight major black newspapers: the Afro-American, American Muslim Journal, Amsterdam, Chicago Defender, Call and Post, Journal and Guide, Los Angeles Sentinel, and the Michigan Chronicle.
Ethnic NewsWatch. Stamford, CT: Softline Information, 1960- .
(Library Gateway--Find Databases)
Now part of the ProQuest databases, this source contains the searchable full text of over eighty ethnic and minority newspapers in the United States. Several Spanish language newspapers are available; the database is searchable in English and in Spanish.
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PAPER OF RECORD
Paper of Record. Ottawa, Ontario: Cold North Wind.
(Library Gateway--Find Databases)
In a class by itself, this eclectic source contains the searchable full text of over 200 newspapers. Extensive coverage of newspapers from Mexico and Canada, particularly from the 1800s, is available. The primary U.S. title is The Sporting News, covered from 1886 to 2002, with short runs of other titles. Also of interest are longer runs of the Baltimore Afro American and the Williamsport [PA] Sunday Grit.
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WHERE DO I FIND THE PAPERS?
CURRENT ISSUES IN PRINT:
Olin Library subscribes to many newspapers from around the world (Asian newspapers are in Kroch Library). Current print issues of newspapers are available in paper until superseded by microfilm. These issues are available in the Current Periodicals and Newspapers Reading Room, Olin Library Room 101. Examples of U.S. newspapers available:
- Atlanta Constitution/Journal
- Boston Globe
- Chicago Tribune
- Christian Science Monitor
- Los Angeles Times
- New York Times
- USA Today
- Wall Street Journal
- Washington Post
BACK ISSUES IN PRINT:
Miscellaneous Newspapers. [Ithaca, NY : Cornell University Library, Reference Dept., 199u]-
(Web page: http://www.library.cornell.edu/okuref/oldnewslist.html)
An online list that includes all newspaper issues located in the archived newspapers areas on the Lower Level of Olin Library. All issues there are older, and most runs are not very large--some are singe issues. Some of these papers are bound and cataloged, but many are not. Includes papers classified as "AN", as well as foreign papers and papers for U.S. states other than New York. Mode of access: World Wide Web.
BACK ISSUES ON MICROFILM:
Back issues of these newspapers on microfilm are shelved by Microfilm number in the Lower Level of Olin Library. To find the microfilm number for these newspapers, search the Cornell Library Catalog by title. If you don't find what you want, ask for help at the reference desks in Olin Library.
BACK ISSUES ON THE WEB:
Links to major newspapers and news services available on the Web are in the News Sources section of the Internet Reference Links page of O*K*U Reference Web site. See also PAPER OF RECORD.
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EARLY AMERICAN NEWSPAPERS
Olin Library also owns a large number of newspaper titles published in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in the United States. Many of these titles are now available in America's Historical Newspapers, an online database from readex which has subsumed the titlessin the large microform set, Early American Newspapers. A few are available in the original paper format. Others are on CD-ROM in the Electronic Text Center.
America's Historical Newspapers, 1690-1876: including Early American Newspapers, Series I, is the place to search for the full text of these remarkable historical documents. Articles are reproduced as PDFs.
Titles in Early American Newspapers, 1704-1820 (Readex microcard set located on the Lower Level of Olin Library, Microprint 21) are searchable in the Cornell Library Catalog. The following Command Keyword search brings up records for all the newpaper titles in the set: "early american newspapers" and microopaque. Microopaque is the technical term for microcards, an earlier microform technology that mounted the reduced photographic page images on card stock. See the Early American Newspapers Web page for more details.
The Newspaper File also lists newspapers in print and microform by the state and city where they were published. Check at the Olin reference desk for assistance using this card file.
In addition to the above, the following CD-ROMs are available in the Electronic Text Center (104 Olin Library, located behind the Olin reference desks).
- African American Newspapers, The Nineteenth Century. Seven newspapers written by and for African-Americans, published between 1827 and 1902.
- The Civil War, A Newspaper Perspective. Three newspapers with three different perspectives on the war: The Charleston (SC) Mercury, The New York Herald, and The Richmond (VA) Enquirer. Over 11,000 articles from 2500 issues published between November 1, 1860 and April 30, 1865.
- Pennsylvania Gazette. Transcribed articles that appeared in this newspaper from 1728 to 1783. The Gazette was published by Benjamin Franklin in Philadelphia.
- Performing Arts in Colonial American Newspapers. Transcribed articles about music, theater, and dance published in colonial American newspapers between 1690 and 1783, indexed by name subject, genre, and title.
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EARLY ENGLISH NEWSPAPERS
Another large microform set, Early English Newspapers, 1622-1820 (Microfilm
set located on the Lower Level of Olin Library, Film 5053) contains hundreds of
newspapers published in England. See the Early
English Newspapers Web page for more detail. Records for individual newspaper
titles are in the Cornell Library
Catalog (Command Keyword search: "early english newspapers" and microform).
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A FINAL NOTE
This Web page is a brief overview of the newspaper resources available in Olin
Library. For additional assistance, consult with the staff at the reference desks in Olin and Uris Libraries.
Go to Library Research: A Hypertext Guide
Return to "How to Find Periodicals"
Go to other Skill Guides
Revised 24 April 2007 [MOE]
Michael Engle and Megan Perez
Reference Department
URL: http://www.library.cornell.edu/olinuris/ref/research/skill21.htm
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