NOTE:
Off-campus access
to article databases listed in this guide is limited to WSU students,
staff, and faculty. If you have questions, chat with us online.
Just click on the Online Assistance button at the top right of this
page. Or call the Reference Desk 626-6415 or toll free 1-877-306-3140
Media
Law information The best way to find information about
media and communications law is to look for a specific subject area.
If you look for books and articles using the terms media law
or communications law, you may not find much. Try terms
such as: press law, mass media, First Amendment, freedom of
the press, libel, privacy, the Freedom of Information Act, obscenity,
protection of sources, Internet, copyright and so on. Use
the Library of Congress Subject Headings (located near the Reference
Desk) to identify related or alternative subject terms.
I.
FINDING BOOKS
Using Catalogs:
Use the WSU online
catalog to find the location and availability of books, journal
titles, and media in Stewart Library. If we do not own a particular
book or article you need, we will borrow it for you from another
library through Interlibrary
Loan .
Some books which may be
useful for this class include
- History of the Mass Media in the United States Reference
P92.U5H55
- Encyclopedia of Communication and Information Reference
P87.5.E53
- Keyguide to Information Sources in Media Ethics
Reference P94.M22
- Encyclopedia of the American Constitution Reference
KF 4548.E53 on Table 2A
- Great American Court Cases Reference KF85.A4G68 on
Table 2A
- West's
Encyclopedia of American Law Older edition(1998) is
in print and located on Table 2A Reference KF 154.W47 Newer
edition (2004) is available full text online. Home access requires your
WSU user name and password
- Landmark Briefs and Arguments of the Supreme Court of the United
States Reference KF101.8.L36, older
years in General Collection, middle level
- Legal Information: How to Find It, How to Use It Reference
KF240.O365
- Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law Reference
PN4783.A83 2002
- Legal Research Using the Internet Published in 2000, this
electronic book may be read online. Access through Stewart
Library's online
catalog. View the book but remember to close item (link near
top left) when finished.
II.
FINDING NEWSPAPER AND JOURNAL ARTICLES
The library has many article
databases which may be used to find articles.
- Use the Database
Finder to locate databases by subject or title of database
- To determine if a particular journal is available full text
online, use the library's Ejournal
finder.
- To determine if the library subscribes to a particular
journal in print copy, use the
library catalog.
- For an article from a journal or magazine not owned by this
library, use our Interlibrary
Loan service.
Most databases
are available to WSU students, faculty and staff from off campus
See Connecting from Home for more
information
Some useful databases
for this class include
- Academic
Search Premier This database covers most topics and
includes full text, scholarly journals. An EbscoHost database
- CIOS/ComAbstracts/Com
Index Wide range of articles and links to web sites in the
field of communication, by Communication Institute for Online
Scholarship (CIOS).
- Communication
and Mass Media Complete The best starting place for articles
from communication journals
- EbscoHost
Databases A group of databases with many full-text articles.
Using this link allows you to search multiple databases at once.
Use Academic
Search Premier as a great starting place for most subjects.
Also includes business, health and legal databases.
- JSTOR
Fulltext scholarly articles with some journals dating back fifty
years or more. Some of the law review journals date from the early
1900s.
- Legal
Collection Full-text articles from 260 law journals
as well as documents and case studies. An EbscoHost database
-
Lexis/Nexis offers numerous full-text articles. Search Academic
section for news, legal information, and business topics.
Use Congressional section to find US congressional and legislative
information.
- ProQuest/ABI
Inform Formerly ABI Inform/UMI, this group of databases, including
the full text of Wall Street Journal, is especially good for business
topics; all have some full-text articles available online.
III.
FINDING CONGRESSIONAL INFORMATION
- Federal
Register The official place of publication for Presidential
documents and executive orders, as well as notices, rules and
proposed rules from federal entities. Also available online via
Lexis-Nexis/Academic. Print copies located in Government
Publications Reference AE 2.106.
- U.
S. Government Manual The official listing of all U.S. government
agencies with their duties, responsibilities, etc. Latest print
edition is at the Reference desk.
- Local Government
The library has some Ogden/Weber government information. Use
the online catalog
to locate specific books. There are also web pages
for Ogden and Weber
County. For other Utah links, see the library's Utah page.
IV.
FINDING LEGAL INFORMATION
Federal Laws
- U.S.
Code The subject arrangement of U.S. Laws. Also available
via
Lexis-Nexis Print copies are in Government Publications
Reference Y 1.2/5
- Code
of Federal Regulations (CFR) Subject-based listing of
the rules and regulations of the various executive departments
and agencies of the U.S. Government. Print edition in Government
Publications Reference AE 2.106. Also available online
via Lexis-Nexis
Utah Laws
The Utah Code in print is on Reference Table 2A. It is also
available on Lexis-Nexis
and the web. For information about Utah laws on the web, see
Utah laws on www.utah.gov.
All Utah state documents owned by the library are listed in the
library's online catalog.
Other legal information
Lexis/Nexis
includes codes and court cases from all states. Many law journals
are available there with full text articles.
Useful Legal Sites on
the Web
Legal Research
Guides on the Web
V.
RESOURCES ON THE INTERNET
AJR
From the American Journalism Review, has a series of links for
information about Media and Communications law.
CIOS:
Communication Institute for Online Scholarship Provides
access to two communications databases as well as access to
a large number of useful internet links, articles on communications,
and so on.
The
Electronic Journalist Site by the Society of Professional Journalists
has lots of links, news
FBI
FOIA Files Online access to some of the FBI files released because
of the FOIA
First Amendment
Center Good starting place for anything dealing with First
Amendment rights
Freedom
of Information Center Provides information and guides to FOIA.
Take a look at their links for Media
Law Guide
IRE:
Investigative Reporters and Editors Organization page with much
information on developing and maintaining skills, job postings and
other journalism information.
Journalism
Ethics Cases Online A good source of info on legal cases,
by the School of Journalism at Indiana University, Bloomington.
JournalismNet
Has information about and links to resources for finding internet
information, finding people, online media, databases and reference
tools, story topics, etc. Based in Canada, but very useful
for anyone in the field.
Media Access Project From a
non-profit law firm that promotes First Amendment rights
National
Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting 'Net Tour Another
great selection of links
National
Security Archive A non-governmental research institute and library
located at George Washington University. It collects and publishes
documents obtained through the FOIA
Niles
Online
The section on Finding Data has a very useful annotated list
of links. Also provides a tutorial for understanding the types
of statistics used today.
Recording Industry Association of
America Useful information for anyone searching the issues surrounding
music piracy, file sharing, music and the Internet, etc.
The
Smoking Gun Another group that publishes FOIA and other
documents, more oriented to celebrities and "hot" news
Student
Press Law Center "A nonprofit organization dedicated to
providing legal help and information to student media and journalism
educators."
Yahoo
News & Media Many links to journalism, media ethics, etc.
VI.
Research Tips
- Clearly identify your information need
- Identify key words and search terms
to match your topic
- Develop search statements using advanced search techniques
- Boolean logic, adjacency searching and truncation
- Use the Online
catalog to find books
- Use article databases to
find journal articles
- If articles are not full text, search Ejournals
to see if a particular journal is full text in another database
- If a journal is not available full text online, check the online
catalog to see if the journal is owned by Stewart Library
in paper copy. Materials are arranged by their call numbers.
- Use Interlibrary loan
to get materials that are not available through Stewart Library
- Use search
engines to find Web information
- Carefully
evaluate the information you find for usefulness and quality
- Revise your search terms and strategy to expand or narrow your
results.
- Use appropriate style to document and cite research
- Ask for HELP
at Reference in person, by phone or email.