Communication 131 – Public Speaking


Mrs. Norman Whitehouse making street speech for suffrage. 1913. (Library of Congress)


About this guide

This guide provides students with recommended resources for conducting research in Communication 131. Use the tabs to navigate through the pages of the guide.

Assignment

These resources will be excellent, and the techniques suggested will save you time, when you conduct research for credible sources to make your informative, persuasive, or argumentative speeches.

Need more help?

Have a question? Stop by the Reference Desk, or contact a librarian by phone, text, or chat for more help.Contact Us

Print Reference Books

Reference books are a good place to begin your research. These resources are available in the Luria Library Reference section.

  • Encyclopedia of Social issues — R 306.0973 R845
  • Polling America: Encyclopedia of Public Opinion — R 303.38 B561p
  • The Official Guide to American Attitudes: Who Thinks What About the Issues That Shape our Lives — R 303.380973 M682o
  • Encyclopedia of Politics — R 320.03 C283e
  • Encyclopedia of Social Problems — R 361.1 P261e
  • Dictionary of American History — R 973.03 A194d 2003

Online Reference Sources

The library also subscribes to some online reference sources. To access these resources from off campus, you will need to log in with your Pipeline account information.

Books

The library’s collection includes both print books and online eBooks. Search the library catalog for books on your topic.

Note: Books in the following two series cover a broad range of social issues.

  • Reference Shelf Series: Contains the full text of nearly 600 encyclopedias, dictionaries, bilingual dictionaries, and other reference books covering all major subject areas. Thousands of Topics Pages provide articles from different reference sources, arranged by subject. Includes “gadgets” for finding images, definitions, people, pronunciations, quotations, and measurement conversations, as well as a concept map feature for help identifying keywords and broadening or narrowing a topic. Additional features include videos, maps, and animations.
  • Opposing Viewpoints Series

Articles

Articles from periodicals (journals, magazines, and newspapers) often provide current information on a topic. To find articles on your topic, search one of the online databases listed below. These databases usually provide the full text of articles.

  • Academic Search Complete: Includes both scholarly and popular sources on a wide range of topics. For more specific article searches, use the Advanced Search screen, and select ”Editorial” or ”Speech” from the ”Document Type” menu. For scholarly sources, select ”Peer Reviewed” from the right column of the search screen.
  • CQ Researcher: Includes reports on current and controversial social and political issues.
  • Opposing Viewpoints:Includes overviews, statistical information, and arguments on both sides of controversial issues.

Newspapers

Newspapers may provide the most current information on your topic. Some of the databases listed above allow you to limit your search to newspaper articles. Or, try searching one of the library’s newspaper databases:

  • National Newspapers: Searches New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, Christian Science Monitor, and Washington Post.
  • Newspaper Source: Provides cover-to-cover full text for 35 national and international newspapers. The database also contains selective full text for more than 375 regional (U.S.) newspapers. In addition, full text television and radio news transcripts are also provided.


Podcasts can provide information on current social issues, and can offer examples of how experts present information orally.

Finding good websites for college research can be difficult and time-consuming. Use the C.A.R.S. system to evaluate any websites you find:

  • Credibility: Is an author listed? What are the author’s credentials? Is there evidence of positive peer evaluation?
  • Accuracy: Is the date of the site current? Is the information complete and not too vague? Does the author acknowledge all views?
  • Reasonableness: Is the author fair and objective? Is the author concerned with the truth?
  • Support: Does the author provide support for the information? Are the sources listed?

Recommendations for finding quality websites

Public Opinion Polls


You will use the APA citation format when you cite your sources in this course, but you will add one additional item: the date on which you retrieved the source you are citing.

For example, the Purdue OWL APA Style links below include citation instructions such as this one for an article from an online periodical:

  • Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Date of publication). Title of article. Title of Online Periodical, volume number(issue number if available). Retrieved from http://www.someaddress.com/full/url/

You will add the date you retrieved this article, as follows:

  • Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Date of publication). Title of article. Title of Online Periodical, volume number(issue number if available). Retrieved date of retrieval, from http://www.someaddress.com/full/url/

For detailed information about APA format, refer to the links below: