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GOVT 210 - Political Power & American Public Policy (W2 Core)

Provides resources and guidance for the writing and information literacy learning outcomes tied to all GOVT 210 courses.

Citations and Authority by Document Type

Librarians encourage exploring information through a series of frames. For this class, we take a close look at the idea that Authority is Constructed and Contextual. Review the following publications. Consider the author(s), the intended audience(s), and what the citation practices in each document can tell us about policy writing across environments.

Questions:

  1. Who are the authors? Are they trusted authorities on the topic at hand?
  2. What is the publication?
  3. Who is the intended audience?
  4. Look at the citations in context. What do the authors cite and how do they cite it?
    1. Does the choice and use of sources build credibility to their arguments? 
    2. Who can access the cited sources? Is there a paywall or membership requirement?
    3. What can we learn about the intended audience from the authors' citation choices?

Articles: