Types of Sources

The Day of an Event

Television, Social Media, and the Web

• The who, what, why, and where of the event
• Quick, not detailed, regularly updated
• Authors are journalists, bloggers, social media participants
• Intended for general audiences

The Day After an Event

Newspapers

• Explanations and timelines of the event begin to appear
• More factual information, may include statistics, quotes, photographs, and editorial coverage
• Authors are journalists
• Intended for general audiences

The Week or Weeks After an Event

Weekly Popular Magazines and News Magazines

• Long form stories begin to discuss the impact on society, culture, and public policy
• More detailed analyses, interviews, and various perspectives emerge
• Authors range from journalists to essayists, and commentary provided by scholars and experts in the field
• Intended for a general audience or specific nonprofessional groups

Six Months to a Year or More After an Event

Academic, Scholarly Journals

• Focused, detailed analysis and theoretical, empirical research
• Peer-reviewed, ensuring high credibility and accuracy
• Authors include scholars, researchers, and professionals
• Intended for an audience of scholars, researchers, and university students

A Year to Years After an Event

Books 

• In-depth coverage ranging from scholarly in-depth analysis to popular books
• Authors range from scholars to professionals to journalists
• Include reference books which provide factual information, overviews, and summaries

Government Reports

• Reports from federal, state, and local governments
• Authors include governmental panels, organizations, and committees
• Often focused on public policy, legislation, and statistical analysis

Example: 9/11

Let's take a look at the information cycle for the September 11th attacks against the US. For a research project, you collect a variety of sources published from the moment the attacks occurred to the present. The first few sources were produced the day of and may contain inaccuracies due to the limited amount of information available at the time. As time progresses, the reliability of the sources increases because facts can be verified and new facts can be discovered.

**Note: the timeline does not contain all of the sources related to 9/11 due to the vast quantity of information available.