Primary or Secondary? Identifying Primary Sources Santa Barbara City College Luria Library Ellen Carey Fall 2016
Primary or Secondary?Identifying Primary Sources
Santa Barbara City College Luria LibraryEllen CareyFall 2016
Primary or Secondary?It depends on factors such as:•your specific research question •the way you are using the source•how long it has been since the source was published
Remember:•some books, articles, videos, etc. include both sections that are primary sources and sections that are secondary sources
Topic: What are the consequences, professionally and in terms of public opinion, for athletes who are racist?
Source: A news story about athletes who have been expelled from the Olympics for racist tweets
Secondary source
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/london/soccer/story/2012-07-30/swiss-athlete-banned-michel-morganella-olympics/56591966/1
Topic: What are the consequences, professionally and in terms of public opinion, for athletes who are racist?
Source: The racist tweet for which an athlete was expelled from the Olympics
Primary source
Topic: What are the consequences, professionally and in terms of public opinion, for athletes who are racist?
Source: An email from a spectator at the Olympics, to her friends back home, about how people around her reacted to athletes getting expelled from the games for racist tweets
Primary source
Topic: What are the consequences, professionally and in terms of public opinion, for athletes who are racist?
Source: A Facebook post, by an Olympic spectator’s friend back home, about what is going on at the Olympics
Secondary source
Your topic: How has public opinion about interracial marriage changed over time?
Your source: A newspaper article from 2013, about interracial marriage becoming more mainstream
Secondary source
http://libproxy.sbcc.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1443987176?accountid=28576
Your topic: How has public opinion about interracial marriage changed over time?
Your source: A newspaper article from 1893, about Southern interracial marriage laws
Primary source
http://dbs.ohiohistory.org/africanam/page1.cfm?ItemID=17772
Your topic: How has public opinion about interracial marriage changed over time?
Your source: An interview with an interracial couple, the Lovings, about how their families and communities have responded to them over the past 40 years
Primary sourcehttp://iipdigital.usembassy.gov/st/english/inbrief/2012/06/201206087068.html#axzz27MdEFQDr
Your topic: How has public opinion about interracial marriage changed over time?
Your source: The 2016 feature film about the Lovings
Secondary sourcehttp://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR6fWfYlxUq9-d353F4dxxnjh-1Tfmy_86KkCVFqZmQN6x9Cqyn
Your topic: To what degree do the images of black people in the media differ depending on gender and class?
Your source: An interview with the author of a book about media stereotypes of African Americans
Secondary sourcehttp://www.soros.org/voices/black-male-image-american-mind
Your topic: To what degree do the images of black people in the media differ depending on gender and class?
Your sources: Media images
Primary sources
http://www.crownheights.info/index.php?blogid=1&archive=2008-07&catid=23
http://www.newser.com/tag/3970/2/stereotypes.html
Topic: What are the personal and political implications of black women’s choices about their hair?
Source: A video on YouTube in which a woman provides tips for dealing with the practical and emotional aspects of transitioning hair from relaxed to natural
Primary source
http://youtu.be/nr8GbJNJ2jM
Your topic: What are the personal and political implications of black women’s choices about their hair?
Your source: A video of a segment called “The Politics of Black Hair” from Melissa Harris-Perry’s show on MSNBC
Secondary source…. http://video.msnbc.msn.com/melissa-harris-perry/47755433#47755433
… and Primary source
when the participants are speaking as experts on politics and culture when the participants are
speaking about their own experience as black women
More ExamplesPrimary sources:evidence of history & culture
Secondary sources:interpretation of history & culture
PhotographsMoviesPlaysWorks of artSongsRecipesLettersDiariesAutobiographiesMemoirsOral historiesSpeechesBirth/death certificatesLand deedsGovernment documentsLive news footageInterviews (usually)
Scholarly articlesPolitical analysesBiographiesTextbooksReference booksLiterary criticismReviews of art/movies/music (usually)News articles/broadcasts other than
first-person accounts (usually)
Remember: some secondary sources can be used as primary sources if you are using them as historical artifacts (for example, using a scholarly article from 1907 about interracial marriage as an example of racism among scholars during the early 20th century)