Article Databases
Search an article database to find citations (title, author, title of journal, date, page numbers) for articles on a particular topic. The Library gives you access to over 200 article databases covering different disciplines.
1. Think about which academic disciplines might write about your topic. Examples: literature, film, anthropology, history...
2. Find the appropriate article database by subject (academic discipline or department). Look for "Recommended" databases.
Library home > Articles > Article Databases by Subject
Searching CSA Illumina Social Sciences
Note: remember, some very current topics won't retrieve any academic journal articles yet. You'll have to search for broader, related topics for articles that can provide you with the scholarly background for your paper, and use popular articles for the current information. Check with your instructor.
Sample searches in CSA Illumina Social Science databases:
Library home > Articles > Article Databases by Subject > Media Studies > Communication Abstracts: click on the CSA Illumina Social Sciences link to search multiple social science databases
1. Example of a search using multiple keywords, phrase searching, truncation,etc.
Topic: media coverage of immigrants
immigra* (keywords)
portray* or media or public opinion (keywords)
united states or america* (keywords)
keywords = searches most important parts of the record
two or more words together in one box = phrase (words found together, in that order)
select "English only" checkbox if desired
narrowing down search results - use official subject terms (descriptors)
immigra* (keywords)
portray* or media or public opinion (descriptor)
united states or america* (keywords)
narrowing down search results - add a term, OR use a narrower term:
add a row
immigra* (keywords)
portray* or media or public opinion (keywords)
united states or america* (keywords)
latino* or mexican* or hispanic* (keywords)
or
immigra* (keywords)
portray* or media or public opinion (keywords)
united states or america* (keywords)
labor* or agricultur* or jobs (keywords)
CSA Illumina: the Movie! (3:38 minutes) searching, includes UC e-links, saving to a list, displaying in citation format...
Searching multiple article databases relating to Media Studies
Library home > Articles > General Article Databases > Academic Search Complete
Academic Search Complete is an interdisciplinary database (covers all disciplines)
illegal or undocumented (keywords)
immigra* (keywords)
media or news* (keywords)
type or if you need it between two terms
click on academic journals in the left column to limit to peer-reviewed journals
add more databases!
click on choose databases (at the top)
select Communications Abstracts, Film & Television Index, then OK
finally, try using official subject terms:
illegal or undocumented (keywords)
immigra* (keywords)
media or news* (subject terms)
Search Results
- click on the title to see full record (including abstracts and descriptors)
- to limit by publication type (peer-reviewed journals, conferences, books, etc.) click on the appropriate tab or link
- if necessary,look for other limits (latest update, journal articles only, english only) and more advanced searches
- select records to save to your personalized list; lists may be e-mailed, downloaded, printed
UC-eLinks - Find Article Text/Location
Once you've searched a database to find articles, you may need to use 
to link to a PDF or html file if the full text is not immediately available. Each database is a bit different, but a good rule of thumb is this: when you see the Uc-eLinks icon click on it to view your article access options, which can range from full text to a call number to an Interlibrary Loan request:
For more information, here's a tutorial on using UC-eLinks.