How to Cite a Newspaper Article in Harvard Style

Citing a newspaper article in Harvard style is the same as citing a journal article. However, the only difference lies in the fact that the volume and preferable issue number are also included in the reference list entry for a journal article. Neither of these is needed for citing or referencing a newspaper article.

The basic format for citing a newspaper article using Harvard style is:

In-text citation: (Author Surname, Year Published)

Reference list entry: Author Surname, Author Initial. (Year Published). Title. Publication Title, [online] p. or pp. Available at: http://Website URL [Accessed Date Accessed].

Note: In Harvard, if a couple of pages have been used, their references include ‘pp.’ for page range instead of ‘p.’, which is for a single page.

For example:

In-text citation: … particular problems stem from the original contracts signed before 2002. (Syal, 2013)

Reference list entry: Syal, R. (2013). Abandoned NHS IT system has cost £10bn so far. Then Guardian, [online] p.1. Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/sep/18/nhs-records-system-10bn [Accessed 19 Oct. 2014].

Note: Such references, same as that for journal articles, are placed outside the punctuation marks at the end of sentence, as in the example above.

Types of In-Text Citation and Reference Formats For Newspapers with Examples

1.    Citing a newspaper article without an author

If a newspaper article’s author name is missing or unavailable, Harvard referencing dictates that all other details be included in the in-text citation, for example:

In-text citation: (Sydney Morning Herald 24 January 2000, p.12) OR

… in the Sydney Morning Herald (24 January 2000, p.12).

Reference list entry: There is no need to create a reference list entry for newspaper articles lacking the author’s name as per Harvard referencing.

Citing a newspaper article with no name or page number

If a newspaper article shows neither the author’s name nor page numbers, the following Harvard format is used:

In-text citation: (Article title Year)

Reference list entry: ‘Article title’ Year, Newspaper Title in italics, Day, Month, viewed Date Month Year, <URL>.

For example:

In-text citation: Footage captured by drone provides a new perspective on the ‘Rock’ (‘Uluru like you never seen it’ 2016).

Reference list entry: ‘Uluru like you’ve never seen it’ 2016, The Daily Telegraph, 29 August, viewed 31 August 2016,

<http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/voyages-indigenous-tourism-australia-releases-drone-footage-over-uluru/news-story/e33604c8e87a4d01a751a30c2e961ed0>.

2.    Citing a print newspaper article

The basic format for citing a print version of a newspaper article is:

In-text citation: (Author Surname Year) OR (Author Surname Year, p.#)

Reference list entry: Author Surname, Initial(s) Year, ‘Article title’, Newspaper Title in italics, Day, Month, page range.

For example:

In-text citation: (Browne 2010) OR (Browne 2010, p. 45)

Reference list entry: Browne, R 2010, ‘This brainless patient is no dummy’, Sydney Morning Herald, 21 March, p. 45.

(Schwartz 1993)

3.    Citing an online newspaper article

Online newspaper articles generally include sources like online news-only websites or blogs, news journals, newspaper articles from a separately paginated section of a website or journal and media releases. No matter the kind of platform, since they are all online, the following format is used to cite newspaper articles from such sources:

In-text citation: (Author Surname Year) OR (Author Surname Year, p.#)

Reference list entry: Author Surname, Initial(s) Year, ‘Article title’, Newspaper Title in italics, Day, Month, page range, viewed Day Month Year, <URL>.

In-text citation: (Puvanenthiran 2016)

Reference list entry: Puvanenthiran, B 2016, ‘Holographic creation company gets boost from Alibaba’s investment arm’, Sydney Morning Herald, 28 September, viewed 08 January 2017, <http://www.smh.com.au/small-business/startup/holographic-creation-company-gets-boost-from-alibabas-investment-arm-20160927-grphjz.html>.

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