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Writing a professional document without citations is impossible, which also applies to interviews. Students and authors use different accepted methods when citing sources, but MLA is among the most preferred citing formats for interviews.
MLA has several specific rules and guidelines. Your method will depend on the discussion’s nature. Typically, interviews are classified into personal and print interviews. However, these valuable bits of information may come through in other formats like web documents or emails. So how do you properly cite an interview using MLA? This quick read will guide you.
Citing Personal Interviews in MLA
A personal interview is one that the writer has done by themselves. It entails a one-on-one conversation between an interviewer and an interviewee. This dialogue typically occurs in real time and comprises immediate responses and follow-up questions.
When citing this type of interview, you should first write the interviewee’s identity before noting down the “Personal interview” identifier. Finally, you’ll capture when the interview occurred. Your citation should take this format:
Keith, June. Personal interview. 16 July 2023.
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Citing Published Interviews
Published interviews are also called print interviews. The phrase refers to any discussion recorded, transcribed, and then published in written form. They come through in different forms of print media.
If you want to cite a published interview under this format, you’ll list it with the interviewee’s name. But remember to include the material’s title in quotes and then italicize the larger content heading. But if it has an independent subject line, you’ll italicize the title. Check out this sample:
Kenneth, Holmes. “The Tempest.” By Savvy Tech Journalists, Edward Sean, Hermes Z, 2023.
Online Interviews
Sometimes, students are forced to refer to content published on the web. Here, you can list it based on the examinee’s name.
For discussion containing a heading, you’ll enclose the heading in quotes. Afterward, other sections within the entry should be cited as web content. This means the site’s heading must be in italics. Next, you’ll include the name of the publishing company, when it was published, and its link.
But sometimes, an interview may lack a headline. The citation should have an “interview by” descriptor in this case. This should come after the interviewee’s identity and precedes the interviewer’s identity. Here is an example:
Jean, Ford. Interview by James Don James. Fallen and Raised, 18 June 2022, URL, accessed on 9 May 2023.
Most websites offering college paper writing services would use this format when citing online interviews.
Digital Magazine
You’ll follow a slightly different approach if you want to cite a conversation in an online magazine. The format comprises the newspaper name, posting date, and URL. You’ll use the same order whenever you want to cite a blog or digital newspaper conversation.
This vivid example will elaborate:
Steven, Jones W. “Trauma and Child Growth.” by Diego Avalanche. The Chicago Times, 16 November 2020, URL.
Book Interviews
Students looking to cite a book’s chapter follow the same process as any other citation. This means you will include the heading, writer, publisher, when it was published, and specific pages. Sometimes, the person who wrote or edited the book also serves as the interviewer. If you encounter this situation, ensure you eliminate the name to avoid duplication.
Follow this format to cite an interview within a book:
Clifton, Andrews. “Research, interviews, and solutions.” Interview by Sean Christen. The Earth and the Seas, Pantheon, 2023, pp. 210–190. Citation within the text should take this form: Clifton 383.
Journal Interview
Some interviews are available in journals, but citing them shouldn’t be difficult. If you encounter one such, you’ll begin with the journal title, edition, publication date, and relevant pages. This method applies to non-digital sources. But if you sourced the information from a digital journal, provide its name alongside the link.
This example will demonstrate this perfectly:
Ashford, Jane. “The Evolution Of The Human Anatomy.” Marjorie Gait. Changes, volume 13, no. 4, 2010, pp. 110–209. JSTOR, URL. Within the content, the citation should appear as (Ashford 280).
Online Video
Finally, it’s also possible to cite web-based video files. You’ll get this right by including the site’s name, who uploaded the footage when they did it, and its link. In addition, citations within the text should include a timestamp array identifying the important section of the interview.
This format is acceptable:
Copper, Malone. “The Power of Art.” By Rinehart James. Sound Cloud, by Omnipresent Channel, 13 June 2016, URL. Inside the content, the citation will appear as Copper 02:13–05:21.
