Guide to Sources in American Journalism History

Subjects:

• Communications » Journalism

Reviews:

• This is an important book not only because it describes archival and manuscript collections in 40 states, but because it is also the first of its kind devoted exclusively to journalism history. Entries are further subdivided by institution and special collection, and include address, hours, and services. This source also contains seven authoritative essays on historical writing, research, databases, bibliographies, oral history, etc. There is a name index, but subjects are not listed. Certainly there are omissions (the University of South Florida, American Newspaper Publishers Association, and The Poynter Institute of Media Studies spring to mind), but Caswell has identified in painstaking detail a large number of collections and finally made them accessible to educators, historians, graduate students, and communications librarians. Highly recommended.
  —Library Journal
• The first 98 pages of Caswell's guide contain seven essays, carefully crafted by senior journalism professors, on bibliographic resources and research methods for historians concerned with journalism in the US. Michael Murray writes on the American Journalism Historians Association (which has sponsored this guide), W. David Sloan on historiography, John Pauly on trends in research in the field, Jean Ward and Kathleen Hansen on printed bibliographies and electronic databases of particular interest to journalism historians, Gary Charbonneau on the US Newspaper Program, and Maurine Beasley on oral history. The remainder of the guide comprises a state-by-state listing of significant archival and manuscript sources currently available to researchers in the US. Only basic directory information is provided for each repository, such as address, telephone number, name of librarian or curator, and availability of photocopy services. A detailed name index for the archival and manuscript section concludes the book; regrettably, the initial essays, which contain many specific references, are not indexed. This guide nicely complements R. A. Schwarzlose's Newspapers: A Reference Guide and W. D. Sloan's American Journalism History. All three titles are highly recommended for serious journalism collections.
  —Choice
• The guide lists historical sources documenting the news function of print and electronic media in the United States. Archival and manuscript repositories in 40 state contributed information. The volume, sponsored by the American Journalism Historians Association, also includes essays on research strategies, methods and sources in journalism history.
  —Journalism History

Table of Contents:

• Preface
• Research Strategies in Journalism History
• Laying a Foundation for the Study of Journalism History: The Organization of the American Journalism Historians Association
• The History of Historical Writing
• New Directions for Research in Journalism History
• Research Methods in Journalism History
• Bibliographies for Journalism History: A Selection
• Databases for Historical Research
• The United States Newspaper Program
• Oral History
• Archival and Manuscript Sources
• Guide to Archival and Manuscript Sources
• Index