Mass Communication Research Resources: General Reference Resources

Facts, Opinions, and Statistics

The following web sites will lead you to quick facts, opinions, statistics, and background information on a variety of topics.

• 2010 Census
• American Factfinder (Population, housing, economic, and geographic data from the U.S. Census. Use their tutorials to learn more.)
• Credo Reference ("Online reference collection providing access to a selection of over 240 reference works, including encyclopedias, dictionaries, biographies and books of quotations.")
• Gale Virtual Reference Library (encyclopedias, almanacs, and specialized reference sources)
• Legal Research Sources (Links to sources of legislative, judicial, and administrative law, including periodical databases.)
• NewsBank Special Reports (Focus on topics of current interest, including current and background information, statistics, maps, images, websites, and suggested search terms. Updated daily.)
• Minority Links (Quick and easy links to the latest data on racial and ethnic populations in the United States)
• Public Opinion Polls and Surveys
• Public Records Directory
• RefDesk.com--Reference, Facts, News
• Roper Center for Public Opinion Research (Archives of public opinion surveys. Search the "iPOLL Databank," which is organized at the question level, from national public opinion surveys, 1935 to present. Search for datasets using "RoperExpress," which allows downloading of about 75% of public opinion studies conducted in the US and many recent studies from outside of the US.)
• San Fernando Valley Statistics & Facts

Politics, Government & Law

General

• Citizen Media Law Project's Legal Guide
• Election News
• Legal Research Sources (Links to sources of legislative, judicial, and administrative law, including periodical databases.)
• League of Women Voters
• MAPlight.org ("public database, illuminates the connection between campaign donations and legislative votes in unprecedented ways." Includes U.S., California, and Los Angeles information. )
• Political Science Research Sources (Links to library databases and websites for locating primary sources and periodical literature.)
• Yahoo--Public Policy Institutes (Links to various "think tanks" and other public policy research institutes.)

Government Websites

In addition to the links and information provided on the Library's Government Publications page, the following websites lead to more specific information on government at various levels.

United States

• USA.gov: The U.S. Government's Official Web Portal
• CIA Electronic Reading Room
• Federal Election Commission
• FDsys: Federal Digital System (GPO) provides access to official Federal Government information. Offers a collection of full-text databases and the text of federal bills, Congressional Record, the Federal Register, and other legal sources.
• Homeland Security Digital Library (HSDL)
• Library of Congress
• Recovery.org: Tracking Economic Recovery Spending

California

• State of California
• California Courts (includes CA Supreme, Appelate, and Superior courts)
• California Department of Finance (has downloadable statistics on population, households, etc. by counties, cities, etc. )
• California Secretary of State
• California State Senate
• California State Assembly
• California State University
• California Voter Foundation
• Legislative Analyst's Office ("California's Nonpartisan Fiscal and Policy Advisor.")
• Rough & Tumble ("A Daily Snapshot of California Public Policy and Politics")
• University of California

Local

• Los Angeles (City/County) Government Sources
• Los Angeles County (official website)
• City of Los Angeles (official website)
• San Fernando Valley Statistics and Facts
• Southern California Cities, Counties, and Subregions

Legal Research

The following sources can help you find related court cases, legal codes, and scholarly law review journal articles; as well as background information and definitions of terms.

• West's Encyclopedia of American Law, 2d edition
  • Provides current information on more than 5,000 legal topics; cites relevant cases and statutes. Includes definitions of legal terms and more.
• Encyclopedia of the American Constitution
• Gale Encyclopedia of American Law
• California Law Research Guide
  • Detailed guide on how to research California law in the Oviatt Library and online.
• FDsys (Federal Digital System, U.S. Government Printing Office)
  • Includes recent primary sources of information from the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the Federal government. 
• FindLaw Cases and Codes
  • Search U.S. and State constitutions, statutes, cases and more. Note: FindLaw is not completely free. If you are prompted for a credit card to retrieve information, don't do it! Use LexisNexis Academic legal research to find similar information about court cases or codes.
• FindLaw U.S. Constitution: First Amendment
  • From the Constitution of the United States of America: Analysis and Interpretation.
• FindLaw Legal Dictionary
  • Definitions of legal terms and legal usage from Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, 1996.
• LexisNexis Academic
  • Use the Find a Case search to quickly locate a court case by name, e.g., United States v. American Library Association or citation, e.g., 539 U.S. 19.
  • Use the U.S. Legal search options menu to locate landmark cases, law review journal articles, Supreme Court briefs, U.S. and state Supreme Court and Appellate Court cases, U.S. District court cases, U.S. and state statutes, codes, and constitutions; and the Code of Federal Regulations.
• Supreme Court of the United States
  • The official web site of the Supreme Court. In addition to the opinions, you can also read or listen to recent oral arguments presented at the Supreme Court.
• U.S. Law Research Guide
  • Detailed guide on how to research U.S. law in the Oviatt Library and online.

Business and Industry Sources

The following selective  list of online databases and web sites will lead you to sources of information about companies, organizations, industries, and the people who work in them.

• Business Resources (Subject Guide to business and economics research resources)
• ABI/Inform Compete (Proquest)
  Full‐text journals, business magazines, and newspapers, including the Wall Street Journal, as well as key trade publications, dissertations, conference proceedings, and market reports.
• Foundation Center
  Comprehensive database on U.S. and, increasingly, global grantmakers and their grants.
• GuideStar
  Nonprofits reports and IRS Form 990s.
• Gale Directory Library
  Online access to several directories: Brands and their Companies; Business Rankings Annual; Consultants and Consulting Organizations Directory; Encyclopedia of Associations: National Organizations of the U.S.; Market Share Reporter; and Scholarships, Fellowships & Loans
• Hoover's Company Profiles (ProQuest)
  Company information for more than 40,000 public and non-public companies and 225,000 key executives.
• Mergent Online
  U.S. and international company data and annual reports.
• Regional Business News (Coverage of more than 80 regional business publications covering all metropolitan and rural areas within the United States.)
• Standard & Poor's Net Advantage
  Industry surveys, stock reports, corporation records, The Outlook, mutual fund reports and more.
• Who Owns What: Columbia Journalism Review ("guide to what the major media companies own")