Public Relations Research Resources: Background Information

(Note: Location: REF RM refers to the Reference Room on the main floor, Oviatt Library. For serial publications, earlier editions are usually found on the upper floors of the Library or in storage.)

PR Firms and Media Directories

• ABYZ Newspapers & News Media Guide (International guide to news media by region and country.)
• Editor and Publisher International Year Book
  Location: REF RM PN4709 .E35
• Gale Directory of Publications and Broadcast Media
  Search: Gale Directory Library ("Media Entities")
• O'Dwyer's PR Firms Database
• O'Dwyer's PR Firms Rankings
• Standard Rate and Data Service (SDRS)
  Location: REF RM HF5905 .S7321
• Ulrichsweb.com (Ulrich's Periodicals Directory provides detailed information on more than 300,000 periodicals of all types published worldwide, including basic circulation data and publisher information)
• Who Owns What: Columbia Journalism Review ("guide to what the major media companies own")

Guides to Conducting Survey and PR Research

• Berger, Arthur Asa. Media and communication research methods: an introduction to qualitative and quantitative approaches. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications, 2011. Location: FLOOR3 P91.3 .B385 2011
• Electronic Resources in Communication Studies Committee. Library Resources in Communication Studies: TOC . Chicago, IL: Education and Behavioral Sciences Section, Association of College & Research Libraries. Last update 7 March 2011.
  Covers core information resources for key areas in communication studies, including journalism, mass media, media ratings, media diversity, advertising, etc. Check the Library Catalog or Databases A-Z to see if CSUN has the resource.
• The Dartnell Public relations Handbook
  Location: FLOOR2 HD59 .D28 1987
• Encyclopedia of Evaluation (2005). Sandra Mathison, ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
• Encyclopedia of Measurement and Statistics (2007). Neil J. Salkind, ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Publications.
• Encyclopedia of Survey Research Methods (2008). Paul J. Lavrakas, ed. Thousand Oaks, CA, Sage.
• Handbook of Public Relations / Robert L. Heath, editor ; Gabriel Vasquez, contributing editor.
  Thousand Oaks, CA : Sage Publications, c2000.
  Location: FLOOR2 HD59 .H267 2000
• Library Resources for Individual and Group Assessment
• Public Opinion Polls and Surveys
• Rubin, Rebecca B. & Philip Palmgreen, et al. (Eds.). (2004) Communication research measures: a sourcebook. Mahwah, N.J. : Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2004.
  Location: REF RM P91.3 .C62 2004
• The Sage encyclopedia of qualitative research methods (2008). Lisa M. Given, ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
• The Sage encyclopedia of social science research methods (2004). Michael S. Lewis-Beck, Alan Bryman, Tim Futing Liao, eds. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
• The SAGE handbook of media studies. John D. H. Downing, ed. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications, 2004.
  Location: FLOOR3 P90 .S18 2004

PR and Media Encyclopedias

For additional encyclopedias related to public relations and related fields, search the Library Catalog using the keyword search, such as: "mass media and encyclopedias" or "journalism and dictionaries."

• Encyclopedia of International Media and Communications, Donald H. Johnston, editor-in-chief. San Diego, CA: Academic Press, 2003.
  Location: REF RM P87.5 .E532 2003
• Encyclopedia of new media: an essential reference to communication and technology, Steve Jones, editor. Thousand Oaks, CA : Sage Publications, 2003.
• Encyclopedia of public relations, Robert L. Heath, editor. Thousand Oaks, CA : Sage, 2005.
• Hudson, Robert V. Mass media : a chronological encyclopedia of television, radio, motion pictures, magazines, newspapers, and books in the United States. Garland reference library of social science ; v. 310. :New York : Garland Pub., 1987.
  Location: REF RM P92.U5 H77 1987
• Kurian, George. World press encyclopedia. New York : Facts on File, 1982.
  Coverage of the world press, its history, economics, censorship, education and training. Location: REF RM PN4735 .K87 v.1-4
• Paneth, Donald. The Encyclopedia of American journalism. New York : Facts on File, 1983.
  This encyclopedia of newspapers, magazines, radio, television, photography, newsreels and documentaries lists more than 1,000 entries. Influential figures in media and journalism are also covered.
  Location: REFRM PN4855 .P26 1983
• Watson, James. Dictionary of media and communication studies. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.
  Location: REF RM P87.5 .W38 2006
• World press encyclopedia: a survey of press systems worldwide, Amanda C. Quick, project editor. Detroit : Gale, c2003.
  This comprehensive survey of press and electronic media covers over 200 countries and their systems. Arranged alphabetically by country, entries include overview and background, economic framework, general characteristics, number and type of media, press laws, censorship issues, state-press relations, education and training in journalism, and more.

Biographical Research

• For books by or about specific people, search the Library Catalog by the name of the person as an author or subject (last name, first name). To search for collections of biographies by type of person or profession, search the Library Catalog using the keyword search, for example: journalists and biography.
• The LexisNexis Academic "Research People" search is useful to locate information about people in business, industry, politics, etc. This People Search tutorial demonstrates how to do this.
• The Biography Index (Wilson) covers biographical information from more than 2,700 English-language periodicals; as well as books, autobiographies, bibliographies, biographies, critical studies, fiction, drama, pictorial works, poetry, juvenile literature, obituaries, journals, collections of letters, book reviews, and interviews.