Scholarly

Popular

Appearance

Plain with tables and/or graphs to support the text. The title may include the words, ‘Journal’, ‘Review’, ‘Bulletin’ or ‘Research’ .

Glossy paper, color images, heavy advertising.

Audience

Specific (e.g., scholars, researchers, professionals)

General public.

Availability

By subscription only.

Sold at newsstands, supermarkets,
or drugstores.

Author

Expert/specialist in field.
Credentials usually given.

Not always identified.
May be a staff writer or free-lancer.

Content

In-depth coverage of original research findings on narrowly-defined topics.

Broad coverage of a variety of current-interest topics.

Credits

Usually includes a bibliography and/or footnotes.

Few references may be included
in the text.

Editors

Peer-reviewed by other
experts in the field.

Reviewed by editors
on staff.

Frequency of publication

Less frequently such as
monthly or quarterly.

More frequently such as
daily or weekly.

Language

Includes jargon of
the field.

Non-technical and conversational
for any reader.

Length

Longer (usually >5 pages)

Shorter (usually <5 pages).

Publisher

Scholarly or professional organization, university press

Commercial, for profit

Purpose

To add to a body of knowledge and
inform the scholarly community.

To inform the public, entertain, sell a product, or promote a viewpoint.

Examples at the MxCC Library

College Mathematics Journal
Current Anthropology
Journal of Developmental Education
Technology Review

Business Week
Health
Popular Science
Wired