Identify Journal Types

Popular Magazines vs Trade Publications vs Scholarly Journals 

 

The following general guidelines describe the three main types of periodicals: popular magazines, trade publications and scholarly journals. Not all periodicals fall into these categories. If you are not sure if a publication is appropriate for your assignment, ask your instructor.

CRITERIA POPULAR MAGAZINES TRADE MAGAZINES SCHOLARLY JOURNALS

Appearance
 

  

 
  • eye catching cover
  • glossy paper
  • heavily illustrated in colour
  • many advertisements
  • each issue starts with page 1
  • cover highlights the industry
  • glossy paper
  • moderately illustrated in colour
  • trade-related advertisements
  • each issue starts with page 1
  • plain cover
  • plain paper
  • black/white charts and graphs
  • few or no advertisements
  • pages numbered consecutively through each volume

Audience

  • general public
  • members of a specific industry or organization
  • researchers and professionals

Authors
  • paid staff or freelancers
  • articles may be unsigned
  • paid staff or practitioners in the field
  • articles usually signed
  • scholars or researchers in the field
  • background of authors usually given
Accountability
  • reviewed by an editor
  • reviewed by an editor
  • peer review/refereed
Documentation
  • no bibliographies or footnotes
  • may have short bibliographies
  • always have bibliographies or footnotes

Frequency
  • usually weekly or monthly
  • usually weekly or monthly
  • usually quarterly

Publisher
  • commercial
  • commercial or industry association
  • university press or scholarly society

Examples

 

 

 

 

 

 

 (image - News Week)

  • Maclean's
  • Time

 (image - Quill & Quire)

  • Business 2.0
  • Free Inquiry

 (image - Review CSWR)

 

  • Canadian Journal of History
  • Explicator