Learn about the Publisher

Publishers are the groups that produce and provide access to sources, including books, newspapers, journals, Web sites, sound and video files, and databases. Like authors, publishers have biases. Unlike authors, they often advertise them. Many publishers have a mission statement on their Web sites, while others provide information that can help you figure out their priorities. You might already be familiar with a publisher, particularly in the case of major newspapers or magazines, such as the New York Times (regarded as liberal) or U.S. News and World Report (regarded as conservative). If the publisher is a scholarly or professional journal, you can often figure out its biases by looking over the contents of several issues or by reading a few of its editorials.