Earlier this month we looked at how to cite an online video using the Chicago footnote referencing system. But the Chicago Manual of Style also sets out an author–date citations system. In this post, then, we look at how to cite an online video in an essay when using parenthetical citations.
The basic citation format for an online video in Chicago author–date referencing is the same as for any other source. As such, simply give the video creator’s surname and a year in brackets:
Auteur theory can be applied to the films of Michael Bay (Ellis 2017).
If the author is named in the text, however, cite the year immediately after:
According to Ellis (2017), even Michael Bay can be considered an auteur.
The ‘creator’ of a video could be a presenter, writer or director. The important thing is to use the same name in citations as you do in the accompanying reference list entry for each source.
Things change slightly when quoting an online video. Instead of the page number(s) you would usually cite when quoting a print source, give a time stamp for a video source:
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Bay’s vision is marked by ‘undeniable commercialism’ (Ellis 2017, 4:54).
Here, for example, the citation shows that we’re quoting something from 4 minutes and 54 seconds into the video. This will then help readers find the part of the video quoted.
In the reference list, give as much information as you can to help readers identify the video you’ve cited. Ideally, this should include:
In practice, then, the video cited above could be listed as follows:
Ellis, Lindsay. 2017. ‘Auteur Theory vs. Michael Bay | The Whole Plate – Episode Two’. YouTube video, 12:31. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srk-tPbQVcs.
If you cannot find a suitable creator to cite, you can usually cite an organisational author (i.e. the company that made a video). Alternatively, you can use the video title instead. Either is fine as long as the first piece of information in the reference list matches the name/title in the citations.
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