LibGuides: ENG 111: College Rhetoric: Dr. Barnett's Class

Finding Background Sources

The issues affecting Flint are not necessarily unique to our community, so finding an overview of your issue in one of these database will help give context to the issue and develop some possible solutions.

Opposing Viewpoints
Covers contemporary social issues with pro & con and background information. Also allows searching of the collection Global Issues.

Covers contemporary social issues, from Offshore Drilling to Climate Change, Health Care to Immigration. Helps students research, analyze and organize a broad variety of data for conducting research, completing writing assignments, preparing for debates, creating presentations, and more. This resource helps students explore issues from all perspectives, and includes: pro/con viewpoint essays, topic overviews, primary source documents, biographies of social activists and reformers, court-case overviews, periodical articles, statistical tables, charts and graphs, images and a link to Google Image Search, podcasts (including weekly presidential addresses and premier NPR programs), and a national and state curriculum standards search correlated to the content that allows educators to quickly identify material by grade and discipline.
CQ Researcher Plus Archive
In-depth, unbiased coverage of health, social trends, criminal justice, international affairs, education, the environment, technology, and the economy.

1923-present. Each single-themed, 12,000-word report is researched and written by a seasoned journalist, and contains an introductory overview; background and chronology on the topic; an assessment of the current situation; tables and maps; pro & con statements from representatives of opposing positions; and bibliographies of key sources.
Issues & Controversies
Balanced, accurate discussions of over 250 controversial topics in the news along with chronologies, illustrations, maps, tables, sidebars, contact info, and bibliographies, including primary source documents and news editorials.

Covers 1995-present. A Read Aloud button is available for text-to-speech for much of the content.

If you are unable to find a background source that describes your issue at a larger level with these databases, try using QuickSearch.

QuickSearch
The discovery tool that lets you search the Thompson Library's books, journals, articles, course reserves, streaming media, and more.

Finding Local Flint Sources

You are required to find one article from the Flint Journal that relates to your issue. Remember to use the Date Filter to find more recent stories.

Flint Journal, 1898-present
Content of The Flint Journal, including articles, illustrations, advertisements, and other content. Includes images (1898-1995; 2018 to present), and text (1995 to present).

The Flint Journal is also available on microfilm on the 1st floor of the Thompson Library, covering 1898 - 2018. These years of coverage are included in the online version, but if you need full page or article images for the years 1996 - 2017, you can scan them on the microfilm reader. If you only need the text of an article from the years 1996 - 2017, it is available in the online version.

The Genesee Historical Collections Center is open Monday - Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and it is best if you make an appointment with them so they can help you pull the records you need.

Email: ghcc-archives@umich.edu

Genesee Historical Collections Center (Archives)
by Callum Carr Last Updated Jun 2, 2025 1239 views this year

For those interested in issues related to the Water Crisis, check out our research guide on it. You'll find links to related news, background information, primary sources, and more.

The Flint Water Crisis: A Guide to Information Resources
by Paul Streby Last Updated Nov 17, 2025 1077 views this year

MLA Citations

Citing an Interview in MLA
See MLA's official guidance on citing interviews you conducted either in person, through email, and more.
The MLA Style Center
A companion to the MLA Handbook, the site provides students and educators with a host of free resources for teaching and learning the MLA’s approach to research, writing, and documentation. It offers a quick guide to citing any source according to the MLA template of core elements, a practice template, a Q&A feature with hundreds of citation examples, a blog of writing tips, guidelines for formatting a paper and avoiding plagiarism, sample papers, lesson plans, worksheets, and other classroom resources submitted by users.
MLA Style | Purdue OWL
Help with MLA from Purdue's Online Writing Lab. Look under the "Formatting and Style Guide" for help with your works cited page.