Each issue of CQ Researcher is a single-themed in-depth report written by an experienced journalist that is fact checked by editors. These reports explore current issues and controversial social and political topics in the United States and meet the criteria of a credible information source of academic quality. The reports can help with topic development and students often find reports to use in their argumentative essay or persuasive speech or informational speech.
Using CQ Researcher
CQ Researcher is an easy to use database, but here are some tips and resources to improve your experience.
- Check the report date! — older reports may be suitable for background information, but not the current situation
- Reports have statistics — charts, graphs, or maps
- Recommended websites and organizations are credible — use them to find more data and information.
- View a report by clicking on the title to open the HTML version.
- The PDF version has several advantages compared to the HTML version
- PDF has page numbers which makes in-text citations easier
- PDF is easy to save. Don't research twice – save any potential resources for easy access.
- Printing select pages from a PDF is easier than printing the HTML version.
- Look for the View PDF button after opening the report.
- If you use the email feature to send yourself links to a report these emailed links only work after you have opened the database. See permalink section for details on opening these emailed links.
Use the database citation ...
The Cite Now! button shows the citation for the report you are viewing. Style choices are: APA, Bluebook, Chicago or MLA.
Create your own citation...
Where did you find it? in the subscription database CQ Researcher Online
What is it? an article from the magazine CQ Researcher
Which URL? Each report has a unique document URL which is the permalink. This URL is at the end of the report in the HTML online version only. It is NOT included on the PDF version.
In CQ Researcher the permalink is called the Document URL. It is available at the end of each online report (HTML version) and is used in the citation.
For access to the article again you must go through the library subscription.
- Go to the library's A-Z Database list
- Select CQ Researcher to open the database. NOTE: If you are not on Vol State campus computer you will have to login before opening the database.
- Once the database is open paste in the document URL
Or you can create a shortcut link to the report by adding an authentication ("proxy") prefix to the Document URL. This bypasses several steps outlined above and takes you direct to the article.
Adding the proxy prefix
- Find the CQ Researcher Document URL for your reports. For example, http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre2017051900
- Add the proxy prefix, exactly as shown, to the front of the CQ Researcher Document URL to create a proxied URL. The proxy prefix is: https://libproxy.volstate.edu/login?url=
- Your proxied URL will look similar to this example: https://libproxy.volstate.edu/login?url=http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre2017051900
- CQ Researcher: FAQsReview CQ Researcher's Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) page to learn more about the reports and the site
This page provides access to the subscription database CQ Researcher Online and information for using this resource effectively. It is not a comprehensive guide to the database; it simply assists Vol State users with common questions. Use the Help link in the database to learn about advanced database features.