The chart to the side gives you sort of a quick comparison guide for the differences of the various types of periodical articles.
| Newspapers | Magazines | Trade Publications | Journals | |
| Where can you find them? | Everywhere, including Oklahoma State University Libraries | Everywhere, including Oklahoma State University Libraries | Usually bookstores and Oklahoma State University Libraries | Oklahoma State University Libraries |
| Authors | Journalists - in most cases, they attend college and earn a degree in journalism | It depends - sometimes they are journalists, freelance writers, or just a member of the magazine's staff | Practitioners or specialists in the field or industry | Experts - usually authors have earned a Ph.D. or M.D. or other graduate degree |
| Audience | General public, everyone | General public, everyone | Practitioners in the field or industry | Other experts in the field or with a similar educational background |
| Article Title | Short, but with a little description to catch attention | Short and catchy | Descriptive | Long and descriptive, often with the subject in detail |
| Publication Name | New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Sacramento Bee, Chicago Tribune - usually start with a city or town name | Time, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, Glamour, Vogue - odds are, you have seen the publication name before | Progressive Grocer, Aviation Week and Space Technology - usually feature the industry in the name | Frequently have the word Journal in the publication name, but not always |
| Length of Articles | Short and not in depth, frequently only a few paragraphs | Short and not in depth, frequently 1-2 pages | Longer and occasionally in depth, varies widely | Long and in depth, averaging 10-15 pages. |
| Graphics | Photographs (frequently in black and white), occasional charts | Color photographs to support the topic of the article, occasional tables and charts | Color photographs to support the topic of the article, occasional tables and charts | Graphs, charts, tables, illustrations and photographs (where applicable) that summarize research |
| Sources/Bibliography | Rare. If they consult anyone, they generally mention it in passing in the text | Occasionally sources are cited, but this is the exception | Sources frequently mentioned in the text, but seldom cited | Sources always cited in footnotes or references list |
| Language | Avoid technical or formal jargon | Avoid technical or formal jargon | Uses terminology or jargon in the industry or field | Uses terminology, jargon and the language of the discipline |
| Advertising | Yes, all over the place | Yes, all over the place | Yes, but only advertising relevant to the field | Typically none, or very little |
| Cost | Generally less than $1 per issue | Generally less than $5 per issue | Generally less than $5 per issue | Some journals can cost as much as $10,000 per year |