Turning to interview citations in college assignments or university research papers instantly adds to the credibility of the student as it serves as the primary source that provides helpful information and helps to understand the subject or obtain a piece of supporting evidence. Learning how to cite an interview in MLA is relatively easy compared to how to cite an interview in APA format, especially if you start with the basic rules and follow the examples that have been provided below. Let's start with the basic rules first:
- When you cite an interview MLA style, it's necessary to provide the name of the person who is being interviewed. It also applies to the information that you provide for the in-text citation.
- Your Works Cited page should have the name of the person being interviewed with the title of the interview coming next. It must be in quotation marks. If you cannot locate the title or there is none, use the word "interview" instead, yet without quotation marks.
- Now, if you are the person who took the interview, provide your name and the date when the interview has been conducted.
- Any interview found in the source that has been published must include the name of the author and relevant format details, depending on the type of source that you quote.
See the examples on how to cite an interview MLA in practice:
|
MLA Citation Type: |
Works Cited Page |
In-Text Citation |
|
Personal Interview |
Jones, Aled. Interview. Conducted by William Philips, 20 January 2022. |
(Jones) |
|
Published Interview |
Stipe, Michael. "The Male Idea of Power is So Dumb". Interview by Miranda Sawyer. The Guardian, 24 Apr. 2021, www.https://www.theguardian.com/music/2021/apr/24/michael-stipe-the-male-idea-of-power-is-so-dumb |
(Stipe) |
|
MLA General Template |
Last Name, First Name. Interview. Conducted by First Name Last Name, Day Month Year. |
(Last Name) |
How to Cite a Personal Interview in MLA (Unpublished)
When your aim is to cite an interview that belongs to something you have conducted on your own, you should describe the interview with the word "interview" alone, yet before that, you must specify the name of the person who has been interviewed. The interview must be followed by your own name and the date when the interview has taken place. This is how it will look in practice:
Connery, Sean. Interview. Conducted by Nigel Pulsford, 9 Jun. 2022.
Speaking of the in-text citations, it is sufficient to specify the last name of the person who has been interviewed as this is what you shall cite. For an example of the MLA in-text citation interview:
(Connery)
Cite a Published Interview in MLA
When you find an interview that belongs to a published source like a newspaper, a book, or even a video on Youtube, you must consider the person who is being interviewed as an author for MLA style citation purposes. Make sure to take notes as you research information for your MLA citation interview. The title of the interview (if available) must be put in quotation marks. Include all the details related to the type of source as you would usually do with books, newspapers, or any other type of source.
As for the parenthetical citation, the last name of the person being interviewed must be included along with the page number or a time stamp (if available).
Interview in an online magazine
|
MLA Template |
Last Name, First Name Initial(s). "Title." Interview by First Name Last Name. Publisher, Day Month Year, URL. |
|
Works Cited Page |
Jones, Kelly. “Windsor Castle Exploration”. Interview by Ethan Hawke. The Guardian. 12 June 2021. www.theguardian.co.uk |
|
In-Text Citation |
(Jones) |
Interview in a book
In case the author or editor of the book is the same person as the one being interviewed, leave this part out. Include the book title, the author(s), the publisher, the year of the publication, and the page(s) range.
|
MLA Template |
Last Name, First Name. "Title." Interview by First Name Last Name. Book Name. Publisher, year, page(s). |
|
Works Cited Page |
Buck, Peter. "Problems of the Night Clubs in Tempe, Arizona." Interview by Paul Reed Smith. The Tempe Archives, Arizona Press, 1996, pp. 114-115. |
|
In-Text Citation |
(Buck 114-115) |
Read also: How to Cite a Short Story in MLA Format
Interview in a journal
This type of citing will require the name of the journal along with the volume and number. Place the date or year of publication next to the range of pages. If it's something obtainable online for your MLA interview citation, include the URL or DOI along with the name of the database.
|
MLA Template |
Last Name, First Name. "Title." Interview by First Name Last Name. Journal. Vol., no., year, page(s). Name of the database, URL. |
|
Works Cited Page |
Woodbridge, Oscar. "How the West Was Won." Interview by Jon Lord and Bill Berry. National Observer, vol. 11, no. 34, 2005, pp. 222-231. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/URL. |
|
In-Text Citation |
(Woodbridge 222-231) |
Online video of an interview
When you are citing an interview that has been found online on YouTube or you wish to cite a TED talk found elsewhere as a video, you must mention the platform or the website where the interview can be seen, the name of the user who has uploaded the interview, the date when it was uploaded, and the URL. Regarding how to cite an interview MLA in text, use the timestamp to specify what part of the file you are citing.
|
MLA Template |
Last Name, First Name. "Title." Interview by First Name Last Name. Platform, uploaded by User or Channel Name, Day Month Year, URL. |
|
Works Cited Page |
Kemper, Christoph. "Meet The Maker | With Christoph Kemper From Kemper Amplification." Interview by Lee Cappers. YouTube, uploaded by Andertons Music Co, Jun 8, 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwMeTZbTZJk. |
|
In-Text Citation |
(Kemper 7:04 - 8:26) |
Interview via email correspondence
|
MLA Template |
Last Name of Person Interviewed, First Name. "Subject Line of Email." Received by Name of Person. Day Month Year of Email. Email Interview. |
|
Works Cited Page |
Mills, Mike. "Use of Politics in Arts." Received by Peter Falkner. 12 Sep. 2011. Email Interview. |
|
In-Text Citation |
(Mills) |
Interview in-text Citation Rules
The general MLA format for an interview is to include the last name of the person that is being interviewed with the page or range of pages. For an example of the interviews citing in MLA:
(Andersen 119)
(King 12-13)
FAQ
How to place an interview in a paper MLA?
Depending on the type of the interview, provide the last name of the person with the title of the interview and all relevant information for the source. The in-text citing of an interview in MLA will require the last name of the person interviewed with the page number (if relevant).
How to cite someone you have interviewed MLA style?
Learning how to cite a personal interview MLA style, you must include the last name and the first name of the person you have interviewed followed by the "Conducted by" phrase where your name follows. Then include the date when the interview has been taken.
