PIG - Public Policy: Citing Political Cartoons

Best Sources (include what you need to cite):

• Cartoon Licensing Sites:
  • Cagle.com
  • PoliticalCartoons.com
  • Cartoon Movement (International perspectives)
• To search WITHIN these domains, Use Google:
  • site:cagle.com your keywords
  • site:politicalcartoons.com your keywords
• News Sites:
  • Cartoons | The Week
  • Political Cartoons | US News Opinion
• Our Databases (esp. Opposing Viewpoints)

Acceptable Sources (via Google/Bing image search):

• Artist's Home Page
• Original Newspaper/News Site

DO NOT USE:

• Social Media (Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, etc.)
• CartoonStock.com (cartoons are watermarked and poor quality)

BASIC MODEL FOR CARTOON CITATION:

Cartoonist’s last name, First name. “Title of Cartoon.” Cartoon. Title of Newspaper in Italics, publication date, Location URL. 

EXAMPLES:

Cartoon from Cagle.com:

• Cole, John. “Drone Missile on Mars.” Cartoon. Cagle, 25 April, 2021, cagle.com/john-cole/2021/04/drone-missile-on-mars.

Cartoon from PoliticalCartoons.com:

• Koterba, Jeff. “Needing a Bridge for Infrastructure.” Cartoon. PoliticalCartoons, 26 April, 2021, politicalcartoons.com/sku/250968.

Cartoon from legitimate news source:

• Telnaes, Ann. "Madam Vice President." Cartoon. The Washington Post, 7 November 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/11/07/madam-vice-president/.

What if I can't find the original source?

1. Try doing a reverse google image search.  In Google, click the small camera icon in the search bar and upload the image or URL (upload works better).
2. Try googling the artist/newspaper/date info from the cartoon itself.  Original newspaper/news site is best; artist site is also good.

What if there is no clear cartoon title?

• Do your best to come up with a title based on the text in the cartoon.

What if there is no cartoon artist?

• Use the title of the cartoon.  Your goal is for the reader to be able to locate the same cartoon in the same source that you used.