Guide overview
This post describes how to cite an interview using both MLA style and APA style. We will look at both citing inside the text (text citation) as well as citing in the list of references. It is important to note that there are different types of source types which require you to cite in very specific ways (formal citation).
APA Style [6th edition]
According to the APA, “an interview is not considered recoverable data, so no reference to this is provided in the reference list. You may, however, cite the interview within the text as personal communication.” This applies to an interview you conducted by yourself. For instance, if you interview an economics professor about his work in macroeconomics then such an interview is not recoverable since it is not published on any medium [print or online] that others can access.
Interview citation example
| Format for in-text citation | Parenthetical: (Initial of Author’s first name, Last Name, personal communication, Month Day, Year) Narrative: Initial of Author’s first name, Last Name, (personal communication, Month Day, Year) |
| Examples | Parenthetical: (B. Wolf, personal communication, January 19, 2021) Narrative: B. Wolf (personal communication, January 19, 2021) |
One way to make the interview recoverable is to publish it on a blog in which case the interview can then be cited using the reference format for a “Blog post” as found in the APA Publication Manual.
Finally, if the interview was conducted by someone else, you should pick the reference format appropriate for the source. If you read the interview in a magazine, for example, then follow the format for “Magazine article” as provided in the Manual.
MLA [8th edition]
In the MLA format, interviews are mainly grouped under two categories: published [print or broadcast] and unpublished [personal] interviews. However, they may also be cited in other formats, for example, e-mail or web document format.
Personal interviews
| Reference list format | Last Name of Interviewee, First Name. Type of interview (Personal Interview, Email Interview, Phone Interview, Skype Interview, etc.). Conducted by First Name of Interviewer Last Name. Day Month, Year. |
| Example | Wolf, Bob. Email interview. Conducted by Joy Forsyth. 21 August, 2019. |
| Format for in-text citation | (Interviewee Last Name) |
| Example | (Wolf) |
A personal interview that occurred in more than one day
| Reference list format | Last Name of Interviewee, First Name. Type of interview. Conducted by Last Name of interviewer First Name. Range of Days Month, Year. |
| Example | Wolf, Bob. Email interview. Conducted by Joy Forsyth, 21-22 Aug. 2019. |
| Format for in-text citation | (Interviewee Last Name) |
| Example | (Wolf) |
In the above reference list example, the date range is consecutive [i.e., 21-22]. However, there may be cases where the dates are not consecutive. Such cases should be treated as series as shown below.
| Wolf, Bob. Email Interview. Conducted by Joy Forsyth, 21 and 24 Aug. 2019. |
| Wolf, Bob. Email Interview. Conducted by Joy Forsyth, 21, 22, and 24 Aug. 2019. |
Newspaper interview
For an interview published in an online magazine, newspaper, blog, etc, include the title of the interview, name of the publication, the date posted, and the URL, among others.
| Reference list format | Last Name of the interviewer, First Name. “Interview Title.” Interview conducted by First Name of the interviewee. Medium, Page number [if necessary], Day Month, Year. URL |
| Reference list example | Lewis, Victor. “A New World Order.” Interview conducted by Alice Rogers. The New Yorker, p. 21, 11 January 2021. www.newyorker.com/news/A New-world-order. |
| In-text citation format | Parenthetical: (Last Name) Narrative: Last Name |
| In-text citation examples | Parenthetical: (Lewis) Narrative: George: Lewis |
Chicago [17th edition]
Notes and bibliography
Unpublished interview
According to the Chicago Manual, it is most appropriate to cite unpublished interviews in-text or in notes albeit they can sometimes have bibliography entries. For citations, be sure to include both the names of the interviewee and the interviewer, brief identifying information [optional], the place or date of the interview [or both, if available] a transcript [if available], and where it can be located.
| Notes format | First Name of Interviewee Last Name, interview by First Name of the Interviewer, Last Name, Place of interview [if available] Month Day, Year, Interview number, transcript, where transcript can be located. |
| Notes example | Clementine Hunter, interview by Ryan Peter, August 9, 2019, interview 71C, transcript, Cambridge University Library. |
| Shortened note format | Last name of the interviewee, interview |
| Shortened note example | Hunter, interview |
Published or broadcast interviews
Cite interviews published in a print medium the way periodicals or book chapters are cited. For interviews on broadcast media such as radio, television, etc, the following format should be used:
| Notes Format | First Name of Interviewee, Last Name, Title of Broadcast Program, interview by First Name of the Interviewer, Last Name, Publisher, Month Day, Year. |
| Notes Example | John Carter, “Focus on Industry,” interview by Haleem Jabir, Prime Television Network, November 19, 2021. . |
| Shortened note format | Last name of the interviewee, interview |
| Shortened note example | Carter, interview |
| Bibliography format | Last Name of interviewee First Name. Title of Broadcast Program, interview by First Name of interviewer Last Name. Publisher, Month Day, Year. |
| Bibliography example | Carter John, “Focus on Industry,” interview by Aisha Jabir, Prime Television Network, November 19, 2021. |
Personal communication
It is usually standard practice to cite personal communications in-text or using a note. It is not necessary to include the e-mail address or other contact information that may have facilitated the communication unless it is a necessity. Be sure to obtain permission from the interviewee before using such information.
| Notes format | First Name of the interviewee Last Name, email message to author, Month Day, Year. |
| Notes example | Paul Valentine, email message to the author, December 15, 2017. |
| Shortened note format | Last Name of the interviewee, interview |
| Shortened note example | Valentine, interview |
Note that the author is the same as you the interviewer.
Harvard [In Cite them Right 10th edition]
Personal interview
| Reference list format | Last Name of interviewee, Initials. (Year of Interview) ‘Title of Interview (if any)’ Interviewed by First Name of interviewer Last Name [Medium] Day Month. |
| Reference list example | Bradley, P. (2019). ‘Working from home’ Interviewed by Lou Zhen [Skype] 19 October |
| In-text citation format | Parenthetical: Last Name of the interviewee (Year) Narrative: Last Name of the interviewee (Year) |
| In-text citation example | Parenthetical: (Bradley 2019) Narrative: Bradley (2019) |
Newspaper interviews
| Reference list format | Last Name of the interviewee, Initials. (Year of interview). ‘Title of interview [if any].’ Interviewed by Interviewer’s First Name Last Name. Title of publication Day Month, page number. |
| Reference list example | Blake, Austin. (2021) ‘Personal hygiene tips.’ Interviewed by Susan Joseph, Daily News, 24 September, p. 7. |
| In-text citation format | Parenthetical: (Last Name of the interviewee, Year). Narrative: Last Name of the interviewee (Year) |
| In-text citation examples | Parenthetical: (Blake, 2021). Narrative: Blake (2021) |