Answered By: Norma Drepaul
Last Updated: May 07, 2021     Views: 3397

If you are discussing the video in a general way and not focusing on an individual's contribution (such as a performer, producer, etc.), then start the citation with the title of the video in quotation marks (if the video is part of a series or part of something else), and follow title capitalization rules.  If the video is an independent work, as a film, then instead of quotations, italicize the title of the video.  Next, list the name of the container in italics as YouTube.  Add the name of the person or username who uploaded the video. Add the date when the video was uploaded, and the YouTube link.  If needed, add the date when you accessed the video.

Works Cited Citation Examples

 

Key:

"Title of the Video." YouTube, uploaded by uploader-name, date of upload, URL. Accessed date.

Examples:

"Game and Productivity." YouTube, uploaded by Big Think, 3 July 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkdzy9bW3E.

"Elaine Maye and Mike Nicholes Freeze Each Other Out." YouTube, uploaded by theatrecorner, 

        18 June 2008, www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DNoNj8JzX4.  Accessed 26 Apr. 2021.

Note* Normally, you would capitalize the first letter of the author's name and last name, or pronouns.  However, according to MLA style, they defer to the author's capitalization style.  In this example, the username from this YouTube video has listed their name in all lowercase.

Identify the Citation Elements from the YouTube Video

  1. title of the video
    • use quotation marks if the video is part of something like an episode, or part of a series
    • use italics if the video is an independent work, such as a complete film
    • follow title capitalization rules
  2. name of the container or the online platform in italics
  3. "uploaded by" followed by the name of the person or username who uploaded the video
  4. date of upload
  5. URL
  6. accessed date if applicable

Example with elements numbered:

number one"Elaine Maye and Mike Nicholes Freeze Each Other Out." number two YouTube, number three uploaded by theatrecorner, number four 18 June 2008, number five www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DNoNj8JzX4. number six Accessed 26 Apr. 2021.

In-Text Citation

When paraphrasing or quoting from a video in your essay, in the in-text citation, use the shortened version of the title of the video in quotes and add the relevant time range.  Give the numbers in hours, minutes, and seconds as displayed in the media player, use colons to separate the numbers.

Example of the video cited within the body of your essay:

 
Your sentence containing the paraphrase or "quotation" goes here followed by the in-text parenthetical citation in the body of your essay ("Elaine Maye" 0:06-1:01).
Time Range from Video Player
 
illustration identifying the location of the timestamp from the video player
 
For more details see:

 

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