Definition/Description Challenges

⮚Definition

According to CONSER, newspapers are distinguishable from other serial publications in that they (1) contain news on current events of special or general interests, (2) are typically issued daily or weekly, (3) appear with a masthead rather than a cover, and (4) are usually 12x17 inches in size.

 Although rare, there are newspaper publications that are issued monthly, are smaller in size, and may even contain a cover (19^th-century newspapers). For this reason, when deciding whether to treat a serial as a newspaper, CONSER instructs the cataloger to treat the serial as a periodical and not as a newspaper if neither of the following is discernible.

All general interest newspapers mainly report events within 24 hours before going to the press.

Non-daily general-interest newspapers (local and neighborhood newspapers) provide news covering a more extended period of time and, due to their local origin, serve their readers as a primary source of general information.

Newspapers that contain current news of special interest, in addition to general information, aimed at clearly identifiable groups. Some everyday notable interest newspapers include those directed at ethnic or racial groups, labor unions, the farming community, religious groups, and political groups.

 According to CONSER, the following publications should not be treated as newspapers:

 Newsletter publications in newspaper format intended to report only news of a particular organization or institution or that are specifically limited to coverage of a business, industry, craft, market, etc . 

 Shoppers and other publications issued primarily for advertising purposes.

⮚Description Challenges

Newspapers present unique challenges to the cataloger because of their nature and manner of issuance.

For one, newspapers are subject to frequent title changes, not infrequently reverting back to their original or a previous title proper. If the title change lasts for less than one year and reverts to the original or preceding title, CONSER instructs the cataloger not to consider the change major but to record it as a variant title in MARC field 246 with an explanation provided in subfield i. A 500 note may also be used. (CCM: 33.6.1)

Two, numeric designators are frequently unreliable or subject to being dropped or changing.

Third, a newspaper title or resource is sometimes issued in multiple editions. The most common of these are editions related to frequency (Weekly edition), chronological editions (e.g., Sunday edition), and geographic editions, usually regional or local (e.g., City edition). Only in geographic editions does CONSER require the cataloger to create separate records for each edition, but only if the edition statement is prominent on the masthead or publisher’s statement. (CCM: 33.7.2)  In all other cases or types of editions, the various editions are recorded in the Other Edition Entry Field (field 775). A Linking Entry Complexity Note (field 580) may also be added to clarify the relationship or replace multiple 775 fields. MARC field 250 is used to record the edition statement for the first issue of the newspaper or the earliest issue held.

Fourth, newspapers are often issued in multiple formats or as reproductions, requiring separate records and additional descriptive elements.