Why Newspaper Sources Appear in Academic Theses
Malaysian postgraduate students sometimes feel uncertain about whether newspaper articles and online news sources belong in an academic thesis at all. The answer depends on how they are used. News sources are not appropriate as primary evidence for academic claims that should be supported by peer-reviewed research. But they serve a legitimate purpose in other contexts: establishing background context, documenting public discourse around a policy issue, illustrating real-world relevance of a research topic, or citing statements made by government officials or public figures.
If you are studying public policy in Malaysia, for example, statements from The Star, New Straits Times, Bernama, or Astro Awani about a particular policy may be entirely appropriate sources. If you are establishing the scale of a social issue in your introduction, citing a credible news report gives your reader a sense of real-world context. The key is that you understand what news sources can and cannot support, and that you cite them correctly according to the style guide your university requires.
The APA 7th Edition Format for Print Newspaper Articles
Most Malaysian public universities follow APA 7th edition. For a print newspaper article, the APA 7th reference format is: Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of article. Newspaper Name, page number(s).
For example: Zulkifli, A. R. (2024, March 15). Government expands postgraduate scholarship allocation. New Straits Times, p. A3.
A few details are worth noting. The article title is written in sentence case, just like journal article titles in APA — only the first word and proper nouns are capitalised. The newspaper name is italicised. The date is written in full, including month and day, not just the year. The page number uses “p.” for a single page and “pp.” for multiple pages.
Citing Online News Articles in APA 7th
Online news sources are more common in Malaysian theses than print citations, given how most students access current affairs. For an online newspaper or news website article, the APA 7th format is: Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of article. Newspaper or News Site Name. URL
For example: Lim, S. H. (2025, January 8). Rise in international student enrolment at Malaysian universities. The Star. https://www.thestar.com.my/education/2025/01/08/rise-in-international-student-enrolment
Note that there is no retrieval date for online news sources in APA 7th, unless the content is designed to change over time (like a wiki). For a standard news article, the publication date is sufficient. Do not add “Retrieved from” before the URL — this phrasing was used in APA 6th but was dropped in the 7th edition.
What to Do When There Is No Author Listed
Unsigned news articles — which appear frequently in Malaysian news sources, especially wire service reports from Bernama — present a citation challenge. When citing newspaper articles in your Malaysian thesis and no author is identified, APA 7th instructs you to move the article title to the author position in your reference list.
Reference list: New postgraduate research grant guidelines released. (2024, November 22). Bernama. https://www.bernama.com/en/general/…
In-text, you then cite using the first few words of the title in quotation marks: (“New postgraduate research grant guidelines,” 2024). Keep the in-text shortened title recognisable enough that a reader can match it to the reference list entry.
Using Malay-Language News Sources in an English Thesis
Some Malaysian research topics require citing Bahasa Malaysia news sources — Utusan Malaysia, Harian Metro, Berita Harian, or online portals like Malaysiakini (BM version). When citing these in an English-language thesis, follow the same APA format but include the article title as it appears in the original language. You do not need to translate the title in the reference list, though you may add a translation in brackets after the original title for the benefit of international examiners who may be reviewing your work.
For example: Ismail, N. H. (2024, April 3). Pelajar pascasiswazah terus meningkat di IPTA [Postgraduate student numbers continue rising at public universities]. Berita Harian. https://www.bharian.com.my/…
The bracketed English translation after the title is a courtesy to non-Malay-reading examiners and is consistent with APA 7th’s guidance for non-English sources. This is particularly important if your thesis has been assigned an international external examiner.
In-Text Citation Format for News Sources
In-text citations for newspaper articles follow the same format as other APA citations: (Author Surname, Year). For an article with a named author, this is straightforward. (Zulkifli, 2024) or Zulkifli (2024) found that… The challenge with news sources in Malaysian theses is that students sometimes cite them far too informally — writing “according to The Star” without any year or author, or “as reported in Bernama” without a full reference. This is not APA-compliant and will be flagged during proofreading or by examiners.
Treat news sources with the same citation rigour as any other source. Include a full reference list entry. Use the correct in-text format. And make sure the URL in your reference list leads to the actual article, not just the newspaper’s homepage, since articles are permanently archived at their original URLs.
