University of Wisconsin–Madison

General Audience Resources

General audience resources can offer valuable information about industries, social and economic trends, news and current events, consumer trends, and current health fads.

When using the resources on this page, continue to evaluate credibility and relevance for your specific audience. A resource can be viewed as credible in one situation but questionable in another. Additionally, many of these resources contain content marketing, which should never be used, and opinion pieces, which are often unreliable. Finally, the quality of publications can change without notice. No matter where you learn about an information resource, always evaluate it carefully.

Hyperlink Information

Hyperlinks lead either to the source’s homepage (if it’s not paywalled) or to the library database (if the UW has paid for access).

If any links are broken, let us know. However, remember that you can always perform a journal search on the library’s home page to find specific publications.


Major Newspapers

Traditional newspapers have a history of fact-checking and editorial standards, which makes them a good place to start when learning about news and current events, lifestyle trends, entertainment, arts, sports, and other topics.

National Papers of Record

The university provides a free digital subscription to The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal so that you can access them directly instead of through the library website. Use your Wiscmail to log in.


Alternative Resources – News & Current Events

The following resources, while not traditional newspapers or magazines, provide award-winning journalism:


Popular Magazines

Magazines tend to focus on specific topics. Click the headings for magazines for each topic.

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*Forbes should be accessed through the library database. Please note the following: Forbes Council: Articles authored by any of the Forbes Councils are content marketing for professionals who pay a fee to publish in Forbes.

Forbes Advisor: This publication does not meet journalistic editorial standards for accuracy. For more information about identifying credible sources, see the Understanding Types of Resources page.


Research & Datasets on Social & Economic Trends

Although some of the following information sources are free, most cost a lot of money to access, but the library provides them to you while you’re a student.

More information

This guide details strategies for effective workplace communication and approaches for research in professional settings.