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Citation for a Presentation: Home

Crediting your Sources: Best Practices

While the MLA style offers no specific rules for citation in presentations such as Powerpoints, there are definitely best practices to follow.  Here is a quick-reference list of recommendations compiled from library websites and Purdue's Online Writing Lab (OWL):

  • Just as in a research paper, all sources for ideas, quotes, data, and images should be cited--otherwise you run the risk of plagiarism. Your "References" slide should include all works consulted in creating the presentation, even if you haven't referenced them in-text.
  • In-text citations must have a corresponding full citation of the source on the "References" slide at the end of your presentation
  • In the case of an image, if you include a full citation in a caption adjacent to the image, you do not need to include the source on your "References" slide, unless you reference the image again on a second slide within the presentation.

In Text Citation

When you are quoting or paraphrasing on a Powerpoint slide, use an in-text citation just as you would in a research paper.  Here are two examples of in-text citation; in the second example, you don't need to indicate the author's name in parenthesis because you have used their name within the text:

In the American Empire style, "decorative motifs are assertive and overtly classical" (Gura 174).

Gura characterizes the American Empire style as having "decorative motifs [that] are assertive and overtly classical" (174).

 

You should always include a full citation of the source work in your bibliography in addition to the in-text citation! 

Images, Graphs, and Content Within the Presentation

When you use a graph or image in your presentation, you should always include a caption next to it with the crediting information.  

  • If you use a full citation and the image is only referenced on that one slide, you don't need to include the citation on your "References" or "Works Cited" slide (example #1 below) 
  • If the citation is abbreviated in your presentation, then it should be included in the final "References" (example #2 below)

                 

Rante/Greenpeace. "26 March 2013, PT Berkat                   http://www.mongabay.com                         Citra Abadi". A Deadly Trade-Off IOI Report.                                                                                               Amsterdam:Greenpeace International,                                                                                         Sept 2016. p 37.  www.greenpeace.org. Web.                                                                                           28 Nov 2016.

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References / Works Cited for this LibGuide

This is a "Works Cited" or "References" list, an example of what you should include as the last slide in your presentation:

America., Modern Language Association of. MLA Handbook. New York: n.p., 2016. 146. Print.

Butler, Rhett A. "Deforestation accelerates in Indonesia, finds Google forest map." Mongabay.com, 14 Nov. 2013. Web. 28 Nov. 2016.

Gura, Judith. The Abrams Guide to Period Styles for Interiors. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 2005. Print.

McDaniel, Erin. "How do I cite in a Powerpoint? How do I cite a picture?" Asklibrary.com.edu. COM Library, 13 May 2015. Web. 28 Nov. 2016.

"The Purdue OWL Family of Sites." The Writing Lab and OWL at Purdue and Purdue U, 2008, Owl.english.purdue.edu/owl. Web. 28 Nov. 2016.