Sample Bibliography

Issue:There were active discontents in each North African nation involved in the Arab Spring. They used Social Networking to organize events that led to successful revolutions against many governments in North Africa.

Position:The availability of Social Networking was a requirement for turning the North African discontent into a rapid spread of revolution in North Africa.

Arguments for my position:

  • Social Networking was available under the government's radar
  • Political organizers used social networking to gain support their message
  • Political organizers would not have been able to coordinate events quickly without it

Arguments against my position:

  • The discontent and economic inequity was the driving force instead
  • Social networking is just a tool the political organizers used because it could communicate a message, just as pamphlets did in the past

Works cited

Aras, B., & Falk, R. (2016). Five years after the Arab Spring: a critical evaluation. Third World Quarterly, 37(12), 2252-2258. doi:10.1080/01436597.2016.1224087

  • Database or web link: Academic Search Complete database
  • Type of Source: scholarly
  • Is it peer reviewed, refereed or a legal review? Yes
  • Are there citations inside the article? Yes
  • Bias evaluation: peer reviewed so assume no bias

Asongu, S., & Nwachukwu, J. (2016). Revolution empirics: predicting the Arab Spring. Empirical Economics, 51(2), 439-482. doi:10.1007/s00181-015-1013-0

  • Database or web link: Academic Search Complete database
  • Type of Source: scholarly
  • Is it peer reviewed, refereed or a legal review? Yes
  • Are there citations inside the article? Yes
  • Bias evaluation: peer reviewed so assume no bias

Steinert-Threlkeld, Z. C. (2017). Spontaneous Collective Action: Peripheral Mobilization During the Arab Spring. American Political Science Review, 111(2), 379-403. doi:10.1017/S0003055416000769

  • Database or web link: Academic Search Complete database
  • Type of Source: scholarly
  • Is it peer reviewed, refereed or a legal review? Yes
  • Are there citations inside the article? Yes
  • Bias evaluation: peer reviewed so assume no bias

Rosen, Rebecca J. (2011, Sept 3). So, was facebook responsible for the Arab Spring after all?” The Atlantic, 3 Sept. 2011 retrieved from

  • Database or web link: See above
  • Type of Source: popular
  • Is it peer reviewed, refereed or a legal review? No
  • Are there citations inside the article? no
  • Bias evaluation: not sensational but very shallow information level. Written by senior editor.

Howley, P. (2016, September 23). Hillary Clinton sponsored secretive Arab Spring program that destabilized Middle East. Brietbart News. Retrieved September 23, 2017, from

  • Database or web link: See above
  • Type of Source: popular
  • Is it peer reviewed, refereed or a legal review? No
  • Are there citations inside the article? no
  • Bias evaluation: sensational, quotes source material with no citations, written by a Brietbart news reporter.