Sometimes you need to subscribe to these online periodicals, sometimes you do not. Sometimes these online periodicals offer internal search tools, sometimes they do not. The World Wide Web changes daily, so you'll have to investigate on your own whether Newsweek or latimes.com allows you access to articles on your topic.

Keep in mind that online periodical articles are NOT the same as Web sites. Granted, sometimes it's hard to tell the difference. However, in your search for articles on the Web, try to distinguish between an article (which usually has been published in a print periodical as well) and a Web site (which usually will never be published in print form). Also, an article is a focused, informed, and expertly written piece that has undergone some editing and review, whereas Web sites range more widely in their focus, informative quality, and credibility. (More on that in Phase 3.)

Remember Josephine, who was looking for articles related to her question: Should families of gang members tolerate the violent acts of gangs in their communities?

After pairing two of her search terms "gangs and communities," Josephine found 111 possibly relevant articles in the latimes.com archives. The number one hit was titled, "Troubled Street Refuses to Give In," from the February 9, 2001 Orange County Edition of the Los Angeles Times. After reading the first few lines of the article, Josephine was certain she had found another article for Assignment 2C:

"Chances are if you've ever heard of Minnie Street, it had to do with gang activity, a drug bust or some other crime. The burden of that reputation has fallen most heavily on the thousands of people who live in the overcrowded, somewhat run-down row of 48 apartment buildings that line its two blocks in southeast Santa Ana."