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Guide to Tracking Biographical Info |
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FIRST STEPS: Accurate Information and Efficient Strategies Your assignment is to find as much accurate, relevant and current information on selected individuals as you can in a limited amount of time. You can be certain of two things: either you will find useful information efficiently or you will not. You will find too much information or too little. Your success will depend, to a certain extent, upon the quality of your search strategies. The other part is finding the best reference sources. The purpose of this GUIDE is to improve your search strategies and expand your knowledge of reliable biographical reference materials. Face one important reality: not every person you are searching for has a complete, current, and conveniently accessible biographical history. That fact doesn't mean that you will not be able to find bits and pieces of an individual's "paper trail" or his/her "electronic clone." It usually means that your search will take longer and probably will be incomplete. At that point, you may have to develop a strategy of interviewing people (neighbors, colleagues, relatives) who can help you flesh out your meager information. There are special challenges and problems with this kind of "ask the neighbor" research, but as long as you are aware of the difficulties (questionable accuracy, fuzzy facts, and special interests) you can cope. When you are given a name to check out, get as much data as you can. Ask about the person's current (and previous!) profession(s), approximate age, hometown and any other data nuggets you can extract. You may not be able to get any more than just the individual's name, but try anyway. NEXT STEPS: Traps and Shortcomings A big hurdle to overcome is the relative commonality of many names. Too often you will discover more than one person with the same name. The other relevant data you get on an individual will help you make intelligent choices. People switch jobs, shed spouses, alter their appearance and even speak untruths. In addition, recognize the possibility that the information published (even in so-called reliable sources) may be not only incomplete, but out-of-date and perhaps inaccurate as well. The old saw, "Measure twice; cut once," is worth keeping in mind. Ergo, check your information with more than one source. Dealing with conflicting information is part of research. Get as much as you can and be prepared to sort it out, carefully, later as you collect more data. Be advised that searching for biographical information is rarely "one-stop shopping." Don't neglect to note where you got the biographical information. More than one reporter has had to backtrack to the reference in order to convince an editor that the data can be verified!
MORE STEPS: Searching the Basic Printed Reference Sources There are several places to begin a search for biographical information on prominent people. Most public and academic libraries offer the following:
If you are fortunate to be affiliated with an organization that has an in-house library or a reference/research center, you can solicit help from these information professionals. These researchers typically have access to dozens of online databases (available at a price) which can search and retrieve selected vital information on individuals. Even so, much valuable biographical material is not available online. Searchers must rely upon standard printed reference materials. These tools can be found in almost every public, academic and corporate library. However, I emphasize NO REFERENCE SOURCE HAS EVERY INDIVIDUAL. NOR DO THEY HAVE EVERYTHING ABOUT EVERY INDIVIDUAL LISTED. Those listed below are generally brief, occasionally incorrect and admittedly biased. They are located near the reference desks in Davis and House libraries. The reference area of Davis Library was completely reorganized late this summer, so check with the reference staff on duty about where particular material can be located. FINALLY: Direct Hits
Other biographical sources located near the reference desks at the UNC-CH libraries include:
Knowing WHERE a person has spent most of his/her's professional life can be a useful lead. Biographical material on prominent people in North Carolina can be found in the North Carolina Collection in UNC-CH's Wilson Library. There you can find all editions of the North Carolina Manual which provides biographical sketches of elected and appointed government officials. Web and Database Biographical Sources "What is Credible Information?"
InfoTrack Web (via UNC Electronic Resources) Google Search http://www.google.com (Note: use the Advanced Search option) Librarians Internet Index (LII) for biographies
Barbara Semonche, Director, The Park Library, 2006 |
| Copyright 2003 - The Park Library - School of Journalism and Mass Communication - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |