Social media posts follow the same basic rules as any other cited source. In cases where the poster's display name is different from their handle, include their handle in square brackets. For the location use the URL of the post, which can typically be found by pressing "Share" and then "Copy link" (see Fig. 1). You will have to make a decision about using the post in its entirety as the title, or supplying a description. For shorter form platforms, such as Twitter, you can quote the entire post, while for longer form platforms and platforms that are primarily visual, a description makes more sense.
Fig 1
| In-text citation | (Doe). |
| Works cited | Doe, Jane. Post outlining the various reasons the poster is deleting their Facebook account. Facebook, 31 Mar. 2022, facebook.com/janedoe/5416549615. |
| Note: If the social media platform allows for longer form posts describe the post. See the Twitter example for citing platforms that are shorter form. | |
| In-text citation | (Chin). |
| Works cited | Chin, Jimmy. Photo of Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson climbing the Dawn Wall. Instagram, 29 Mar. 2022, instagram.com/p/CbsZ7s9Lp_E. |
| Note: Since Jimmy Chin's Instagram handle is the same as his display name, adding his Instagram handle is not necessary (pg. 188/5.16). See the Twitter example for a poster with a display name different from their handle. If using an image from Instagram in the body of your work, see the guidelines for images. | |
| In-text citation | (Wynn). |
| Works cited | Wynn, Natalie [@ContraPoints]. "Couldn't be more flattered." Twitter, 31 Mar. 2022, twitter.com/ContraPoints/status/1509646456394764296. |
| Note: Because Natalie Wynn's Twitter handle is different than her display name, include her Twitter handle in the citation in square brackets (pg. 118/5.16). | |
