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Frequently Asked Questions

Questions about CQ Researcher

What is CQ Researcher?
How is a CQ Researcher report created?
How is CQ Researcher structured?
Are CQ Researcher reports peer-reviewed?
Are CQ Researcher reports fact-checked?
When are CQ Researcher reports published?
What is the CQ Researcher Archive?
Why can't I see content from the Archive?
What are the Editorial Research Reports?
How are the Editorial Research Reports reports different from the reports being published today?
What was CQ Global Researcher?
Does CQ Researcher offer alumni access?

Questions about CQ Researcher site features

How do I find what I am looking for on CQ Researcher?
How do I cite CQ Researcher?
How do I print CQ Researcher articles?
How do email or share CQ Researcher articles?
How do I stay current on CQ Researcher reports?
Why should I set up a user profile?
How do I leave comments on a report?
Where can I find a user guide or sample assignments?

Contact Us

If you are not a subscriber and would like to purchase an individual report, please email onlinesupport@sagepub.co.uk or call 800-818-7243.

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For all other questions not addressed in this FAQ-
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Questions about CQ Researcher

What is CQ Researcher?

CQ Researcher is the choice of researchers seeking original, comprehensive reporting and analysis on issues in the news. Published online 44 times a year, CQ Researcher offers in-depth, unbiased coverage of political and social issues, with regular reports on a wide range of topics including: health, international affairs, education, the environment, technology, the U.S. economy, crime, and civil liberties. Each 12,000-word CQ Researcher report is a unique work, investigated and written by a seasoned journalist, professionally fact-checked, and footnoted to facilitate further research.

A feature called Hot Topics provides shorter reports on 20 of the most popular subjects. CQ Researcher's Archive goes back to 1923 and includes reports from its predecessor publication, Editorial Research Reports.

How is a CQ Researcher report created?

CQ Researcher's editors identify a topic to be investigated, then one of the experienced journalists conceives the report's broad outlines, formulating the key questions the report will seek to answer; reads background material; interviews a range of sources; synthesizes available information; and writes the report. The average time to complete a report is five weeks.

How is CQ Researcher structured?

Each CQ Researcher report is based on a common structure.

The opening section, or "Overview" ("The Issues" in the PDF version), introduces the subject under consideration and poses one or more questions such as, "Should minors who commit adult crimes be tried as adults?" or "Is a liberal arts education the best way to prepare for the workplace?" The report then offers a "Background" section, which provides a history of the topic, including pertinent policy and legal decisions.

Under the heading "Current Situation," the report provides a snapshot of the issue at the time of publication, and, in "Outlook," the report offers a projection of what the future may bring. The "Pro/Con" ("At Issue") section brings together statements from representatives of opposing positions on the topic. To offer perspectives, the report includes sidebars on other dimensions of the subject. The "Chronology" section offers a list of key events in the issue's history, and graphics and data also help illuminate the topic.

To achieve a well-rounded perspective, the report's writer quotes a range of sources, including lawmakers, academics, interest group representatives, government officials as well as citizens involved in the issue. The report concludes with a "Bibliography," containing an annotated list of key sources, and "Next Step," an additional bibliography providing sources related to particular questions considered in the report. "Contacts" are also provided.

Are CQ Researcher reports peer-reviewed?

No. They are written by experienced journalists and are thoroughly footnoted and sourced to experts to ensure the quality and accuracy of the information. Check the Footnotes section within each report.

Are CQ Researcher reports fact-checked?

Yes. The writer of each report interviews experts and reads authoritative background material to ensure that facts and conclusions are accurate. You can check the Bibliography section within each report. Each report undergoes rigorous editing by at least two veteran editors. After that, facts, names, dates, footnotes and other information are verified by a professional fact-checker and by the editor for further corrections before publication.

When are CQ Researcher reports published?

CQ Researcher is published online 44 times a year.

What is the CQ Researcher Archive?

The CQ Researcher Archive is a premium product that combines the CQ Researcher reports with an archive of more than 3,000 Editorial Research Reports.

Why can't I see content from the Archive?

Content from the Archive can only be accessed if your institution has added this enhancement to its CQ Researcher subscription. You can check if your institution subscribes to the Archive by looking for the year range displayed in the page header. Editorial Research Reports date back to 1923.

What are the Editorial Research Reports?

Editorial Research Reports is the predecessor of CQ Researcher. It published single-subject reports on current events from 1923 through 1990 in a format similar to that of today's CQ Researcher. In 1991, the publication's name was changed to CQ Researcher, and today all of those older reports are available on the CQ Researcher site comprising the CQ Researcher Archive.

How are the Editorial Research Reports different from the reports being published today?

The reports in the Archive draw on content from other time periods, and so in some cases they use nomenclature or terminology that could be considered out-dated and even offensive by today's standards. However, in order to preserve the primary-source nature of these reports, and truly reflect the historical times in which they were written, CQ Researcher decided to leave these older reports in their original form.

It is also important to note that since the original language is preserved in Archive reports, there may be instances when you will need to redefine your search terms if you're not finding what you're looking for.

Another difference between CQ Researcher reports and Archive content is that sections such as Pro/Con, Overview, Background, Current Situation, Outlook, and Next Step were not consistent parts of Editorial Research Reports' layout.

What was CQ Global Researcher?

CQ Global Researcher provided students with definitive, in-depth coverage of newsworthy global affairs. CQ Global Researcher was discontinued in November 2012, but nearly five years' worth of archived reports are now freely available on this site to all CQ Researcher customers.

Does CQ Researcher offer alumni access?

University alumni may have access to the content hosted on SAGE and CQ Press platforms through their university library, based on their university's current and active holdings. All alumni registered with subscribing or purchasing libraries will be able to access these resources, including more than 1,000 scholarly and professional journals at no extra fee. University libraries already support current students and scholars with access to online resources through both on-site and remote services. This license extends this offering to alumni via IP address, ATHENS, or SHIBBOLETH through the institution’s account. SAGE does not have the information or systems necessary to authenticate an individual as being an alumnus of a particular institution. Because of this, institutions will need to manage the authentication process and provide alumni with a route through the institutional IP network or with an ATHENS or SHIBBOLETH profile. Please contact your designated sales representative with any questions.



Questions about CQ Researcher site features

How do I find what I am looking for on CQ Researcher?

There are multiple ways to find CQ Researcher reports that are of interest to you. You may:

How do I cite CQ Researcher?

Citing articles has never been easier. Use the CiteNow feature (located at the top of the report) to cite to automatically generate citations in four common styles or to download to your preferred citation manager.  See How to Cite for more details.

How do I print CQ Researcher reports?

To print a report, you can select the Print-icon in the page header. On full report pages (not on Hot Topic report pages) you can select one of the options from the Print drop-down menu below the page header. From this menu, you can choose to print the full report or a specific section of the report. You may also choose the View PDF Icon and can open the PDF and print the report from your PDF viewer.

How do I email or share CQ Researcher reports?

To email a link to a full report, use the Email icon in the page header.

To email a specific section of a report, you can use the drop-down menu. From the menu, select the section that you would like to email and follow the instructions in the pop-up window.

In order to share a copy of a full CQ Researcher report, select the View PDF icon in the page header. First, save a copy of the report PDF to your computer, then share the PDF as an email attachment.

Why should I set up a user profile?

Feature Function
Your Profile By creating a personal profile, you can save searches, favorite documents, view your document history, and set topic alerts. Your account will remain until there is a 24 month period with no activity on this site. If you do not create a profile, this information will only be saved for the current session.
Document History Displays the last 1,000 documents you viewed on CQ Researcher.
Favorite Documents Enables you to save up to 1,000 documents for future reference. You can add a document to your favorites by clicking the appropriate box found in the document window or in search results. You can then select Favorite Documents to view all saved documents.
Saved Searches Enables you to save up to 25 searches for future reference. You can save a search from the search results page.

How do I stay current on CQ Researcher reports?

You can create a topic alert to receive an automatic email alert every time a new report is published on your chosen topic. You must create a user profile to use this feature.
Another way to keep current with CQ Researcher is to follow us on Twitter! Follow the managing editor, Ken Fireman, @kfireman1, or @cqresearcher, or keep up with SAGE via our various discipline-focused channels:

How do I leave comments on a CQ Researcher report?

Users can leave comments on a report by clicking on the "Comment on this Report" button. While you are required to include an email address, it will not be publicly posted. Although it is not mandatory for submission, any name and affiliation that you provide will be included with your comment. Your comment will be submitted to the CQ Researcher editorial staff who will review it and consider posting it to the website. CQ Press reserves the right to edit content for length and reject comments that are offensive or otherwise objectionable in nature.
Comment on this Report

To access reader's comments for past issues, either open that report and look for the "Reader Comments" section in the right-hand panel.

Where can I find a user guide or sample assignments?

For a detailed User Guide to help you through the resource, please click here (opens PDF).

To view a User Guide with sample searches, please click here (opens PDF).

To view sample assignments, please click here (opens PDF).

Viewing these documents requires a PDF reader, such as Adobe Acrobat Reader.

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