When seeking background information on a proper name of a company or other organization, or for a government agency or a person or a named theory in public relations - a distinct advantage of Summon, and most of the recommended article databases, is the ability to sort results in ascending or descending chronological order.
A three minute video screencast with starting point tips on searching SUMMON (the general search engine for SU Libraries collections). Expand the video player to full screen size for the best viewing experience.
Librarian search tip: For optimal control across the widest range of possible search results when seeking more than just a very few sources, be sure to click into "summon" from the blue search box at the top level of the library's homepage. From Summon's homepage, if seeing only a single search query window, click "options" to reveal a wider range of search result refinement features.
For additional excellent research starting point advice about companies and other non-profit organizations, consider this link to the business librarian's recommendations for conducting company research (some recommendations here are also suggested within the box below entitled market & industry research)
Keep in mind your research starting point may vary if you are gathering background information for an organization that is not a for profit company. Starting points also may vary if a company being explored is a small business
Almost all researchers can find coverage of an organization within one or more SU Libraries News & Newspaper databases, or also using Summon
Leading news databases with a focus on national and international coverage include
Nexis Uni
ProQuest News & Newspapers
Access World News
*Access World News also has excellent coverage for Syracuse and many local and regional U.S. news sources
PressReader
Those students with a focus local to the city of Syracuse region, can consider
Syracuse News Sources
*is a subpart of Access World News database, covering the mid 1980s and forward
Those students looking for other local news sources specific to NY State, can consider one or both of these news databases
NewspaperArchive.com
New York State Newspapers (Gale)
NewspaperArchive contains Syracuse and other NY State newspaper sources, including pre-1980s, some titles reach back into the 18th Century
In addition to powerful market research databases like Mintel and MarketResearch.com Academic, SU Libraries also makes available various electronic book titles from publisher Richard K. Miller & Associates. These offer extensive market research reports on subjects that include:
Those researching the overall landscape of an industry or industry sector, may benefit from review of one or more these various business oriented resources and publications. The focus of these databases is NOT limited to public relations, but rather is on learning more about specific industries and markets within which a PR professional might be active: