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How to Cite Multimedia Sources in Chicago Style

Chicago cites a recording by what it is — a film, a television episode, a posted video, a podcast, or a sound recording — not by the app you opened this week. This guide follows the Chicago Manual of Style, 18th edition (2024), §§14.161–14.169, plus the live Notes-Bibliography and Author-Date Quick Guide "Video or podcast" samples opened on 15 September 2026. It is the Chicago audiovisual page. A tweet, TikTok, or Instagram clip belongs in citing social media in Chicago. A page of text belongs in citing websites in Chicago. A published interview you heard is worked here from the official Fresh Air sample; the fuller interview patterns live in citing interviews in Chicago.

By 30 min read

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Photo: Roman Kraft, Wikimedia Commons (CC0)
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How to Cite Multimedia in Chicago: Quick Answer

Use the Chicago system your assignment names. History, film studies, art history, and music history almost always want Notes-Bibliography: a numbered footnote or endnote plus a bibliography. Communication and some media-studies courses want Author-Date: a parenthetical citation and a reference list. Do not mix the two in one paper.

CMOS 18 templates

Notes-Bibliography first note:

First Name Last Name, "Title of Video," Platform, Month Day, Year, Duration, URL.

Notes-Bibliography shortened note:

Last Name, "Shortened Title," at Minutes:Seconds.

Notes-Bibliography bibliography:

Last Name, First Name. "Title of Video." Platform, Month Day, Year. Duration. URL.

Author-Date in-text:

(Last Name Year, at Minutes:Seconds)

Author-Date reference:

Last Name, First Name. Year. "Title of Video." Platform, Month Day. Duration. URL.

Those slot lines are a starting shape, not one punctuation template for every recording. CMOS 18 §14.161 lists the facts a multimedia citation usually needs, then tells you to arrange them by the kind of source:

Chicago Manual of Style, 18th ed., §14.161 (Douglas College reprint, last updated 22 April 2026)

Citations of multimedia content will vary depending on the type of source. The following elements are usually included:
  • The person or group or other entity responsible for creating or compiling the content
  • The title or description of the content
  • The name of the publisher or other entity responsible for making the content available
  • The date that the content was recorded or published
  • Information about the medium or format
  • For sources consulted online, a URL

Official CMOS 18 wording

CMOS 18 §14.165 (Douglas College reprint)

Like sound recordings, video and film recordings are cited according to the nature of the material (television show, movie, etc.). Any facts relevant to identifying the item should be included

CMOS 18 §14.163 (Douglas College reprint)

For digital recordings other than compact discs, a streaming service or file format may be noted if relevant but is not required

Citation Quick Guide, video or podcast (opened 15 September 2026)

Unless it is clear from context, “video” or the like may be specified in the bibliography.

Citation Quick Guide, books

Note that a place of publication is no longer required in book citations (see CMOS 14.30).

The six elements and the §14.165 / §14.163 sentences are reprinted by Douglas College's CMOS 18 audiovisual guide (last updated 22 April 2026). The last two sentences are on the University of Chicago Press Notes and Bibliography Quick Guide, still live on 15 September 2026. CMOS 18 §14.30 is why this page does not open a 2001 DVD line with "Burbank, CA." For one formatted film or podcast, see how to cite a movie in Chicago or how to cite a podcast in Chicago. This guide is the workflow around those pages: which system, who leads the entry, which date is the work, and where a timestamp goes.

Which Chicago page you actually need
What you openedUse this pageDo not start here
A film, TV episode, YouTube or TED video, podcast, album, speech recording, or live show you attendedThis multimedia guide (CMOS 14.161–14.169)A website or social-media template
A tweet, TikTok, Instagram Reel, or Facebook video postSocial media in Chicago (CMOS 14.106)This page — the file is a video, the source is a post
A webpage, blog post, or privacy policyWebsites in Chicago (CMOS 14.103–14.105)A YouTube or podcast line
A published interview you heard or readThe official Buolamwini sample below, then interviews in Chicago (CMOS 14.108–14.110)A personal-communication note
An unpublished email, text, or DM about a recordingPersonal communications (CMOS 14.111)The bibliography

These rows are decision rules, not citations. Every full example below is a live Quick Guide string, a CMOS Q&A note, a campus reprint of CMOS 18, or a clearly labelled template.

Do not invent a YouTube URL. If the video is gone, use a public Wayback snapshot or describe the recording in a note.

Official CMOS Quick Guide Samples

The 18th-edition Quick Guide's "Video or podcast" trio is still the classroom default on 15 September 2026. The same three sources appear in both documentation systems. The Notes-Bibliography lines below are the wording reprinted by the UTRGV Chicago notes guide from the official samples. Author-Date forms come from the University of Chicago Press Author-Date Quick Guide.

CMOS 18 Quick Guide, Notes-Bibliography (live 15 September 2026)

First note (TED Talk):

1. Vaitea Cowan, "How Green Hydrogen Could End the Fossil Fuel Era," TED Talk, Vancouver, BC, April 2022, 9 min., 15 sec., https://www.ted.com/talks/vaitea_cowan_how_green_hydrogen_could_end_the_fossil_fuel_era.

First note (YouTube lecture):

2. Eric Oliver, "Why So Many Americans Believe in So Many 'Crazy' Things," moderated by Andrew McCall, virtual lecture, February 23, 2022, posted March 21, 2022, by University of Chicago, YouTube, 1:01:45, https://youtu.be/hfq7AnCF5bg.

First note (podcast episode):

3. Lauren Ober, host, The Loudest Girl in the World, season 1, episode 2, "Goodbye, Routine; Hello, Meltdown!," Pushkin Industries, September 13, 2022, 41 min., 37 sec., https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/loudest-girl-in-the-world.

Shortened notes:

Cowan, "Green Hydrogen," at 6:09–17.

Oliver, "Why."

Ober, "Goodbye, Routine."

Bibliography:

Cowan, Vaitea. "How Green Hydrogen Could End the Fossil Fuel Era." TED Talk, Vancouver, BC, April 2022. Video, 9 min., 15 sec. https://www.ted.com/talks/vaitea_cowan_how_green_hydrogen_could_end_the_fossil_fuel_era.

Ober, Lauren, host. The Loudest Girl in the World. Season 1, episode 2, "Goodbye, Routine; Hello, Meltdown!" Pushkin Industries, September 13, 2022. Podcast, 41 min., 37 sec. https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/loudest-girl-in-the-world.

Oliver, Eric. "Why So Many Americans Believe in So Many 'Crazy' Things." Moderated by Andrew McCall. Virtual lecture, February 23, 2022. Posted March 21, 2022, by University of Chicago. YouTube, 1:01:45. https://youtu.be/hfq7AnCF5bg.

Three facts in those samples are easy to miss. The TED bibliography adds the word Video because the URL alone does not make the medium obvious. The YouTube lecture keeps both the February 23 event date and the March 21 posting date. The shortened Cowan note uses at before the timestamp: at 6:09–17. That at is part of the official sample, not decoration. The TED page still lists April 2022. The Oliver youtu.be short link still resolves. The Pushkin series page still lists season 1, episode 2, "Goodbye, Routine; Hello, Meltdown!" under 13 September 2022.

Notes-Bibliography or Author-Date?

Citation Quick Guide on the two systems

Notes and bibliography

The notes and bibliography system, Chicago's oldest and most flexible, can accommodate a wide variety of sources, including unusual ones that don't fit neatly into the author-date system. For this reason, it is preferred by many working in the humanities, including literature, history, and the arts.

Author-date

Because it credits researchers by name directly in the text while at the same time emphasizing the date of each source, the author-date system is preferred by many in the sciences and social sciences.

Students

Most authors choose the system used by others in their field or required by their publisher. Students should check with their instructor before deciding which system to use.

Notes-bibliography

  • Numbered footnotes or endnotes
  • First note is a full citation
  • Later notes use a shortened form
  • Bibliography at the end
  • Default in history and film studies
  • Best when you need a timestamp plus a comment

Author-date

  • Parenthetical citations: (Cowan 2022)
  • No comma after the name
  • Timestamp uses at: (Cowan 2022, at 6:09–17)
  • Reference list at the end
  • Common in communication research
  • Looks like APA; it is not APA

Chicago Author-Date is not APA 7. APA writes (Cowan, 2022); Chicago writes (Cowan 2022). APA uses a References list and sentence-case titles; Chicago Author-Date uses a reference list and headline-style titles. If you need the side-by-side contrast, use APA vs Chicago. If the course is actually MLA, stop here — this page will not teach MLA film punctuation. Student papers that say "Turabian" still often follow Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, 9th edition (2018), which tracks CMOS 17. As of September 2026 the live student book is still the ninth edition; Turabian 10 is announced, not yet the classroom handbook. If the syllabus says Turabian, see Turabian vs Chicago.

Who Counts as the Author?

CMOS does not force every film citation to begin with the director. Whom you list as the "author" depends on the sentence you are writing. A paper about Hitchcock's camera style starts with Hitchcock. A paper about Kind of Blue as a recording starts with Miles Davis. A paper about a Harper Lecture posted by the University of Chicago starts with the speaker. Oberlin's reprint of CMOS 18 §14.163 states the sound-recording version of that discretion:

CMOS 18 §14.163 (Oberlin reprint)

A citation may begin with a title in a note; in a bibliography entry, list by author, performer, or other primary contributor. If the conductor or performer is the focus of the recording or is more relevant to the discussion than the composer or songwriter, either one may be listed first. Include either the date of the recording or a publication date, or both. If a date cannot be determined from the recording (a common problem with older recordings and with music files downloaded out of context), consult a library catalog or other resource. If no date can be found, use “n.d.” (for no date). Recordings on LP or disc typically include acquisition numbers, which follow the name of the publisher with no intervening comma. For digital recordings other than compact discs, a streaming service or file format may be noted if relevant but is not required.
  • Films and documentaries. Use the director, marked dir. in a bibliography or Author-Date list when the name leads. In a note you can also write Title, directed by Name.
  • Television episodes. Credit the director, writer, or series creator when that person is the point; otherwise the episode title can lead.
  • YouTube. Credit the person or channel that posted the video. The official Oliver sample credits the lecturer, then names the University of Chicago as the poster.
  • Podcasts. Credit the host, as the Ober sample does with host after the name. Name guests in the prose when the sentence is about them.
  • Music. Credit the composer or the performer, depending on whether you are writing about the work or the recording.
  • Speeches. Credit the speaker, then say that you used an audio or video copy.

Italics, Quotation Marks, Dates, and Timestamps

Chicago treats a standalone recording the way it treats a book, and a named part the way it treats a chapter. Get this pair right and most multimedia citations look finished:

  • Italicize film titles, album titles, podcast series, and TV series: Rear Window, Kind of Blue, The Loudest Girl in the World, The Civil War.
  • Use quotation marks for episode titles, song titles, YouTube titles, TED titles, and speech titles: "The Cause," "So What," "How Green Hydrogen Could End the Fossil Fuel Era."
  • Give two dates when the original work and the copy you used are different objects: a 1954 film watched on a 2001 DVD, or a February lecture posted to YouTube in March.
  • Give one date when you streamed the work as a publication in its own right: a documentary issued on DVD in one year, a podcast posted on a single day.
  • Put a timestamp in the note or parenthesis, not in the bibliography. Running time identifies the file (9 min., 15 sec.; 1:01:45). A timestamp locates the moment you discuss. The official Quick Guide writes that locator as at 6:09–17. See how to cite the same source more than once for shortened notes after the first reference.

Thompson Rivers University restates the CMOS 18 podcast-date rule that students skip most often:

Thompson Rivers University, CMOS 18 streaming multimedia

When citing a podcast, set the podcast title in italics, and the episode title (and number, if it is included in the title of the episode) in roman with quotation marks. The date of publication should be included after the episode title rather than before the medium, as shown below.

How to Cite a Film in Chicago Notes-Bibliography

Feature film on a later DVD or Blu-ray

When you watched a later home-video edition, CMOS wants both the original release year and the edition you used. University of Western Australia's CMOS 18 multimedia table reprints that two-year DVD shape from §14.165. Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (20th Century Fox, 1977) is the work; a 2011 Fox DVD is the copy. Put a timestamp only in the note, and only if you timed a moment on that copy. Do not invent one.

University of Western Australia reprint of CMOS 18 §14.165 (two-year DVD)

First note:

1. Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, directed by George Lucas (1977; 20th Century Fox, 2011), DVD.

Shortened note (add a real timestamp from your copy):

2. Lucas, Star Wars Episode IV, at Hours:Minutes:Seconds.

Bibliography:

Lucas, George, dir. Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. 1977; 20th Century Fox, 2011. DVD.

CMOS 18 does not want a city before 20th Century Fox. A 17th-edition leftover that reads "Beverly Hills, CA: 20th Century Fox" is the old book-publication habit applied to plastic.

Documentary issued as a DVD

When the disc is the publication, one studio year is enough. Douglas College reprints this CMOS 18 §14.165 DVD pair for Chris Durlacher's Queen Elizabeth's Secret Agents (BBC, 2018):

Douglas College CMOS 18 DVD sample

Note:

4. Chris Durlacher, Queen Elizabeth's Secret Agents, BBC, 2018, DVD.

Shortened note:

5. Durlacher, Queen Elizabeth's.

Bibliography:

Durlacher, Chris, dir. Queen Elizabeth's Secret Agents. BBC, 2018. DVD.

Film watched as a stream

A current streaming copy does not need a fake DVD year. Name the studio or distributor and, when it helps, the service. Platform names change, and licenses expire, so the studio year is the stable fact. UWA's CMOS 18 table says a Kanopy or similar stream replaces DVD with the service name and a URL. Do not invent a Netflix URL for a theatrical film you happened to rent this week.

Streaming template (fill from the copy you used; do not invent a URL)

Note:

Title, directed by First Name Last Name (Studio, Year), Streaming Service, URL.

Bibliography:

Last Name, First Name, dir. Title. Studio, Year. Streaming Service. URL.

For a ready-made pair of generator examples, see how to cite a movie in Chicago and how to cite a documentary in Chicago.

DVD extras and commentary tracks

Cite the extra as its own source. The University of Queensland CMOS 18 multimedia page reprints the handbook rule and the special-edition commentary on Monty Python and the Holy Grail:

University of Queensland reprint of CMOS 18 §14.165

Cite commentary, special features etc on a DVD by that material itself. Cite by author and title and cite the date of the ancillary material rather than the original film date if these are different (14.165).

Note:

54. John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin, "Commentaries," disc 2, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, special ed. DVD, directed by Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones (Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment, 2001).

Bibliography:

Cleese, John, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin. "Commentaries." Disc 2. Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Special ed. DVD. Directed by Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones. Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment, 2001.

The 2001 Columbia Tristar special-edition commentary is a 2001 source, not a 1975 one. That is the failure mode §14.165 exists to catch.

How to Cite a TV Episode in Chicago

An episode is a named part of a series. Put the episode title in quotation marks, italicize the series, and add season and episode numbers when they help. Broadcast episodes keep the original air date and network. Streaming originals keep the platform that first released them. Indexed scenes on a disc are cited like chapters, by title or number — UQ restates that CMOS 18 scene rule on the same multimedia page. For more episode-level patterns, see how to cite a TV show in Chicago.

Broadcast documentary episode

Ken Burns's The Civil War, episode 1, "The Cause," aired on PBS on 23 September 1990. That episode is a real broadcast, not a Quick Guide sample. The form below is the CMOS 18 episode shape: quoted episode, italic series, air date, network.

Worked broadcast episode (real PBS air date; not a Quick Guide string)

Note:

5. "The Cause," The Civil War, episode 1, directed by Ken Burns, aired September 23, 1990, on PBS.

Bibliography:

Burns, Ken, dir. The Civil War. Episode 1, "The Cause." Aired September 23, 1990, on PBS.

Streaming-series episode

Include the platform when it published the episode. Prefer the studio and year when the service is only how you rented a theatrical film this week. Fill the template from the episode page you opened. Do not invent a Netflix URL or an episode title you did not read.

Streaming-episode template

Note:

"Episode Title," Series Title, season N, episode N, directed by First Name Last Name, Month Day, Year, Platform.

Bibliography:

Last Name, First Name, dir. Series Title. Season N, episode N, "Episode Title." Month Day, Year. Platform.

How to Cite a YouTube Video in Chicago Style

CMOS 14.167 covers online video, including YouTube, Vimeo, news-site video, and TED. The official Quick Guide YouTube sample is not a made-up watch?v= link. It is Eric Oliver's University of Chicago Harper Lecture, moderated by Andrew McCall, delivered virtually on February 23, 2022, and posted March 21, 2022. Credit the speaker, quote the title, name the moderator and the poster, give the running time, and end with the real URL. Worked pairs also live at how to cite a YouTube video in Chicago.

Official CMOS 18 YouTube sample (still live 15 September 2026)

First note:

2. Eric Oliver, "Why So Many Americans Believe in So Many 'Crazy' Things," moderated by Andrew McCall, virtual lecture, February 23, 2022, posted March 21, 2022, by University of Chicago, YouTube, 1:01:45, https://youtu.be/hfq7AnCF5bg.

Shortened note:

Oliver, "Why."

Bibliography:

Oliver, Eric. "Why So Many Americans Believe in So Many 'Crazy' Things." Moderated by Andrew McCall. Virtual lecture, February 23, 2022. Posted March 21, 2022, by University of Chicago. YouTube, 1:01:45. https://youtu.be/hfq7AnCF5bg.

If the video later disappears, cite a Wayback Machine snapshot the same way Chicago cites an archived webpage. Do not invent a placeholder URL. YouTube's own youtu.be short links are acceptable; third-party shorteners are not.

A classic film posted to YouTube

The CMOS Q&A "How should I cite a classic film on YouTube?" is still the worked case for a theatrical film that YouTube is only hosting. The film in that answer is Kim Soo-yong's 1967 The Foggy Town (안개), posted 21 July 2014 by the Korean Classic Film channel under the English title Mist (Angae). The Q&A still uses CMOS 17 section numbers in its footer; the YouTube-as-messenger rule is the part that matters in CMOS 18.

CMOS Q&A, classic film on YouTube

In sum, you have some flexibility when citing classic content posted to YouTube. But remember to pay attention to the source as the thing you’re primarily citing and describing; YouTube is only the messenger.

Note (preferred Q&A form, with original title and year):

1. Kim Soo-yong, dir., The Foggy Town (안개), 1967, posted July 21, 2014, under the title Mist (Angae), Korean Classic Film, YouTube, 1 hr., 19 min., https://youtu.be/GppVzuwaK-Y.

How to Cite a TED Talk in Chicago

Cite the TED page you watched, not a reupload, unless the reupload is the only surviving copy. The official sample is Vaitea Cowan's TED2022 talk "How Green Hydrogen Could End the Fossil Fuel Era," delivered in Vancouver in April 2022. The TED page still lists TED2022 and April 2022. CMOS prints the running time as 9 min., 15 sec.

Official CMOS 18 TED sample

First note:

1. Vaitea Cowan, "How Green Hydrogen Could End the Fossil Fuel Era," TED Talk, Vancouver, BC, April 2022, 9 min., 15 sec., https://www.ted.com/talks/vaitea_cowan_how_green_hydrogen_could_end_the_fossil_fuel_era.

Shortened note:

Cowan, "Green Hydrogen," at 6:09–17.

Bibliography:

Cowan, Vaitea. "How Green Hydrogen Could End the Fossil Fuel Era." TED Talk, Vancouver, BC, April 2022. Video, 9 min., 15 sec. https://www.ted.com/talks/vaitea_cowan_how_green_hydrogen_could_end_the_fossil_fuel_era.

How to Cite a Podcast in Chicago 18

CMOS 14.168 says podcasts, whether you pressed play in a browser or in an app, are cited much like television episodes. Italicize the show. Quote the episode title. Put the publication date after the episode title, not after the word "podcast." The official sample is Lauren Ober's The Loudest Girl in the World, season 1, episode 2, "Goodbye, Routine; Hello, Meltdown!" (Pushkin Industries, September 13, 2022). See also how to cite a podcast in Chicago.

Official CMOS 18 podcast sample

First note:

3. Lauren Ober, host, The Loudest Girl in the World, season 1, episode 2, "Goodbye, Routine; Hello, Meltdown!," Pushkin Industries, September 13, 2022, 41 min., 37 sec., https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/loudest-girl-in-the-world.

Shortened note:

Ober, "Goodbye, Routine."

Bibliography:

Ober, Lauren, host. The Loudest Girl in the World. Season 1, episode 2, "Goodbye, Routine; Hello, Meltdown!" Pushkin Industries, September 13, 2022. Podcast, 41 min., 37 sec. https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/loudest-girl-in-the-world.

"Podcast, MP3 audio" is identifying information when you need it. CMOS notes that the word podcast follows the same inclusion logic as the word blog: use it when the format is not obvious. The official bibliography uses Podcast plus the duration. Thompson Rivers University reprints a second real episode that puts the date with the episode, not after the word podcast: Melvin Bragg's In Our Time discussion "Iris Murdoch," BBC Radio 4, 21 October 2021, https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0010q90.

Podcast series as a whole

Cite the series only when you are discussing the show as a project, not a single episode. Prefer an episode citation whenever you used one episode. Fill the template from the series page you opened.

Series-as-a-whole template

Note:

First Name Last Name, Series Title, podcast, Year–, URL.

Bibliography:

Last Name, First Name. Series Title. Podcast. Year–. URL.

How to Cite Music and Audiobooks in Chicago

Album, including a stream

Oberlin's CMOS 18 audio guide reprints the §14.163 streaming-audio shape. The album is clipping.'s There Existed an Addiction to Blood (Sub Pop SP-1330, 2019) on Spotify. The band name includes the period. Acquisition numbers follow the publisher with no comma: Sub Pop SP-1330, not Sub Pop, SP-1330. Naming Spotify is allowed and not required.

Oberlin CMOS 18 streaming-album sample

Note:

1. clipping., There Existed an Addiction to Blood, Sub Pop SP-1330, 2019, streaming audio, Spotify.

Bibliography:

clipping. There Existed an Addiction to Blood. Sub Pop SP-1330. 2019. Streaming audio, Spotify.

Author-Date in-text:

(clipping. 2019, at 1:02)

Individual track

Quote the song, italicize the album. UWA's CMOS 18 multimedia table reprints Miles Davis's "So What" from the 1997 Columbia CD remaster of Kind of Blue (Columbia CK 64935). The original 1959 mono LP is Columbia CL 1355; cite the copy you used.

University of Western Australia CMOS 18 track sample

Note:

1. Miles Davis, "So What," on Kind of Blue, Columbia CK 64935, 1997, compact disc.

Bibliography:

Davis, Miles. "So What." On Kind of Blue. Columbia CK 64935, 1997. Compact disc.

Audiobook

An audiobook is still a book. Cite it like the print edition, then name the narrator and the audio publisher. Drop the city; CMOS 18 does not want "New York:" on a 2018 audio line. If you need the print pattern beside this one, see how to cite a book in Chicago.

Audiobook template (fill from the edition you heard)

Note:

First Name Last Name, Title, narrated by Narrator Name (Audio Publisher, Year), audiobook.

Bibliography:

Last Name, First Name. Title. Narrated by Narrator Name. Audio Publisher, Year. Audiobook.

Historical Audio, Speeches, and Live Performance

Archival speech recording

When the recording is the evidence, cite the recording you used, not a transcript you did not consult. Franklin D. Roosevelt's 8 December 1941 address to Congress asking for a declaration of war is held as text and audio by the Miller Center (live on 15 September 2026) and as audio by the Library of Congress. Pick one copy and cite that copy. For the wider archival pattern, see citing primary sources and archives in Chicago and primary sources in historical research.

Worked archival recording (Miller Center copy opened 15 September 2026)

Note:

11. Franklin D. Roosevelt, "Address to Congress Requesting a Declaration of War," December 8, 1941, audio recording, Miller Center, https://millercenter.org/the-presidency/presidential-speeches/december-8-1941-address-congress-requesting-declaration-war.

Bibliography:

Roosevelt, Franklin D. "Address to Congress Requesting a Declaration of War." December 8, 1941. Audio recording. Miller Center. https://millercenter.org/the-presidency/presidential-speeches/december-8-1941-address-congress-requesting-declaration-war.

Published interview you heard

A broadcast or posted interview is cited under the interviewee, not the host. That rule is CMOS 14.108–10. The live Quick Guide interview sample, still current on 15 September 2026, is Joy Buolamwini on Fresh Air. The NPR page still lists 28 November 2023 and a 37:58 runtime. An unpublished email or phone call is not multimedia; it is a personal communication.

Official CMOS 18 interview sample (published audio)

First note:

1. Joy Buolamwini, " 'If You Have a Face, You Have a Place in the Conversation About AI,' Expert Says," interview by Tonya Mosley, Fresh Air, NPR, November 28, 2023, audio, 37:58, https://www.npr.org/2023/11/28/1215529902/unmasking-ai-facial-recognition-technology-joy-buolamwini.

Shortened note:

Buolamwini, interview.

Bibliography:

Buolamwini, Joy. " 'If You Have a Face, You Have a Place in the Conversation About AI,' Expert Says." Interview by Tonya Mosley. Fresh Air, NPR, November 28, 2023. Audio, 37:58. https://www.npr.org/2023/11/28/1215529902/unmasking-ai-facial-recognition-technology-joy-buolamwini.

Live performances

A concert or a staging you attended is usually described in the prose and documented in a note. CMOS does not expect a bibliography entry for a one-night performance the reader cannot recover. University of Queensland reprints both the rule and a recoverable 1992 staging:

University of Queensland live-performance reprint

Mention the details of live performances in the text and notes rather than the bibliography. Include as many details of the performance as required to identify the performance such as the name and location of the venue and the date of the performance.

Note only (no bibliography line):

55. Tommy, music and lyrics by Pete Townshend, dir. Des McAnuff, chor. Wayne Cilento, La Jolla Playhouse, San Diego, Cal., 1 July 1992.

If you later used a cast album or a filmed production, cite that published recording instead.

AI-generated video or audio

CMOS 18 added chatbot and generated-media guidance (14.112). The official What's New list calls this "New guidance on citing AI-generated content." A public, retrievable file with a URL can be cited like other online multimedia. A private render that only you can play is described in the text or a note, not padded into the bibliography. Details and the text-generation cases are in how to cite ChatGPT and AI tools.

Chicago Author-Date: The Same Official Sources

Author-Date moves the year next to the name and uses a reference list instead of a bibliography. The official in-text locator is (Cowan 2022, at 6:09–17), not (Cowan 2022, 6:09). The year in the parenthesis is the original date of the work when that is what you are discussing: (Lucas 1977), not (Lucas 2011), even if you used the 2011 DVD.

CMOS 18 Quick Guide, Author-Date (live 15 September 2026)

In-text, TED:

(Cowan 2022, at 6:09–17)

Reference list:

Cowan, Vaitea. 2022. "How Green Hydrogen Could End the Fossil Fuel Era." TED Talk, Vancouver, BC, April. Video, 9 min., 15 sec. https://www.ted.com/talks/vaitea_cowan_how_green_hydrogen_could_end_the_fossil_fuel_era.

In-text, podcast:

(Ober 2022)

Reference list:

Ober, Lauren, host. 2022. The Loudest Girl in the World. Season 1, episode 2, "Goodbye, Routine; Hello, Meltdown!" Pushkin Industries, September 13. Podcast, 41 min., 37 sec. https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/loudest-girl-in-the-world.

In-text, YouTube:

(Oliver 2022)

Reference list:

Oliver, Eric. 2022. "Why So Many Americans Believe in So Many 'Crazy' Things." Moderated by Andrew McCall. Virtual lecture, February 23. Posted March 21, 2022, by University of Chicago. YouTube, 1:01:45. https://youtu.be/hfq7AnCF5bg.

In-text, film:

(Lucas 1977)

Reference list:

Lucas, George, dir. 1977. Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. 20th Century Fox, 2011. DVD.

In-text, recording:

(Davis 1997)

Reference list:

Davis, Miles. 1997. "So What." On Kind of Blue. Columbia CK 64935. Compact disc.

Shortened Notes, Ibid., and Repeated Films

CMOS 18 prefers a shortened note over ibid. The official video and podcast shorts are already printed above. After a full Star Wars note, later notes look like this:

12. Lucas, Star Wars Episode IV.

13. Cowan, "Green Hydrogen," at 6:09–17.

14. Ober, "Goodbye, Routine."

If two sources share a last name, add a given name or a short title so the note cannot be misread. Do not reuse a note number for a different timestamp; give a new note or add the timestamp to the existing short form. The Chicago cheat sheet condenses the note-to-bibliography pairing; the Chicago notes-bibliography style page and the author-date style page show the two systems in isolation.

Common Chicago Multimedia Mistakes

  • Treating running time as a locator. 9 min., 15 sec. on the Cowan talk is how long the file is. at 6:09–17 is where the claim lives. Put duration with the source and the timestamp in the note or the parenthetical.
  • *Dropping the word at.* The official Author-Date sample is (Cowan 2022, at 6:09–17), not (Cowan 2022, 6:09).
  • Citing a streamer as if it were the studio. Name Netflix, Hulu, or Kanopy when that platform published the work. Prefer the studio and year when the service is only the app you opened this week.
  • Using a placeholder URL. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=example is not a citation. If you cannot recover the link, describe the video in a note and say so.
  • Putting a 17th-edition city on a DVD. "Burbank, CA: Warner Home Video" is the old book-publication habit applied to plastic. CMOS 18 does not need the city.
  • Italicizing a YouTube or TED title. Video titles take quotation marks. Series and film titles take italics.
  • Listing every tweet about a clip on this page. Posts, stories, and short-form social video are social media in Chicago, even when the file is a video.
  • Writing (Cowan, 2022) in a Chicago paper. That comma is APA. Chicago Author-Date is (Cowan 2022).
  • *Reviving ibid.** CMOS 18 wants the shortened note. Ibid.* is a 17th-edition leftover in student papers.
  • Citing a transcript you did not use. If you listened to Roosevelt, cite the audio. If you read a transcript, cite the transcript.
  • Forgetting that a commentary track has its own date. The extra is not automatically 1941, 1975, or whenever the feature was shot.
  • Treating YouTube as the film. The CMOS Q&A says YouTube is only the messenger. Describe the film, then add the posting facts.

Official Sources and Further Reading

When a generator, a blog, and your department handout disagree, the manual wins. These are the sources behind the examples on this page, opened for this rewrite:

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you cite a YouTube video in Chicago style?
Follow the official CMOS 18 Quick Guide sample. Name the speaker, quote the title, add any moderator or poster, give both the event date and the posting date when they differ, write YouTube, give the running time, and end with the real URL. Example: Eric Oliver, "Why So Many Americans Believe in So Many 'Crazy' Things," moderated by Andrew McCall, virtual lecture, February 23, 2022, posted March 21, 2022, by University of Chicago, YouTube, 1:01:45, https://youtu.be/hfq7AnCF5bg. That is CMOS 14.167. For a classic film that YouTube is only hosting, describe the film first; the CMOS Q&A says YouTube is only the messenger.
How do you cite a podcast in Chicago 18th edition?
Treat the episode like a TV episode. Quote the episode title, italicize the show, and put the date after the episode title. The official note is: Lauren Ober, host, The Loudest Girl in the World, season 1, episode 2, "Goodbye, Routine; Hello, Meltdown!," Pushkin Industries, September 13, 2022, 41 min., 37 sec., https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/loudest-girl-in-the-world. CMOS 14.168 says a podcast consulted in an app is cited the same way as one consulted on the web.
How do you cite a movie in Chicago notes-bibliography?
Open with the italicized title, name the director, and give the original year. If you used a later DVD or Blu-ray, add that edition after a semicolon, as in the UWA CMOS 18 reprint: Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, directed by George Lucas (1977; 20th Century Fox, 2011), DVD. If the disc is the publication, one studio date is enough, as in Douglas College's Durlacher / BBC 2018 DVD. Put a timestamp in the note only when you timed a moment on your copy.
Do I include Netflix, Hulu, or Peacock in a Chicago citation?
Include the platform when it published the work, or when the version you used exists only there. Prefer the studio and year when the service is only how you happened to rent a theatrical film this week. CMOS wants facts that identify the item, not a log of every app on your television.
How do you cite a timestamp in Chicago style?
Put the timestamp in the note or in the Author-Date parenthesis, the way you would put a page number, and use the official at wording. After a full Cowan note, a later note reads: Cowan, "Green Hydrogen," at 6:09–17. Author-Date looks like (Cowan 2022, at 6:09–17). The running time of the file stays with the source description. Do not invent a timestamp you did not read off the player.
Is Chicago 17th or 18th edition current for videos and podcasts?
The 18th edition, published in September 2024, is the current Chicago Manual of Style. Sections 14.161 and 14.167–69 are the multimedia sections to use. Some instructors still accept 17th-edition forms, including a city before a DVD distributor. Unless the assignment names the 17th edition, follow CMOS 18 and omit the city. Turabian 9th edition (2018) still tracks CMOS 17; Turabian 10 is announced and is not yet the live student handbook.
Should I use notes-bibliography or author-date for film studies?
Film studies, art history, music history, and most history seminars want Notes-Bibliography. Author-Date appears in communication and some media-studies methods courses. The syllabus wins. If it only says "Chicago," ask which system; defaulting to notes is the usual humanities choice. Do not combine footnotes with (Cowan 2022) parentheses in the same paper.
How do you cite a TED Talk in Chicago?
Cite the TED page you watched. The official sample is: Vaitea Cowan, "How Green Hydrogen Could End the Fossil Fuel Era," TED Talk, Vancouver, BC, April 2022, 9 min., 15 sec., https://www.ted.com/talks/vaitea_cowan_how_green_hydrogen_could_end_the_fossil_fuel_era. In Author-Date: (Cowan 2022, at 6:09–17). If you used a YouTube mirror, say YouTube and use that URL.
How do you cite a song or an album in Chicago?
For a streamed album, Oberlin's CMOS 18 reprint is: clipping., There Existed an Addiction to Blood, Sub Pop SP-1330, 2019, streaming audio, Spotify. For a track, UWA reprints: Miles Davis, "So What," on Kind of Blue, Columbia CK 64935, 1997, compact disc. CMOS 14.163 says you may add Spotify or a file format when it matters. You do not have to. Cite the copy you used; CL 1355 is the 1959 LP, CK 64935 is the 1997 CD.
Do live concerts and plays go in the Chicago bibliography?
Usually not. CMOS expects you to describe a live performance in the text and give the work, venue, and date in a note. UQ reprints that rule and a 1 July 1992 La Jolla Playhouse Tommy. The reader cannot recover last Tuesday's show. If you used a cast recording, a filmed production, or an archival tape, cite that published or deposited recording instead.

Generate the Chicago citation, then check the recording

Build a Notes-Bibliography or Author-Date citation, then compare it with the official Cowan, Ober, and Oliver samples. Check who leads the entry, whether the title is italicized or quoted, which date is the work and which is the copy, and whether a timestamp has been mistaken for a running time.

Chicago notes-bibliography generator →Chicago author-date generator →