Is a newspaper article a primary or secondary source?

Articles in newspapers and magazines can be primary or secondary depending on the focus of your research.

In historical studies, old articles are used as primary sources that give direct evidence about the time period. In social and communication studies, articles are used as primary sources to analyse language and social relations (for example, by conducting content analysis or discourse analysis).

If you are not analysing the article itself, but only using it for background information or facts about your topic, then the article is a secondary source.