| Popular | Scholarly | |
|---|---|---|
| Author | Staff writer; journalist | Expert in the field; known credentials |
| Audience | General public | Scholars, researchers |
| Language | Little technical language or subject-specific jargon | Uses technical language and subject-specific jargon |
| Coverage | Broad topics; shallow coverage; shorter length | Narrow topics; in-depth coverage; longer length |
| Documentation | Usually no bibliography | Bibliography present |
| Peer-reviewed? | No | Often |