How to Cite a TED Talk in APA

TED Talks are valuable sources for academic research, offering expert insights across various fields. However, to ensure credibility and clarity, it is essential to cite them correctly in APA Style. The citation method varies depending on where the TED Talk was accessed, either directly from the official TED website or through YouTube.

Citing a TED Talk from the TED Website

If a TED Talk is accessed from TED.com, then the author would be the speaker because it is the speaker who has produced the work. The citation, would contain the speaker’s name, date (as specific as possible), talk title in italics, a media descriptor in square brackets, publisher TED Conferences, and the full URL after that.

Citation
Goff, A. (2016, February). How we can make racism a solvable problem and improve policing [Video]. TED Conferences. https://www.ted.com/talks/phillip_atiba_goff
Structure
Speaker’s Last Name, Initial. (Year, Month). Title of the talk [Video]. TED Conferences. URL
Example (Goff, 2016)
Structure (Speaker’s Last Name, Year)
Example Goff (2016)
Structure Speaker’s Last Name (Year)

In the example, Phillip Atiba Goff is the author because he created the content. TED Conferences is the publisher as the video is being streamed from the TED official website.

Citing a TED Talk from YouTube

If the TED Talk is accessed on YouTube, the citation is slightly different. APA recommends listing the account owner—usually “TED”—as author to make retrieval easier. The title still needs to be in italics, with the addition of “[Video]” in square brackets. YouTube is listed as the publisher. The speaker’s name, if not provided as author, can be incorporated into the text.

Citation
TED. (2021, April 27). The gift and power of emotional courage – JU [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDQ1Mi5I4rg
Structure
TED. (Year, Month Day). Title of the talk [Video]. YouTube. URL
Example (TED, 2021)
Structure (TED, Year)
Example TED (2021)
Structure TED (Year)

For direct quotes, include a timestamp:

Example (TED, 2021, 5:12)
Structure (TED, Year, timestamp)

List YouTube as the author: When citing a TED Talk accessed on YouTube, don’t include “YouTube” as the author. Treat “TED” as the author since TED is the channel that posted the video.

Media type: Always put “[Video]” in square brackets after the title. This indicates the source’s original format to your readers.

Don’t use a shortened or redirected URL: The URL should be complete, clickable, and lead the reader directly to the TED Talk. When possible, avoid using shortened or redirected URLs.

Confusing speaker and publisher positions: For citations for TED.com, the speaker is the author and TED Conferences is the publisher. For YouTube citations, TED is the author and YouTube is the publisher. Confusing these up yields an incorrect citation.

Leaving out the complete date for YouTube sources: YouTube videos typically have the complete publication date (year, month, and day). Include the complete date for better citation precision and uniformity. 

Include the speaker in the text even if he/she is not the author: When TED (as on YouTube) is the author, the speaker may still be emphasized within the sentence.

Use timestamps for quotation of speakers: When quoting a speaker directly from a TED Talk video, include the precise timestamp in your in-text citation to show where the quotation is located.

Check the spelling of the speaker’s name and publication date: TED Talks typically have multiple titles and speakers. Always check the correct spelling of the speaker’s name and publication date directly from the page of the video.

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Tomas Elliott (Ph.D.)

Tomas Elliott is an assistant Professor of English at Northeastern University London. His research specialisms include the history of theatre and film, European modernism, world literature, film adaptation, transmedia studies and citation practices. He read English and French Literature at Trinity College, Oxford, before completing a PhD in Comparative Literature and Literary Theory at the University of Pennsylvania.

Learn how to cite in APA