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DATE: May 22, 2025
REVISED:
NAME: Addition of Codes "q" (Podcast), "a" (Annual Report), and "z" (Zine) to Field 008/21 in the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format
SOURCE: ISSN Review Group
SUMMARY: This paper proposes the addition of codes "q" for podcast, "a" for annual report, and "z" for zine to field 008/21 and 006/04 (Continuing Resources/Type of continuing resource) in the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format as a logical and necessary step in modernizing bibliographic standards. The purpose is to provide increased granularity for contemporary types of resources and an overlooked type; more useful faceting and statistical reporting in the ISSN Portal database and library information systems; plus provide more granularity in other cases where coding for resource type is desired.
KEYWORDS: Continuing Resources (BD); Field 008/21 (Continuing Resources) (BD); Field 006/04 (Continuing Resources) (BD); Type of Continuing Resource (BD); Podcast (BD); Annual Report (BD); Zine (BD)
STATUS/COMMENTS:
05/22/25 – Made available to the MARC community for discussion.
06/25/25 – Results of MARC Advisory Committee discussion: MAC was generally supportive of the paper. There were suggestions for minor editorial refinements by several communities, for the articulation of the respective categories. The authors will address the refinements suggested by MAC in a subsequent proposal.
Current coding of field 008/21 (and 006/04) in the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format is as follows:
008 - Continuing Resources (NR)
| 21 - Type of continuing resource (006/04) | |
|
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The ISSN Portal database currently includes over 2.8 million records that rely on 008/21 coding to provide faceting and identification by type of continuing resource. Until the approval of MARC Proposal 2021-03 in June 2021, the limited set of existing codes resulted in overly-broad categorization of continuing resources types (e.g., "blank" for reports or directories; "p" for journals, newsletters, blogs, and potentially podcasts). The lack of specificity complicated metadata-driven discovery, data analysis, and global tracking of publishing trends, particularly in digital and open-access formats. Proposal 2021-03 ameliorated this situation by the addition of the 6 new codes listed below but a need has recently arisen for the addition of three new codes, two of which (podcast and zine) respond to the need to characterize contemporary types of continuing resources.
Codes added in June 2021:
h - Blog
t- Directory
j- Journal
g- Magazine
s - Newsletter
r- Repository
With the increasing importance of precise content description—especially for digital-native and niche publishing formats like podcasts, zines, and annual reports—this proposal seeks to extend the value of 008/21 by adding new codes to address emerging and underrepresented continuing resource types.
Field 008/21 (Continuing Resources/Type of continuing resource) has long been the standard used by the ISSN Network for identifying the nature of continuing resources. While codes such as "p" (Periodical), "w" (Updating website), and "blank" were serviceable for general categorization, they lacked the necessary resolution for the increasingly diverse publishing landscape.
During the MAC Annual meeting discussion of 2020-DP10 (the paper that preceded the proposal to add six new more granular codes), the question of how to deal with the existing code "p" (periodical) arose. Retaining code "p" so it could be used if less granularity is desired was preferred over deprecating that code. In general, unless a community decision applies, the principle of specificity should be used: choose the most specific code that applies to the resource. The same logic should apply with code # (blank) which shall be retained for less granularity or conformity with past practice but can be replaced by "a" (Annual report) when that granularity is desired or required.
It should be noted that although many bibliographic records are increasingly using form/genre terms to provide faceting by form or genre, ISSN Portal records and various other metadata schemes do not include these kinds of terms. Additionally, the values of the codes in 008/21 can be translated into any language and thus avoid the limitations and potential misunderstanding of technical terms in a specific language.
Podcasts are serialized audio publications, often scholarly or journalistic in nature, distributed primarily online and intended for ongoing dissemination. As a growing medium for academic communication, cultural programming, and public education, they merit a distinct type of continuing resource code. At present, they are inconsistently coded under "p" or "w" or ignored for catalog access. Assigning a specific code would improve discoverability and allow consistent metadata application.
Annual reports are reports planned for publication at yearly intervals that provide a summary of an institution’s operations, financials, or achievements These are critical reference materials for researchers and analysts. Currently lumped into the code "blank" or ambiguously coded, annual reports cannot be discovered as a distinct type of resource in metadata-based systems. Providing a dedicated code enables clearer resource discovery, usage tracking, and policy development.
The Barnard Zine Library web page includes this definition: "A zine, short for fanzine or magazine, is a DIY [do-it-yourself] subculture self-publication, usually made on paper and reproduced with a photocopier or printer. Zine creators are often motivated by a desire to share knowledge or experience with people in marginalized or otherwise less-empowered communities." Wikipedia indicates that "zines have cultural and academic value as tangible traces of marginal communities, many of which are otherwise little-documented." Although many zines are "one-off" publications, there already exists a group of serial zines to which ISSNs have been assigned. Researchers seeking serial zines currently must use the type "periodical" in which zines are vastly outnumbered by other types of periodicals.
These proposed additions augment the previous effort to revise and expand field 008/21, which led to the inclusion of codes such as "h" for blogs and "r" for repositories. Retaining broader codes like "p" (periodical) and “blank” (none of the following) continues to provide the ability for less granular faceting.
The addition and implementation of these new codes will allow for the following benefits:
In field 008/21 and field 006/04 (Continuing Resources/Type of continuing resource) of the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format:
Current definition:# - None of the following
Also used for yearbooks and annual reports.Proposed revision:
# - None of the following
Also used for yearbooks and other types of continuing resources that do not fit into existing types. For conference proceedings, use # in combination with 008/29.
q - Podcast
A serialized spoken-word digital audio publication, typically released episodically and made available for download or streaming. Podcasts may include interviews, storytelling, or educational content and are distributed through web syndication platforms or mobile applications.a - Annual report
A report planned for publication at yearly intervals that provides a summary of an institution's operations, financials, or achievements. Annual reports can be print or digital and are often essential for institutional transparency and record-keeping.z - Zine
A specialized periodical with a name that is a shortened form of magazine or fanzine. A small-circulation self-published work of original or appropriated texts and images, usually reproduced via a copy machine. Zines are the product of either a single person or of a very small group and can be either monographic or serial.
Example 1:
008/21 "q" Podcast
007 cr
007 sr||||||||||||
008 170315c20209999es a| q|o|||||| b0spao
022 0 # $a 3006-9483 $2 _0 $l 3006-9483
222 # # $a Cuentos en red
245 1 # $a Cuentos en red.
260 # # $a San Salvador $b Centro Cultural de España en El Salvador
Example 2:
008/21 "a" Annual report
007 cr
008 210215cuuuu9999lu a||a|s|||||||||a0eng
022 0 # $a 2716-7461 $2 74 $l 2716-7461
222 # # $a Annual report … $b (Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research)
245 1 # $a Annual report ….
260 # # $a Esch-sur-Alzette $b LISER
Example 3:
008/21 "z" Zine
007 ta
008 220324d20212021enkar|z 0|||a0eng
022 0 # $a 2752-6550 $2 _2 $l 2752-6550
222 # # $a 10 zine
245 1 # $a 10 zine.
246 3 # $a Ten zine
264 # 1 $a London $b [Sick Love Zine/Isobel Gorman-Buckley] $c 2021.
The MARC-to-BIBFRAME and BIBFRAME-to-MARC conversion programs can be modified to include this addition.
6.1. Did the expansion of values in 008/21 resulting from Proposal 2021-03 cause any problems that clarifications or additions in this paper can prevent or minimize?
6.2. Are the definitions of the new resource types clear?
6.3. Is it clear that using code "p" or "blank" if less granularity is desired by an institution or consortium is still permitted?
6.4. Is introducing a code for "zine" which can encompass a monograph or a serial problematic?
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