How to cite the source when paraphrasing/summarizing in Chicago-Turabian style

Question

I might be asking the same question that is found here. However, it has no marked answer, and the one answer it has only has one upvote. It's crucial that I do this right, so I thought I should still ask this question just in case.

I'm wondering how I should cite a source when writing one or two paragraphs about the same source, especially when that source is a web article (and therefore devoid of a page number).

For example, if I start my paragraph with:

Jim and Bill wrote an article about this (insert source as footnote). Their paper is about X, Y, and Z (do I need another footnote here?). They also address issue A, and give a pretty decent explanation of issue B (do I need yet another footnote here?).

Footnote: Jim and Bill, Date, publisher, article link etc.

Or can I just write the entire paragraph and put a single source reference at the end (or front?) of the paragraph, like this:

Jim and Bill wrote an article about this (Do I insert the source as a footnote here?)" Their paper is about X, Y, and Z. More paraphrasing here. A little summary of another paragraph here. They also address issue A, and give a pretty decent explanation of issue B (or do I insert the source here?).

Answer 1

For Turabian

(Probably Chicago as well, though I am particularly familiar with the Turabian guide, not Chicago directly.)

When doing a long summary/paraphrase (i.e. a whole paragraph), it is best to include the name and the article/website/book title up front (this alerts the reader in general where your information is coming from). Then only put a footnote at the end of the paragraph. Something like this for a website article (and remember, generally you use last names in scholarly writing, though if it is a website and the name is only given as Jim and Bill, use it):

In their online article "Title of Their Website Article," Smith and Jones wrote about X, Y, and Z. More paraphrasing here. A little summary of another paragraph here. They also address issue A, and give a pretty decent explanation of issue B.¹

---

¹ Jim Smith and Bill Jones, "Title of Their Website Article," last modified February 2, 2017, accessed March 6, 2018, http://www.thewebsitename.duh/title-of-their-website-article.

Some Exceptions

First, if you go on to a new paragraph that still is the same source, then you need not be so explicit on the intro, since you are still working off the same noted source. But another note will be needed at the end:

The Smith and Jones's article continued to discuss C, D, and E. More summary. Etc.²

---

² Ibid. [or if not on the same page of your paper, a short note = Smith and Jones.]

Second, if you are summarizing/paraphrasing from a source with chapters, sections, and/or page numbers, and doing so from across multiple parts of the resource, then it is better to add additional footnotes within the paragraph, as it will guide the reader to the source better.

In their book Title of Their Book, Smith and Jones wrote about X, Y, and Z. X summary.³ Y summary.⁴ Z summary.⁵ They also address issue A, and give a pretty decent explanation of issue B.⁶

---

³ Jim Smith and Bill Jones, Title of Their Book (PublicationPlace, STATE-ABBR: Publisher name, YEAR), chap. 2.
⁴ Ibid., chap. 4.
⁵ Ibid., chap. 10.
⁶ Ibid., 102-105.

So in the above example, it assumes you were summarizing concepts from three chapters, plus an important section of text on A and B that was on pages 102 to 105. You could still combine the second exception example into a single note, but with some further annotation in that note:

In their book Title of Their Book, Smith and Jones wrote about X, Y, and Z. X summary. Y summary. Z summary. They also address issue A, and give a pretty decent explanation of issue B.³

---

³ Jim Smith and Bill Jones, Title of Their Book (PublicationPlace, STATE-ABBR: Publisher name, YEAR); see chapters 2, 4, and 10, and pages 102-105 for discussion of A and B.

Conclusion

Remember that citations are primarily for two purposes:

1. Acknowledging where you got the information from (so giving credit where it is due and avoiding plagiarism).
2. Helping those who are researching behind you, using your paper, to locate the same information if they need to (hence why exception #2's more detailed information is best).