If a website has a director rather than an author, should I organize my works-cited-list entry under the director’s name?

Note: This post relates to content in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook. For up-to-date guidance, see the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook.

In general, you should list your entry for a website under the name of the creator. The creator may be an author, an editor, or a director. Many websites coin terms like “project lead” or “curator” to refer to the creator. The creator can also be a group of persons, an organization, or a government entity. You may need to consult an About page or a Credits page to determine the site’s creator.

For example, on the Credits page for Voice of the Shuttle, Alan Liu is listed as the director of the site:

Credit page for Voice of the Shuttle

In your works-cited-list entry, you would list Liu in the “Author” slot.

Liu, Alan, director. Voice of the Shuttle. English Department, U of California, Santa Barbara, vos.ucsb.edu/. Accessed 6 Aug. 2018.

But since websites are often collaborative works, you could also list the creator in the “Other contributors” slot:

Voice of the Shuttle. Directed by Alan Liu, English Department, U of California, Santa Barbara, vos.ucsb.edu/. Accessed 6 Aug. 2018.

If the site you are using does not provide any authorship information, start your entry with the website’s title.