The LexisNexis Web Services API is a "Data as a Service" (DaaS) product allowing users to access the more than 8000 news and law titles available in Nexis Uni and downloadable in bulk via API.

What's it for?

The LexisNexis Web Services API is for researchers who want to mine text and data from the sources found in Nexis Uni. Text-mining, also referred to as "content analysis," "discourse analysis," and "text analysis" is a research method employed heavily in Communications, Media Studies, the social sciences, and many others. The Web Services API allows researchers to create a large body, or corpus, of text that can then be coded or analyzed using software packages such as  "R," NVivo, or other automated processes.

How does it work?

Researchers will need to do some coding in Python in order to create their search strings (some simple templates are available). Most searches will be scheduled to run over the weekend. Users will get the complete metadata for all articles that match their search parameters and will have access to the full-text of the articles for a limited time, and options for long-term links embedded within the metadata.

How do I know if I should use it?

If your research involves collecting and analyzing articles in bulk, then the Web Services API may be the tool for your research project.  For smaller research needs, Nexis Uni may be better suited.  Please contact us to discuss how we may help.

How do I access it?

Interested researchers should fill out this intake form and contact Jeff Knapp and Andrew Dudash  to discuss if the API is the right service for their research.  Research projects will then need to consider the search process, restrictions, and coding, among other things.  There are volume limits, and although robust, there is some level of coordination needed to maintain regular access for all researchers.