One of the virtues of continuing to be a graduate student while pursuing my CAR journey has been the freedom to look at problems academically. One issue I've been wrestling with is where we need to use more data. I've come to the conclusion that it needs to be used more often in reporting. That can be simple additions of a sentence to some breaking news stories, or using at as the basis for a long-term investigation Read More...
While talking to data reporters from around the country, it’s become apparent to me that the best work is done when the staff is supportive. Some newspapers are doing great work, and some are struggling. Which led me to wonder how the investigative organizations are doing, new and encouraging experimentation to draw eyes and inform readers Read More...
I think in the modern era, CAR merits consideration across all beats. Perhaps that's part of why I didn't discover it for so long, it never occurred to me to search for a specialty that looked at data, because I just assumed that was the way to do journalism. But if I were pressed to think of beats that are most naturally paired with CAR, I'd name politics first, and business second Read More...
What is it we love about computer-assisted reporting? Why is the NICAR-L list full of people eager and willing to diagnose problem queries and discuss the merits of mapping software? What draws people to it? The first time I saw a Python script perform batch geocoding, as numbers spun out of a Terminal console quicker than I could read them, my eyes glazed over with wonder, and I think my mouth dropped open a little Read More...
There's a fine line between loving your work, and falling into a deep obsession. I don't pretend to understand the distinction, what some call an obsession, I call it loving learning and seeing a project through. I think it's very easy to become sucked in to something, when it's something that matters Read More...
I believe all beats would benefit from considering data in their reporting, but some beats demand data analysis on a regular basis. The nature of CAR is changing -- many industry folk have told me that the term "CAR" now encompasses reporters, data analysts and web developers. It's certainly a wide field Read More...
Data visualization is a tool that is applicable in many industries. Some visualizations are made to help business owners make decisions, some to help reporters perform analysis to make discoveries. But what takes a visualization, or interactive piece, from something that helps a news producer, to something that helps a news consumer, requires someone who understands what a user is looking for Read More...
Journalism in the modern era. What is it? I've got some ideas, and a lot of questions, but I certainly don't know the answer. It necessitates more than a story, more than an article, more than a photo, more than a Web page. I'm pretty certain of one thing, though: It's got to do with data, and probably to do with data-driven applications Read More...
When we think of computer-assisted reporting, large-scale investigative projects are often what first come to mind. There's no question of the value and impact such endeavors can have on society. But CAR has many other purposes, too. One is bringing evidence to and localizing breaking news, and helping people find out more about their communities Read More...
Computer-assisted reporting is important because of its potential for reporting and analysis. Visualization is important to present the information to readers. They both fall under the responsibilities of Ted Mellnik, database editor at the Charlotte Observer. His passion for data is as clear from a conversation with him as it is from his work Read More...
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