Gathering News Writing and Reporting

Getting It Right  Research  Polls and Surveys  Observation  Interviews

Research Sources Interviews Observation Internet searches Books/journals Scholarly articles Transcripts Crowdsourcing Databases Public records Panel discussions Press conferences Press releases Documentary films/videos Polls and surveys

Computer-Assisted Reporting Hints Technology has changed the way journalists do research. It also presents challenges regarding verification and validity of information. Do you believe everything you read on the Internet? Why not?

Computer-Assisted Reporting Hints CAR includes the use of databases, public records, social media and Internet searches to develop background and gather information. The key: Consider the source.

Internet Searches Wikipedia isn’t bad as a place to start your Internet research, but it shouldn’t end there. What’s better? Websites devoted to your topic Links to articles about your topic Articles that tell you where the information comes from Articles that have dates indicating when the information was posted

Is It Valid? Always ask this question when you use the Internet. Sources of information are cited. The website is created by a well-known organization, such as news media, a U.S. government site or a large organization devoted to the topic, such as the American Cancer Society or WebMD. Articles include dates when posted.

Is It Valid? The author is identified, credentials are cited. The site provides a way to contact the author. You can verify the information elsewhere. The site has no errors (spelling, grammar or facts). The site is updated regularly.

Is It Fair/Balanced? What point of view does the sponsor of the site have? If this organization has a slanted agenda, can you trust it to be fair? Facts are presented as facts and opinions are clearly labeled. Feedback from readers is encouraged or at least allowed. Do you think this might be a hoax?

Is It A Hoax? If it’s too good or to weird to be true, it probably is. Even if you’d love it to be true, check it out. Sites such as The Onion, The Daily Current and the National Report present fake news as satire. Use snopes.com or urbanlegends.com to check it out if you’re not sure.

The Eleventh Commandment DO NOT PLAGIARIZE! This is easy to avoid. You just have to CITE YOUR SOURCES!

Computer-assisted reporting: Databases Articles: See Handout Many gvt agencies have databases of public records available to all citizens. These databases offer statistical data, public records, and spreadsheets to help with the reporting process.

Computer-Assisted Reporting: Crowdsourcing Using social media and other Internet-based tools, reporters can quickly gather information from a large group of people at once. Even more than other sources, crowd-sourced information should be thoroughly fact-checked prior to publication.

Crowdsourcing may be as simple as reporting what people are posting on social media sites about a given topic or event. Or it might be posing a question on Twitter and having followers respond. Computer-Assisted reporting: Crowdsourcing

Computer-assisted reporting: Crowdsourcing Storify – a social outlet that strings together Twitter and Facebook responses to a single topic. HootSuite – a social media dashboard that lets you monitor multiple social media accounts and search for keywords in various apps Google Forms – Found in the Google Drive, these forms let you use your social contacts to conduct polls or surveys.

Computer-assisted reporting: Open source journalism Like crowdsourcing, but with more control. Through blogs, social media and websites, journalists work with concerned citizens and others to gather information and data for a specific story or topic.

Computer-assisted reporting: Twitter feed Use a Twitter account to follow media sites, journalists, prominent individuals, entertainment industry, nonprofits, businesses, government organizations, school groups or whatever makes news in your community.

Expert Sources: Profnet journalists/ When you need an expert source, you can use this service. Target your query by geographic location, as well as someone who understands your topic. Make sure you prepare for this interview ahead of time!

Public Records Examples of public records: police reports, marriage and divorce records, health inspections, business licenses, property ownership, court proceedings, census data, campaign donations and consumer protection documents.

Public Records Within high schools, access to public records is based on local and state regulations. FERPA (Family Education Rights and Privacy Act) relates only to specific education records held by the school. Other records, such as overall test scores and police reports, should be available for public access.

-gives reporter feeling for reader’s general thoughts on topic -use as bkgd. material/for drawing conclusions -use results for transitions between quotes, sidebars, infographics Surveys/Polls

-done with direct sources -use primary/secondary sources -aim for for 3 sources per story -clears up confusion, confirms facts -get story-telling quotes for a story Interviews

Your Assignment: 1)Go online and find a news story that clearly uses background research, polls or surveys and interviews 2)Print out the story and underline/highlight a sample of each type of resource 3)For the interviews, find an example of a primary and secondary source