Pulitzer winner Michael J. Berens of the Chicago Tribune teaches journalists how to find low-risk, high-impact investigative stories hiding in plain sight by analyzing data. This presentation -- Watchdog Reporting on a Budget -- was part of the DeKalb, Illinois, NewsTrain on Oct. 29-30, 2015. Please see associated handouts: Finding the Story, Journalism Project Checklist, and Web Tools - Finding Stories. He gave a similar presentation on Oct. 10-11, 2014, at Las Vegas NewsTrain. NewsTrain is a traveling workshop for journalists sponsored by Associated Press Media Editors. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/NewsTrain
16. How many children die outside of car seats?
How often do drivers to roll over a pedestrian?
How many children die in car accidents?
What’s the most dangerous intersection?
Do teens or seniors have more fatal crashes?
How many cop cars are involved in fatal
crashes?
How many involved police pursuits?
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20. How many victims are killed by strangers?
How many homicides involve domestic
violence?
What is the deadliest area of your region?
How many children are homicide victims?
What % of killings involve guns?
What kind of gun?
… any question you want
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21. A LESSON LEARNED
An editor’s question:
“What day of the week is the most
popular for police drug raids?”
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24. Most dangerous profession in your city or state?
Business with the most worker injuries?
Categories of injuries and deaths?
How many grain blasts each year?
Percentage tied to negligence?
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32. A health care professional was
administratively charged with sexual
misconduct with patients.
His punishment?
He was only allowed to treat women
age 50 or older (re: public record on
Washington Dept. of Health website).
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36. BREAKDOWN THE STORY –
FOLLOW THE PAPER
A source tells you that officers
assigned to an undercover police
unit, which investigates bars and
liquor violations, are getting
drunk on duty.
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43. Require reporters to write story memos
On breaking news, create a central file
Create a FOIA database
Hold regular watchdog meetings
Create a database library for the staff
Designate a database editor
Create a “story process”
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