Computer-Assisted Reporting And Other Tools For Journalists
During the Rural Health Journalism Workshop, AHCJ Special Projects Director Jeff Porter participated in the panel “Data and mapping: Resources for visualizing rural health,” and he also led the computer-assisted reporting session.
“Both of these sessions had the same general theme—to provide journalists with information that can free them from their sole reliance on outside reports,” Porter said. “Attendees walked away with some valuable concepts and, in the case of the hands-on training session, practical tools. Computer-assisted reporting is a great equalizer, too—the computer doesn’t care whether the reporter is in Manhattan, N.Y., or Manhattan, Kan.”
Speakers for the Data and Mapping session included: Christopher Fulcher, director, Community Information Resource Center, University of Missouri's Rural Policy Research Institute; and Dave Poulson, associate director, Knight Center for Environmental Journalism, Michigan State University.
“Through different routes, they talked in detail about tools—from spreadsheets to databases, from mapping to online resources—that allow journalists to drive their own investigations,” Porter said. “Without waiting on government reports, reporters can use electronic information to find patterns and trends for covering health in their own communities. With these tools, the journalists can add a new level of authority to their reporting, serving their audiences in extraordinary ways.”Following the same theme, Porter’s computer-assisted reporting session was a guided introduction to using spreadsheet software to do basic calculations and find patterns and trends in health data. Using sample data from actual government Web sites, participants learned how to: calculate differences, percentages, rates and ratios; use functions; filter data; and create charts.
“Attendees came out of the training equipped with some good practices in dealing with data, as well as with a basic understanding of some basic references and in navigating spreadsheets,” Porter said. “The session was not merely a technical class, though – health journalism was always at the forefront, with discussion on how to apply those techniques to enhance reporting in print, broadcast or online.”
Jeff Porter
Jeff Porter
Special Projects Director
Association of Health Care Journalists
10 Neff Hall
Missouri School of Journalism
Columbia, MO 65211-1200
Phone: 573-884-5477
E-mail: jeff@healthjournalism.org