Category: Insights
Ideas from the ‘Radically Rural’ summit: Building a healthy media ecosystem through collaboration
There were several reasons that Terry Williams wanted The Keene Sentinel to help host a community journalism track at the Radically Rural summit. For one thing, he wanted to start […]
Lessons on building a podcast’s community, both online and offline, from Radio Ambulante
Jorge Caraballo believes in the importance of building a community when producing a podcast. Since 2017, from his home in Medellín, Colombia, Caraballo has performed the role of growth editor […]
Journalism schools need to focus on data, local news, social media and business models. Here are some that are.
It’s no secret that journalism is at a bit of a crossroads. With technology and media consumption habits changing constantly, the industry has been thrust into a state of near […]
Modeling networked media: Diagrams and graphics in John Wihbey’s The Social Fact
The conceptual black-and-white diagram, or idea-oriented infographic, goes back a long time in publishing design and storytelling. Many an academic or explanatory work has some kind of visual tucked away, […]
How to access APIs in R
APIs, or application program interfaces, are a way for people to access data in a plain text format using multiple programming languages. Many websites, organizations and services offer APIs for […]
News digests to the rescue?
A new report finds digests are an important part of the Z generation’s formula for staying current, but are they a panacea for “fake news,” or another Pandora’s Box? Sam […]
Newsroom automation, election forecasting and U.X. at the New York Times: Keynotes at C+J 2019.
Newsroom automation. Election forecasting. Personalized user experience. Three keynote speakers dove into these technological advances among the media industry’s top innovators at the 2019 Computation + Journalism Symposium in Miami […]
Six fascinating projects from the 2019 Computation + Journalism Symposium in Miami
How often is social media used as a source in news stories? Can a decision-tree algorithm generate tens-of-thousands of 250-word stories? And what is belief-driven data journalism? Those questions lie […]
Deepfakes are an occupational hazard for journalists. Beware.
There are many words to describe President Trump. “Expressive” is certainly one of them. But on January 8, during the border security address from the Oval Office, viewers of Seattle’s […]
Takeaways on data storytelling from the 2018 Tapestry Conference
The Tapestry Conference, an interactive online data storytelling event, was held last week for the 6th time at the University of Miami in Florida. Sponsored by Miami’s School of Communication […]
“Immigration has never stopped in the U.S.”
How do you edit a bilingual newspaper? What types of stories and issues does a newsroom like that cover? Who is your audience? Ling-Mei Wong, the editor of Sampan, the […]
Northeastern hackathon creates tools and stories to better understand food insecurity in Boston
Not every Boston neighborhood has equal access to healthy, affordable food. The city’s food system, in fact, is rife with vulnerabilities – from storm surges to food waste to transportation […]
Carlos Scheidegger on why data science needs to be done humanely
The bias inherent in machine learning algorithms and other computer systems is an issue that concerns many industries, including journalism. For example, reporters such as Julia Angwin – formerly with ProPublica […]
Behind the scenes with Galen Druke and FiveThirtyEight’s Politics podcast
The countdown begins. One week until the midterm elections. The politically curious are torturing themselves by hitting refresh on polling data and clinging to forecast updates from sites like FiveThirtyEight. […]
Takeaways on being a watchdog reporter from the 2018 Boston Watchdog Workshop
“We found new and fresh ways to look at an issue that many people had covered before, by not only gathering a lot of data that was already out there, […]
Ears to the pavement: What Bostonians are saying about the 2018 midterm elections
If you haven’t heard already, this midterm election cycle could be the most contentious yet. Many who oppose the choices of the current administration are praying for the prospect of […]
Some not-so-obvious ways to represent voter turnout data
With voter registration deadlines fast approaching – and some already past – social media has been filled with reminders urging those who are eligible to register and to make sure […]
How NHPR’s Outside/In podcast brings the natural world to you
When Sam Evans-Brown and the creative production unit at New Hampshire Public Radio sat down in 2013 for a staff meeting, a plan to create a podcast was engineered. The […]
For journalism students reporting on climate change, a self-taught lesson in teamwork
Recently I was faced with a dilemma. A speaking engagement I had agreed to was scheduled during the same time as my journalism class. How could I plan something more […]
Visualizing tumbling tumbleweeds – and storylines – in ‘The Big Lebowski’
In 1998, Joel and Ethan Coen’s cult classic The Big Lebowski inspired a community of fandom that remains fanatical even today, twenty years since its debut. A few years ago, […]
Talking to Tracy McGrady: How digital tools and a sharp eye helped me set up an interview with my childhood hero
They never said don’t call your heroes. If you’re writing an article about entertainment, athletics or even politics, your professors have probably told you, “In a perfect world, you’d talk […]
How one Pennsylvania station hopes to reinvent local TV news by embedding reporters in communities
Last month, a television station in Pennsylvania launched “Reporter Corps” – an ambitious initiative aimed at reinventing local TV news. PBS39/WLVT, which is based in Bethlehem, Pa., plans to hire […]
Using maps, kayaks and notebooks to understand the biodiversity and resilience of Boston’s coastline
On the campaign trail, presidential candidate Donald Trump talked a lot about revitalizing America’s crumbling infrastructure. Other issues, however, have since crowded out the monumental task of addressing this aging […]
Why the Massachusetts Daily Collegian is translating stories into other languages
Not even into her junior year the University of Massachusetts, Rebecca Duke Wiesenberg has already held a variety of positions at the student-run paper, the Massachusetts Daily Collegian. She’s been an op-ed […]
The importance of learning opinion writing today
In today’s tumultuous news cycle, what journalists have to say is crucial to readers. But often what’s expected from reporters goes beyond just the facts. Reporters are increasingly rewarded for […]
How the Center for Public Integrity is using surveys to report on tick-borne illness and climate change
With the northeastern United States on the brink of summer, bug spray will soon be flying off the shelves as hikers, bikers and others prepare for adventures outdoors. But, inevitably, […]
How shows like “Trump, Inc.” are making investigative podcasts great again
Andrea Bernstein recalls the brainstorming session that took place between ProPublica and WNYC, where she works as a senior editor for politics and policy, to try and decide how the two […]
Old dogs and new tricks: Tom Rosenstiel on reinventing local TV news
As “We Interrupt This Newscast,” one of the largest research projects about local television news, was on the eve of landing on bookshelves nearly a decade ago, Tom Rosenstiel, one […]
Will educators warm up to the learning possibilities of games like Assassin’s Creed?
Without a time machine, the world of ancient Egypt that most people know is a half-finished puzzle pieced together by egyptologists. Until now. The sun-dappled streets of Alexandria, ancient temples […]
China’s intranet fends off censored words through the Great Firewall
You know the internet as a seemingly infinite online environment ruled by openness and free expression. But in China, the internet is more like an intranet. What is an intranet? An […]