The document outlines the basics of data journalism, highlighting the process of creating databases from various data sources and utilizing tools like Excel for analysis. It emphasizes the importance of understanding and organizing data fields, as well as the value of thorough investigations to uncover significant stories. Additional resources for journalists and strategies for effective data utilization are also suggested.

1. Data Journalism 101
(Part II)
Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business
Journalism at ASU
Michael J. Berens – The Seattle Times

3. Meet my editor – a
guy who thought a
special project was
something that took
two hours instead
of one

4. Database types
• Obtained from a public agency or other
institutional source (Part I)]
• Scrapped from the web or digital document –
copy and paste (Part I)
• Created from scratch using any mixture of
paper records
• Hybrid data analysis – layering existing data
with your own database

5. Poll Question:
Have you ever created a
database from scratch?

6. Every database begins with a
single cell

7. Cells, fields and headers, oh my

8. Segregation is good
Address number from street name
Middle initial from first name
First name from last name

9. Basic fields

12. Bad
Sorry, dude

13. Good
Not bad, grasshopper

14. Better
Brilliant. You rock!

15. Hiding in plain sight
• 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 posted on Wa. Dept. of
Health website)

16. Basic Fields
•
License #
•
Name
•
Occupation
•
Offense type
•
Dates of action
•
Sexual misconduct; unprofessional conduct; moral
turpitude

19. Paper to Excel

20. Paper to Excel

21. Poll Question:
What is your suggestion
for a unique field?

24. Tapping the power of Excel
• Sorting
• Filtering
• Basic calculations

26. Pick the column

27. Alphabetized by name

28. Filtering

29. Chevron marks

30. Filtered by profession

31. Calculations
• Always begins with an equal
sign
• Basic math structure using
names of cells
• =A1+A2

34. Data training resources
Investigative Reporters and Editors:
www.ire.org
http://www.ire.org/nicar/
Reynolds Center
http://businessjournalism.org
http://businessjournalism.org/registration/llc/

35. Keep the trash – everything has value

36. Look for signature cases

39. The strategy
• Get the basic data
• Get the basic files
• Create a spreadsheet – add on
categories
• Dive deeper for paper records –
understand the system

40. Elephants and zoos

42. Adult family homes

44. The federal government has launched a grant
program that pays states to relocate seniors.
They call it “rebalancing.”
Poll Question:
What would you do with
this information?

47. Develop your nose for data