Data
Credit: Image: Justgrimes

When news breaks, data can be used to add context to a story and help journalists scoop the competition when it comes to sources and new information.

But when every second counts, how can you find that data and process it in the fastest way possible?

Speaking at the NICAR conference in Denver, Colorado, yesterday (March 10), John Keefe from WNYC – New York Public Radio, and Stephen Stock, an investigative reporter from NBC Bay Area News, shared tips that are useful for all journalists – whatever your beat.

Be ready before breaking news happens

Practice the skills you need to find, analyse, and present data so you can do it under pressure without cracking.

While it can be tricky to find time to learn a new skill, Stock says the most important thing is to practice little and often.

When travelling to an assignment, for example, he often splits the driving with a colleague so he can dig into a databases or two en route.

Have 'favourites' folders with quick sites to use in a hurry

Stock says he has "thousands" of favourite bookmarks and subfolders on his computer with data resources for specific types of breaking news such as hurricanes and plane crashes.

He advises carving 15 minutes out of each work day to build tools and resources you can use "when all hell breaks loose".

There are dozens of data resources for anything from aviation accidents to natural disasters at the end of this tip sheet for the NICAR session.

Some of the sites and tools recommended include Banjo, Geofeedia, and data.gov.

Know how to use your local data resources to get what you need

You might not be able to predict breaking news, but you can think about the type of incidents that might happen in your community.

Do you live in an area more prone to flooding, power outages, or chemical spills?

Find the databases that contain information which would be useful in these situations, and understand how to get what you need from them – before a story breaks.

When a crane collapsed in lower Manhattan earlier this year, the fire department was giving the address 40 Worth Street in response to all media enquiries, because that's where people had been injured.

However, WNYC cross-referenced the above photo with Google Street View and found the crane had actually been installed two blocks away.

"Because we're really familiar with the Buildings database at NYC, I was able to quickly put that address into the database and find the approved installation for this crane," explained Keefe.

Doing so bought up the permit-holder's name, address, and phone number before an official press conference was even held.

  • Follow @abigailedge on Twitter for more updates from NICAR on 11 March.
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