If you are looking to get started in data journalism, "don’t start by learning a technique for the sake of it", advises Paul Bradshaw, who runs the MA in Data Journalism and the MA in Multiplatform and Mobile Journalism at Birmingham City University.
He goes on to add that there are many things journalists could learn when it comes to telling stories with data, so you should instead "pick a problem that you face regularly, or a story idea that you have, and let that dictate the sorts of data journalism skills that you learn first".
In this post on his Online Journalism Blog, Bradshaw provides additional tips for reporters interested in data storytelling, as well as the three key technical skills beginners should explore: spreadsheet skills, data visualisation skills, and computational thinking, which is the "ability to break down a problem and attack each part logically".
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