Wednesday, June 23, 2004

Using Computers to, uh... Compute With all this blogging about computers as publishing tools, these two items from Extra! Extra! are a good reminder that computers can be tools for finding a story as well as telling the story, whether the final product is going to be in print, on TV or on a weblog: Wealthy schools win championships. Erik Brady and MaryJo Sylwester of USA Today built a database of high school sports champions in 27 states, finding that public schools in the wealthiest neighborhoods win state team championships at more than twice the rate of less-wealthy schools. City residents must go farther for cheap groceries. Sharon Smith and Joan Concilio of the York Daily Record used Census data and mapping software to pinpoint the location of grocery stores, finding that city residents have to travel further to shop, especially for cheaper prices. Extra! Extra! is a newsletter from Investigative Reporters and Editors, an organization that also gives workshops and provides online resources for computer-assisted reporting, including how to use databases and statistical tools on the job. 10:45:29 PM    comment []

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