Computer Assisted Reporting (CAR) may help the plight of the journalist by providing tools with which to verify data. By using statistical methods of analysis through computer programs such as excel and statistical packages may help in presenting data from databases in a more objective way – which could lead to the public trusting journalists more – surely a good thing.
Public records can be analysed, political and demographic change may be quantified using such tools, alongside geographic information system mapping. By using stats, the data will become more useful and can be backed up further with the more classical benefits of computers – email and research. It increases the efficiency of the journalist in terms of making meaningful conclusions in rapid time – good when working to deadline.
Clarence Jones of the Miami Herald worked in 1969 with CAR to find patterns in the criminal justice system. Bill Dedman of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution received a Pulitzer Prize in 1988 after CAR helped him in his investigation into mortgage lending redistribution in middle-income black neighbourhoods, The Color of Money.
It is argued the first use of CAR, however, was in 1952 when CBS used a UNIVAC computer to analyse the results from the US Presidential election. Over here in the UK, The Daily Telegraph presented a database for the UK election in November 2008.
Of course, the spiraling success and popularity of the internet has changed the way the media can interpret important information – not only supplying databases with raw material but also the tools to make this information come alive and make the story sing. The role of such analysis in investigative journalism, when the stakes may be higher and time tighter is evidently great. In 2007 the use of CAR increased yet further – with interactive maps strengthening data aggregation and presentation.
Adrian Holovaty is a key figure in database journalism – another way of describing CAR. He launched Chicagocrime.org in the US in 2005, where essentially wrote the basis of database journalism. A project of his, The Everyblock Project, aims to gather and present a myriad of data over 11 American cities. He was awarded $1,100,000 to assist with this by Knight News Challenge.
As a by product of CAR, several news organisations have released Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) – namely the BBC, the Guardian and the New York Times. An API allows the sharing of content through software programming – allowing further coagulation of information.
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