Lists as sources

Sometimes good story ideas fall in your lap (or show up in your email). The following is a post from the Criminal Justice Journalists listserv on Friday, 9/21/07:
If all goes according to plan, the FBI will put out its 2006 crime stats on Monday, 9/24/07.
Criminologist Richard Rosenfeld of the University of Missouri-St. Louis is working [...]

Do your homework

How can you avoid being suckered by sources or stampeded by the competition? Do your own homework. That’s the advice from Stuart Taylor of the National Journal. His book about the Duke lacrosse case, “Until Proven Innocent,” says the news media blew it. “Read the damn motions,” Taylor–who is also [...]

Think like a detective

Good advice from Bob Woodward of Watergate fame: Reporters should remember that investigative journalism is a lot like “what TV’s Columbo does.” Two stories from a new biography of Woodward and Carl Bernstein make the point. When the five burglars were arrested at the Watergate, Woodward asks,
What do you do? Do you [...]

Getting the data

Even when you know what you’re looking for, it’s often difficult to get access to the data you need. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel had to threaten a lawsuit to get a complete list of concealed weapons permits issued by the state. When they finally got it and compared it to the state’s list of [...]