Knowing how to write source code and manage data sets are skills no longer reserved for nerds; data journalism is a growing field in reporting. But, if you're not part of the (big) group of journalists that aren't familiar with coding, you can still take advantage of some digital tools to lessen the work behind a story.
Amy Webb didn’t have to look far for an example of how Spark Camp, an "un-conference" she helps organize, pulls disparate people together for an informal exchange of ideas and problem solving. Co-hosted by the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americasand the School of Journalism at the University of Texas at Austin, Spark Camp attracted an impressive variety of talented people to spend three days in January — in Austin — to ruminate on the crossroads of data and online journalism.
A military judge has recommended that Pfc. Bradley Manning, accused of leaking classified military documents to WikiLeaks, face a court martial, reported the Los Angeles Times on Thursday, Jan. 12.
Honduran freedom of expression NGO C-Libre accused a regional office of the Honduran National Commission of Human Rights (CONADEH) of restricting journalists from taking photos, videos, and interviewing immigrants held in a detention center in the city of Choluteca, in the south of the country.
Journalists have joined the growing list of groups opposed to the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) under consideration by the U.S. congress, according to the Washington Post.
In a landmark decision for the press, the Brazilian Supreme Court of Justice ruled that a suspect's "presumed innocence" does not impede the press from reporting critical facts about the case.
A Guatemalan sports reporter claimed that a member of the board of directors of the Cobán Imperial soccer team tried to prevent him from entering the stadium to cover a game.
On Nov. 28, federal officials kept a reporting team from the Venezuelan television network Globovisión from covering a meeting between President Hugo Chávez and Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos in the capital Caracas, reported the Press and Society Institute (IPYS in Spanish).
On Thursday, Dec. 1, WikiLeaks published its latest document trove: more than 287 files related to 160 intelligence contracting companies in 25 countries that "develop technologies to allow the tracking and monitoring of individuals by their mobile phones, email accounts and Internet browsing histories," reported AFP.
With President Dilma Rousseff's signature on Friday, Nov. 18, Brazil became the 89th country in the world to approve a freedom of information law, reported the Forum of Public Information Access. The law, which guarantees public access to government data and documents as well as private entities that receive public funding, will take effect in six months.