by Brant Houston
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See the table of contents, supplementary materials and exercises.
From surfing the Internet for data to number crunching in spreadsheets and database managers, Computer-Assisted Reporting is the most practical introduction to the data analysis skills that journalists need to succeed in today's newsrooms. This edition expands the highly-regarded basic skills instruction and offers more advice on how to write better news stories. Brant Houston's extensive newsroom and teaching experience make this text easy to use as a core text or as a supplement in an introductory news reporting and writing course.
Features
Supplementary exercises for each chapter allow journalists to practice what they are learning, and links to related Web sites that offer additional resources.
Comprehensive and current technical coverage gives students a solid foundation in the basics of computer-assisted reporting (CAR). Computer-Assisted Reporting shows journalists how to find data on the Internet, use spreadsheets and database managers, build databases, and clean "dirty data" to analyze information faster and better.
Field-tested reporting and writing advice helps students transform raw data into polished news stories. Alongside the technical instruction and examples are suggestions for how to use CAR skills in daily and beat reporting and across the news media.
A practical emphasis ensures students will learn the CAR skills they need to succeed on the job. Illustrated tutorials, real-life examples, and clear writing prevent students from getting confused. Over 250 screenshots let students compare what they read in the book to what they do on their screens while the examples underscore the utility and power of CAR.
End-of-chapter and online exercises offer students abundant opportunities for practice. The exercises in "Your Turn to Practice" and online reinforce the skills demonstrated in the text.
New to This Edition
New "CAR Wars" boxes showcase working journalists using computer-assisted reporting skills. Drawn from the National Institute of Computer-Assisted Reporting's newsletter "Uplink," these anecdotes reveal how indispensable computer-assisted reporting skills have become.
New organization progressively builds computer-assisted reporting skills. The new order of chapters makes it easier for beginners to focus first on the most fundamental computer-assisted reporting skills and applications.
New supplemental chapters on spreadsheets and database managers covers the many uses of these essential CAR tools in greater detail. This edition provides four chapters of tutorials, advice, and practice on spreadsheets and database managers, more than any other CAR textbook.
New emphasis on CAR's place in the news writing and reporting process underscores how data is used to write better news stories. The third edition includes more instruction on how to accurately and ethically turn data into sources, story ideas, and finished stories.
New appendices give an overview of advanced computer-assisted reporting skills. After students learn the fundamentals, they can refer to the Professional's Appendices for introductions to hardware and software selection, statistical software, mapping software, and social networking software.
New reference features make Computer-Assisted Reporting even easier to use. Bolded key terms in the text and an updated glossary help students understand and remember important technical vocabulary. The Selected Bibliography offers a comprehensive list of CAR resources.
More resources and books from Bedford/St. Martin's, publisher of Computer-Assisted Reporting: A Practical Guide