Methodology
8 Ways Journalists Can Access Academic Research for Free
A lot of academic research exists behind paywalls. The Journalist’s Resource outlines eight ways reporters can get free access to high-quality scholarship.
A lot of academic research exists behind paywalls. The Journalist’s Resource outlines eight ways reporters can get free access to high-quality scholarship.
When news outlets report that new research studies prove something, they’re almost certainly wrong. They find evidence — sometimes, extraordinarily strong evidence. It’s important journalists understand that science is an ongoing process of collecting and interrogating evidence, with each new discovery building on or raising questions about earlier discoveries.
Academic research is a crucial tool for investigating societal problems and holding the powerful accountable. Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Neil Bedi, criminologist Rachel Lovell, and Denise-Marie Ordway of The Journalist’s Resource share practical advice on using academic research in investigative journalism.
What’s the global data journalism community tweeting about this week? Our NodeXL #ddj mapping from November 25 to December 1 finds The New York Times profiling Bellingcat and its use of OSINT techniques; the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and Stanford University collaborating to employ artificial intelligence to solve a journalistic problem; and the Science Communication Lab creating a beautiful interactive scientific poster to explore the world’s oceans.
What’s the global data journalism community tweeting about this week? Our NodeXL #ddj mapping from June 3 to 9 finds @sto3psl mapping places the Avengers visited in Europe, @fedfragapane visualizing which elements in the periodic table are in danger of running out, @srfdata highlighting the top worries of the Swiss and @propublica doing researchers and journalists a huge public service by making 3 million US nonprofit records text-searchable.
Fraudulent, plagiarized or otherwise shoddy research is an increasing problem across all scientific disciplines — particularly in China — and can catch like wildfire. Australian Professor Jennifer Byrne and her French colleague Cyril Labbé, as well as projects like Retraction Watch, are fighting back.
What’s the global data journalism community tweeting about this week? Our NodeXL #ddj mapping from April 2 to 8 finds an alarming piece by @iamdylancurran on how much data Facebook and Google have actually gleaned from us, @OCCRP’s powerful database of public records and leaks, @davidottewell’s take on the evolution of data journalism and an investigation by @TheInterceptBr into the militias in Rio de Janeiro.