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WATCHDOG REPORTING
ON A BUDGET
LOW-RISK, HIGH-IMPACT STORIES
MICHAEL J. BERENS | CHICAGO TRIBUNE | @MJBERENS1
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MEET MY EDITOR
– A GUY WHO
THOUGHT A
SPECIAL
PROJECT WAS
SOMETHING
THAT TOOK TWO
HOURS INSTEAD
OF ONE.
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Not every story is your story
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Do not begin with a noun.
Nouns are not stories.
PROJECT CHECKLIST
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Text for slides is ARIAL (BODY)
36 PT
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Quantify
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He said.
She said.
Now, I’m going to tell you
who’s telling the truth.
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COLLECT THE TOOLS
OF THE TRADE
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Find enterprise and
watchdog stories in your
own publication or
broadcast.
FAA ACCIDENT DATA
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL 9/15/14
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FATALITY ANALYSIS REPORTING
SYSTEM
DAILY HERALD 1O/24/15
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It remains one of the
worst grade crossing
crashes in U.S. history.
FATALITY ANALYSIS REPORTING
SYSTEM
ST. CLOUD TIMES 3/21/15
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How many children die outside of car seats?
How often do drivers to roll over a pedestrian?
How many children die in car accidents?
What’s the most dangerous intersection?
Do teens or seniors have more fatal crashes?
How many cop cars are involved in fatal
crashes?
How many involved police pursuits?
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Powerful and exclusive
stories are derived from
databases that you
create.
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CREATE STORIES
BELLEVILLE-NEWS DEMOCRAT 10/24/15
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CREATE STORIES
WNIJ AND WNIU NORTHERN PUBLIC RADIO 10/19/15
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How many victims are killed by strangers?
How many homicides involve domestic violence?
What is the deadliest area of your region?
How many children are homicide victims?
What % of killings involve guns?
What kind of gun?
… any question you want
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A LESSON LEARNED
An editor’s question:
“What day of the week is the most
popular for police drug raids?”
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OSHA DATA
PEORIA JOURNAL STAR 9/18/14
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Most dangerous profession in your city or state?
Business with the most worker injuries?
Categories of injuries and deaths?
How many grain blasts each year?
Percentage tied to negligence?
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STORIES HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT
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STORIES HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT
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http://old.seattletimes.com/elephants/
STORIES IN PLAIN SIGHT
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A health care professional was
administratively charged with sexual
misconduct with patients.
His punishment?
He was only allowed to treat women
age 50 or older (re: public record on
Washington Dept. of Health website).
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http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/licensetoharm/index.php?allRecords=
true
FINDING
DEADLY
GERMS
AND DIRTY
HOSPITALS
http://www.seattletimes.co
m/seattle-news/how-our-
hospitals-unleashed-a-
mrsa-epidemic/
BREAKDOWN THE STORY –
FOLLOW THE PAPER
A source tells you that officers
assigned to an undercover police
unit, which investigates bars and
liquor violations, are getting
drunk on duty.
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WWW.IGNET.GOV
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https://www.ignet.gov/content/inspectors-general-directory
Require reporters to write story memos
On breaking news, create a central file
Create a FOIA database
Hold regular watchdog meetings
Create a database library for the staff
Designate a database editor
Create a “story process”
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WWW.IRE.ORG
Searchable Story Database (26,000+)
Searchable Tipsheet Database (4,000+)
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http://www.ire.org/membership/
UNLEASH YOUR WATCHDOG
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