What’s standard deviation? 4 things journalists need to know
Not sure what ‘standard deviation’ is or why it matters in academic research? We outline four key things journalists need to know about this common measure.
Know Your Research
Tip sheets and explainers to help journalists understand academic research methods, find and recognize high-quality research, and avoid missteps when reporting on new studies and public opinion polls
Expert Commentary
Story ideas from the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book: July 2022
The Beige Book offers a high-level glimpse of current economic sentiment across the country. We reveal story ideas from the July 2022 release, including well-insured pets in San Francisco and a home equity loan slump in Philadelphia.
Expert Commentary
5 things journalists need to know about statistical significance
Statistical significance is a highly technical, nuanced mathematical concept. Journalists who cover academic research should have a basic understanding of what it represents and the controversy surrounding it.
Expert Commentary
Story ideas from the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book: March 2022
The Beige Book offers a high-level glimpse of current economic sentiment across the country. We reveal story ideas from the March release, including zombie home rehabs in New York, an RV boom in New England and planting decision dilemmas in America’s breadbasket.
Expert Commentary
White papers, working papers, preprints, journal articles: What’s the difference?
In this updated piece, we explain the most common types of research papers journalists will encounter, noting their strengths and weaknesses.
Expert Commentary
‘Using Academic Research to Keep Politicians Honest’: A video training for journalists across beats
This recording of our 50-minute training session shows journalists how research can be a powerful tool for holding governments and politicians accountable and fighting disinformation.
Expert Commentary
How different are preprints from their published versions? 2 studies have some answers
Both studies find that most COVID-19 research papers don’t drastically change between the time they are posted on a preprint server and when they’re published in an academic journal.
Expert Commentary
Covering scientific consensus: What to avoid and how to get it right
Three researchers explain how journalists can use scientific consensus to bolster their coverage and battle misinformation about public policy topics.
Expert Commentary
5 tips for avoiding mistakes in news headlines about health and medical research
Prominent science journalists Deborah Blum, Cristine Russell and Brooke Borel offer advice to help newsrooms avoid common mistakes in writing headlines about health and medical research.
Expert Commentary
Story ideas from the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book: Sept. 2021
The Beige Book offers a high-level glimpse of current economic sentiment across the bank’s 12 districts. We reveal story ideas from the September release, including the flipside of the global microchip shortage that’s hurting auto sales, “belligerent customers” and more.
Expert Commentary