Category: Fall2019

Posted on

Jour 405v – Jour 5283 Fall 2019 Schedule

Week #15: Multimedia

Tableau Queen

Megan Putney, Mike’s Hard Lemonade
https://training.uark.edu/professional-development/courses/tableau.php

Almost there!

Soft launch of project

  1. Hold off on social media promotion until you get the go-ahead email from me. Other professors doing check.
  2. Review the stories. Check for gaps, missing stories, etc.
  3. Stories still pending: Baird, Bonner, Duby, Fracchia/Tillson, Ramirez

What you have learned this semester

You can put this on your resume:
–Proficiency in basic Tableau
–Proficiency in Excel
–Basic training in data analysis and visualization
–Multimedia production in WordPress

Data Cleaning and Joining Exercise


–You will join the CollegeScorecard data with 2017 Census Data with the average household income
The goal is to compare the average student debt in a college to the income in the surrounding town.
This in-class task will stretch over two class sessions, unless you are a DATA KING OR QUEEN
This exercise builds on the data analysis, cleaning and visualization skills you learned this semester.



Task 1: Retrieve the Census Data
Use Excel
–Examine the data dictionary.
–Examine the data, the range of incomes and number of cities, towns and places
–Create a copy of the Census sheet for the data cleaning

Task 2: Data Cleaning
You will need to match the town in the Census to the city in College Scorecard.
Look at the “city” column in the College Scorecard data: ARDebt17_10_23.csv
–Tip: Data cleaning tools in Excel: Text to columns and find and replace

Task 3: Joining
–Join the Census data to the ARDebt17_10_23.csv in Tableau
–Chart the Income and the Grad debt by the 10 largest public schools

Task 4: Analysis
–Construct a Ratio of Grad Debt to Per Capita Income. Map it

Data Literacy – Number in the Newsroom Exercises
–Reversing Percent Differences
–Adjust for Inflation
–Weighted Averages

Numbers in the Newsroom ExercisesDownload

Embedding Video, Photos in Tableau Workbooks

Build Animated Student Loan Graphic – Make Screen Video – Add to Posts

Look at the data structure: Tidy Data

1) Process Data (2008-2016)
–R Demonstration using Student Loan Data Management 10-15-19.R
—Examine Combined Data
2) Build Animated Student Loan Debt, 2008-16
3) Screen video
4) Embed in post, loop, autoplay

Embedding Videos in Tableau
https://kb.tableau.com/articles/howto/adding-embedded-videos-to-dashboards

Add video to published Razorback Reporter stories
https://razorbackreporter.uark.edu/student-loans-in-arkansas/

New York Semester. Tuesday, Dec. 3, 3:30 p.m., Student Media Conference Room


Spend a semester learning from top-notch journalism faculty and interning at a news media organization in the journalism capital of America. Led by Wall Street Journal veteran Professor Paul Glader and New York Daily News veteran Professor Clemente Lisi, the NYC Semester in Journalism (NYCJ) program includes newsroom visits to outlets such as BuzzFeed, The Wall Street Journal, The Associated Press and ProPublica. Students in the program have interned at outlets such as The New York Daily News, The Brooklyn Paper and Newsweek. They have heard from journalists from outlets such as The New York Times, SkyNews and Reuters. Studying with professors who are deeply rooted in Christian faith, NYCJ students cultivate their commitment to the truth and the skill to tell it well. https://www.tkc.edu/nycs

Course Evaluation

  1. Check for an e-mail with instructions on how to access the evaluation .
  2. These are important to the future of this class: I use these to modify and improve the course
  3. They are important in shaping departmental and program curriculum.
  4. The online evaluations are confidential. Results won’t be reported until final grades have been submitted.

Census Data
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/census-data-download-and-cleaning/
Filtering
Reading Data Dictionaries

WordPress details
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/wordpress/

Build a Cover Image Using Canva or InDesign or Powerpoint
https://www.canva.com/



Week #16: Multimedia, Project #3

10-Dec  DataViz Multimedia Production 

How We Did It
–Collaborate to write a 500 word essay telling readers what we studied and how we performed the analysis
–We need to tell people the data sources used, the software tools employed, the literature reviewed, the range of interviews. Consult the projects page to learn what your classmates did or ask them.
–Post URL ]links for all data you used for your graphics, stories. If you modified data, post the spreadsheet. Make sure it is clean because we will be releasing this to the public.
–See this essay for guidance: https://wordpressua.uark.edu/workingandpoor/how-we-did-it/


CoursEval

Last Day of Class

WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNED: 
End of Semester Review
You can put this on your resume and in your job cover letters. You have learned:
–Basic data analysis. Continuous vs discreet variables. Managing versions of complex government datasets. Understanding data dictionaries. 
–Excel, file types, cleaning, intermediate functions such as pivot tables and =vlookup
–Tableau. Static graphics. Interactive graphics. Calculated fields. Grouping. Workbooks. Story books. Exporting multiple file types to web. Using source code for blogs
–Data visualization. Best practices in design, labeling and data presentation.
–R. Introduction to R. Importing data. Joining datasets. Creating basic visualization. Basic calculations. Exporting calculations to Excel, WordPress
–WordPress. Managing posts, projects. Building interactive graphics using embed code. Creating multimedia presentations using text, data and graphics. Divi builder
–In sum, you have learned the basic workflow in a modern digital newsroom.

Past Classes

Week #1: Excel, Data

Class Work:
Intro Excel w Exercise #1

Link for Today’s Course:
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/basic-excel-introduction-to-data/

  1. Talk
  2. Syllabus and course overview
  3. Email to students
  4. Review NICAR Coursepack.
  5. Work with Excel

Write a minimum three paragraphs about yourself.
–What is your journalism background?
–Who are you? Where are you from?
–What do you read and watch, and why?
–What do you want from this class? 
–Do you have any nervousness about taking a data class? Why?


Read:
1) NICAR Coursepack
2) Sheffo, Catherine. “How to Avoid 10 Common Mistakes in Data Reporting.” 
American Press Institute (blog), August 9, 2016. https://www.americanpressinstitute.org/publications/data-reporting-common-mistakes/

Write two paragraphs total on the Sheffo article and discuss two items that impressed you the most and explain why.

Due Wednesday, Aug 28, 11:59 pm on Blackboard. “Homework for Aug. 28”

  1. Review homework
  2. Elena’s mouse hack
  4. Continue with NICAR Coursepack.

Link for Today’s Course:
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/basic-excel-introduction-to-data/

Refresher on Mac OSX operating system

Here is a short video course that you can skim through and get up to speed on how to use the Apple operating system, OSX.
https://www.linkedin.com/learning/macos-mojave-essential-training/understand-macos-the-foundation-of-working-with-a-mac?u=50849081
I would hammer through the following as soon as possible.
Chs. 1, 3 are important
Chapter 2: Finder will be crucial.
Ch. 5 on downloading from the web is important

Ch. 4, 13 should be skimmed
Chs 6-11 aren’t important for our class


End of Semester Review 
Beginning of Semester Preview
You can put this on your resume and in your job cover letters. You have learned:
–Basic data analysis. Continuous vs discreet variables. Managing versions of complex government datasets. Understanding data dictionaries. 
–Excel, file types, cleaning, intermediate functions such as pivot tables and =vlookup
–Tableau. Static graphics. Interactive graphics. Calculated fields. Grouping. Workbooks. Story books. Exporting multiple file types to web. Using source code for blogs
–Data visualization. Best practices in design, labeling and data presentation.
–R. Introduction to R. Importing data. Joining datasets. Creating basic visualization. Basic calculations. Exporting calculations to Excel, WordPress
–WordPress. Managing posts, projects. Building interactive graphics using embed code. Creating multimedia presentations using text, data and graphics. Divi builder
–In sum, you have learned the basic workflow in a modern digital newsroom.

Excel Proficiency: entering data, cursors, formatting, sum, average, median, change, percent change
Skills: Data Dictionary, Part 1
Skills: Organize Your Data. Finder, Storage, File Organization
Intro Excel, WordPress
Exercise 2, tuition

Basic Excel: http://www.interhacktives.com/2015/11/02/quick-tips-excel-google-sheets/

Follow and complete the tasks in the Exericse 2 of the NICAR course pack, analyzing change in tuition. Use the University of Arkansas data from the College Navigator website.

Submit Excel spreadsheet and a brief two-paragraph discussion highlighting your findings on a Blackboard discussion post. Answer these questions.

Analyze the estimated tuition, fees and living expenses data for students to help you answer the questions below. Total expenses include the Room and Board and Other and Books and Supplies. The two living scenarios will be on-campus and off-campus; disregard off campus with family.


1) How much would an in-state student expect to pay for the 2018-2019 school year?
2) How much would an out-of-state student expect to pay for the 2018-2019 school year?
3) How much more did out-of-students pay in 2018-2019 than in-state students?
4) Which category increased the most from the 2015-2016 to the 2018-2019 school years? Raw change? Percent
change?
5) Write a lead for a story based on your analysis.
6) What other information and/or sources would help you finish this story?

3-Sep Basic Excel
Learning Goals:
Excel Proficiency: entering data, cursors, formatting, sum, average, median, change, percent change

“Cohen, “Numbers in the Newsroom”
Analyzing Change
WordPress
Exercise 4 Rates and Ratios
Student Loan Data.
Class practice: FBI Crime in Arkansas

Link for Today’s Course:
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/basic-excel-introduction-to-data/

Link for The Week's Course:
Excel and Data
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/basic-excel-introduction-to-data/

How to Lie With Statistics

https://www.datasciencecentral.com/profiles/blogs/how-to-lie-with-visualizations-statistics-causation-vs

Reading: 
Confirmation Bias 
https://www.datasciencecentral.com/profiles/blogs/the-deadly-data-science-sin-of-confirmation-bias

Overview from Paul Bradshaw on basic data journalism. Three chords
https://github.com/paulbradshaw/MED7373-Data-Journalism/blob/master/1basics/dj3chords.md

Announcements:
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/rome-center-study-abroad/

5-Sep Basic Excel
Exercise 5: Crime Rates and Ratios. FBI data for Arkansas
Quiz: Basic Excel. See Blackboard. Quiz due Saturday, Sept. 7
File Management
FBI Crime Data for Arkansas
Data Dictionary: Uniform Crime Reporting, Read General Resources

https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2017/crime-in-the-u.s.-2017


https://ucr.fbi.gov/
– A Word About UCR Data 
– UCR Statistics: Their Proper Use (pdf)

Gather in groups, read the data dictionary, produce questions
Gather Data For All Arkansas Cities, All Crimes

Table 8 | Offenses Known to Law Enforcement by State by City, 2017
https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2017/crime-in-the-u.s.-2017

–Select all areas for Arkansas
–Select all crimes
–Download for 2017.

Do the same for 2013 offenses
https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s
https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2013/crime-in-the-u.s.-2013/tables/table-8/table_8_offenses_known_to_law_enforcement_by_state_by_city_2013.xls/view


Build two separate spreadsheets with the 2013 and 2017 data. 
Calculate violent crime rates per capita for 2013 and 2017.
Answer the following questions with short answers and then upload your completed spreadsheet.
Your completed spreadsheet must have a data dictionary tab describing the name, date and URLs of the data source.

Read Data Journalism Handbook, Ch 1-3: 

https://datajournalism.com/read/handbook/two

After reading this material, please write three paragraphs examining the Broken Homes project produced by Al Jazerra: 
Megan O’Toole et al., ‘Broken Homes: A Record Year of Home Demolitions in Occupied East Jerusalem
’, Al Jazeera, 2017. See Blackboard discussion for instructions.

Excel Quiz Due Sept. 7, 11:59 p.m.

For Jour 5283:
Summarize key points in Data Journalism Handbook readings, Ch 1-3. Four paragraphs max.

Week #3: Data, Tableau

 Review Quiz
Filtering
Pivot Tables
Numbers in the Newsroom
Numeracy; Filtering
Homework - discussion questions

File and Data Management
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/organize-your-data/

Link for this week:
File and Data Management
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/organize-your-data/

Exercise Filtering: Crime Rates and Ratios
–Find Average Crime Rate Statewide
–Filter above and below average

–Find Average Population
–Filter above and below average

NICAR coursepack: Pivot Tables

In class exercise: MLB Salaries
QUESTIONS
1) Did the National League or the American League pay more in salaries? Who has the higher average salary?
2) Which division pays the most in salaries? The least?
3) Which team had the most players on the roster?



In-class exercise WorldBank
Using the WorldBank data , build a Pivot Table.

–Trick:  Shift+Ctrl+8 
–Produce a list ranking the countries with the most companies disbarred, sorted descending. Copy the results and paste into a new tab.
–Produce a list of the firms that have more than one disbarment, sorted descending. Copy the results and paste into a new tab.
What is the most common violation, and how many times did it occur?

Cohen, Sarah. Numbers in the Newsroom: Using Math and Statistics in News. 2nd ed. Columbia, Mo.: Investigative Reporters & Editors Inc., 2014. Figuring Rates – Numbers in Newsroom

Read AP chapter on data journalism


12-Sep Rates and Ratios – Tableau
Exploratory Data Analysis

Part 2 Data Dictionary
Tableau: https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/tableau-license/

Introduction to College Scorecard Data: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/data/

Read Overview from Paul Bradshaw on basic data journalism. 
https://github.com/paulbradshaw/MED7373-Data-Journalism/blob/master/1basics/dj3chords.md

Meyer, “New Precision Journalism,” Ch. 1-2

Homework for Sept. 11
Discussion questions

Cohen, Sarah. Numbers in the Newsroom: Using Math and Statistics in News. 2nd ed. Columbia, Mo.: Investigative Reporters & Editors Inc., 2014. 
Cohen Figuring Rates Numbers in Newsroom.pdf 

Cohen Numbers in Newsroom – Common mistakes.pdf 
Write a paragraph with at least two questions or observations.

Read AP chapter on data journalism

Write one paragraph with major findings in this reading.


Data management
Show me a screenshot of your data diary and a screen shot of your Finder path showing the file folders for your external drive.


Homework for Sept. 14
#1. Read Ch. 6, Chapter 6 The Truthful Art
Post two discussion questions on Blackboard


#2. Read “New Precision Journalism” Ch 1-2
Meyer writes: “Precision journalism threatened the twin traditions of journalistic passivity and journalistic innocence.” What does he mean by that? What are the implications of this? Write a paragraph to answer the questions.


#3: Construct chart from student loan data: Median Debt by Graduated Students. Post a .jpeg file (screen grab is fine) and two sentences with key findings or questions for further reporting. Due 11:59 pm Sept 14 on Blackboard

Week #4: Tableau

Basic Data Visualization principles
Reading data dictionary
Student Loan Data -Data Dictionary
Pivot Tables
Tableau

Review Homework Questions

Basic Data Visualization Principles
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/data-visualization/

Tableau: https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/tableau-license/

Introduction to College Scorecard Data: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/data/

Definitions:
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/assets/FullDataDocumentation.pdf

1) Examine definitions on Full Data Documentation and CollegeScorecardDataDictionary.
INSTNM
CITY
STABBR
ZIP
UGDS
UGDS_WHITE
UGDS_BLACK
UGDS_HISP
UGDS_ASIAN
GRAD_DEBT_MDN

2) Build Tableau bar chart, enrollment by race, schools with 5,000 or more students.

College Scorecard Data

Class Exercise on College Scorecard Data:

Review MERGED2017_18_PP-ARKONLY
–This comes from https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/data/
–Filtered Arkansas from National Data
–Question: How many columns? How many rows?
–Column headings defined in Data Dictionary

One bite at a time!

Review Data Dictionary.
–Filter dev-category on data-dictionary tab
–Review the categories.
–Tell us how many items per category
–Identify 1 or 2 items by VARIABLE NAME from each that you consider important for telling a story about student loans.
–Share with the class.
–Put categories on Sticky Notes. 
–Build Filtered Spreadsheet

For example:
dev-category: school
–15 items
–TUITFTE is tuition revenue per fte. Looks useful to see the amount of money per staff person at school



Row 1: academics, admission
Row 2: aid, completion
Row 3: cost, earnings
Row 4: repayment, student

Create Tableau chart, top 10 schools by student race/ethnicity:
Chart 1: White schools
Chart 2: African-American schools
Chart 3: Hispanic schools
Chart 4: White, black, hispanic, asian
–Columns SUM(Ugds White) SUM(Ugds Black) etc
–Sort by individual columns

Issues:
Format Labels from “Sum of Ugds White” to White

Ditto for Black, Hispanic, Asian

Wrap the labels: Mouse between rows, expand the spacing – make the rows fatter
Format | Wrap On

Create Tableau chart, create ratio Grad_Debt_Mdn/Enrollment per school

Create Excel Sheet, ARDebt9-17, with the Following Fields

UNITID
INSTNM
CITY
STABBR
ZIP
CONTROL

(Enrollment and Demographics)
UGDS
UGDS_WHITE
UGDS_BLACK
UGDS_HISP
UGDS_ASIAN

(Debt and Income and Gender)
GRAD_DEBT_MDN
LO_INC_DEBT_MDN
MD_INC_DEBT_MDN
HI_INC_DEBT_MDN


FEMALE_DEBT_MDN
MALE_DEBT_MDN
FIRSTGEN_DEBT_MDN
NOTFIRSTGEN_DEBT_MDN
GRAD_DEBT_N
WDRAW_DEBT_N

PELL_DEBT_MDN
NOPELL_DEBT_MDN
LOAN_EVER
PELL_EVER


Part 3:
Class Exercise: Student Loans – Pivot Table
Analyze Student Loan Data
Sort the Data:
-Sort by Schools with Largest Enrollment. Write a text answer with the top five schools by enrollment.
-Sort by Schools with Highest Median Debt for Graduates. Write a text answer with the top five schools by Median Debt for Graduates.
-Sort by Schools with Highest Median Debt for Student Who Withdrew. Write a text answer with the top five schools byHighest Median Debt for Student Who Withdrew.

Homework for Sept 18
Finish class exercise for College Scorecard Data


Homework for Sept. 21
New data table.
1. Build the new Excel sheet, ARDebt9-17, with the columns as described above. Create a data dictionary. Upload to Blackboard.

Create the following charts in Tableau:
2. Top 10 schools with the most low income debtors and high income debtors. Create jpg, upload to Blackboard

3. Top 10 schools with highest median debt for females, highest for males. Create jpg, upload to Blackboard

4. Write 250 words with your analysis of this data and propose one story idea.

Answers due 11:59 pm Sept. 21 on Blackboard 

Wall Street Journal reporter Gary Fields visits with University of Maryland business journalism students

Week #5: Online Class – Tableau

Sept. 24 and 26: Online Classes. Wells not in town. See instructions below.

Calculations in Tableau

See Video, Getting Started With Tableau Calculations
Follow the exercises in the sample workbook

See the transcript for guidance.

Homework Question #1:
Create a calculated field that divides the profits into sales, which we will call profit-sales ratio.
Build a chart that displays the profits-sales ratio by Sub-Category, or tables, machines, fasteners etc.
Sort that chart with the highest profit items on top. Format the axis in dollars, label the bars in dollars.
Write a headline.
Upload a .jpeg into Blackboard.

Homework Question #2:
Use ARDebt9-17 data
Create a histogram plotting the median debt for Arkansas colleges
Label the colleges (don’t worry, only a portion of the colleges will display. That’s ok)
Write a headline.
Upload a .jpeg into Blackboard.

Homework Question #3: Draft story pitch
See Assignment #1 on Blackboard.
Team Up. Use ARDebt9-17 data .


–Female-Male Debt. Top / Bottom 10 schools with greatest gap between female and male debt. 
Kirsten Baird, Coleman Bonner, Abby Zimmardi

–Low income-High Income Debt Gap. Top / Bottom  10 schools with most low-income student debt. Schools with the biggest gap between low and high income students.
Kate Duby, Hanna Ellington

–First Generation Debt as a Percentage of All Grad Debt. Top / Bottom  10 schools with the most first generation student debt and percentage of all grad debt.
Mary Fracchia, Elena Ramirez

–Withdrawals as Percentage of All People With Debt. Top / Bottom  10 schools 
Abbi Ross, Parker Tillson

Jour 5283:
–Low income-High Income Debt Gap. First Generation Students Debt Trends. Top 10 / bottom public schools with Non-White Enrollment
Brooke Borgognoni, Emily Thompson
 
Create graphics. Propose a story idea. Each student interviews one person for the assignment. 

Each person produces one graphic. The graphics should be different. Tip: Use the filtering to create different versions of the topic, i.e. top 10 or bottom 10.
 
Jour 5283: Each student produces three separate graphics.
Each team submits a 400-word draft story. Spell out the individual team members’ contributions at the bottom of the story, ie, Wells interviewed Trump for the story, Jordan interviewed Bush.

Memo and graphics due 11:59 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27

Week #6: Tableau – Assignment #1

DataViz
Tableau Basics
Student Loan Data / Tableau
Homework: Tableau
Pivot Tables, Data Cleaning: =Trim, Paste Special, Values, Transpose, Find and Replace

Tasks for Tuesday’s Class
1) Build a spreadsheet from the 2015-16 data.https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/files/2019/09/ARDebt2015-16.xlsx
2) Follow tutorial on joining 2015-16 to 2016-17 data
3) Review comments on draft stories.
4) Read the Assignment #1 on Blackboard carefully and the rubric.
5) Meet with your team to discuss reporting and writing.
6) Check out lesson on dual axis graphics.

Relational Databases: How They Work
Link on Common Fields
Inner, Left, Right joins
http://www.tableau.com/learn/tutorials/on-demand/join-types-union

Joining the 2015-16 data to the 2016-17 data


1) Open Tableau Workbook ARDebt9-17.twbx
2) New Sheet
3) Data | New Data Source
4) Import ARDebt2015-16.xlsx
5) Add New
6) Import ARDebt9-17
7) Inner Join on Unitid
8) Rename as AR2015-17MERGED
9) New sheet, CONVERT TO measures. CAREFUL! DO THIS ONE AT A TIME. CONVERT 2015-16, THEN CONVERT 2016-17

You now have two sets of measures. One for 2015-16 and one for 2016-17

Build a chart contrasting Grad Debt Mdn changes
1) from 2016-17, Instm to Rows
2) Find Grad_Debt_Mdn for 2015-16. First Rename it GRADDEBT15-16. Then drag to columns
3) Find Grad_Debt_Mdn for 2016-17. Rename it GRADDEBT16-17. Drag to columns.
4) Sort by GRADDEBT16-17. Which ones increased?

Build a chart with calculated field Grad Debt Mdn changes
subtract GRADDEBT16-17 from GRADDEBT15-16

Module #6: Writing About Data

2-Oct Facebook Training
The data class will convene on Wednesday, Oct. 2 for a special Facebook for Journalists training. The Oct 3 class will be taken by Prof. Jordan’s editing course.

Project Part 1:
Introduction to the Scale of Student Loan Debt in Arkansas.
—Static graphics.
—Focus on topline details: debt by race, sex, income at Arkansas schools
—Students will quote one or two experts to provide context
—Short stories explaining the findings and putting it within context of government reports on student loans.
—This is published as a special page on Razorback Reporter
—Social media distribution for the finished work

Assignment #1:
The assignment is due Oct. 4 11:59 p.m. on Blackboard.
Arkansas Student Loan Debt Trend 
See Blackboard for details

Week #7: Tableau

8-Oct Maps
Review Assignment #1
Basic Mapping

Exploratory data analysis with Tableau
Importing, continue with charts
Student Loan Data

10-Oct DataViz Exploratory data analysis with Tableau
Student Loan Data
Tableau Charts

Questions for Provost Interview:
This is a top official with the UofA. 
A good opportunity to discuss student loans.
Get with your team, come up with 2 questions for Provost Coleman
Put on this sheet

Data Meets Wednesday Next Week: Oct 16. 9:30 a.m
–Jordan will teach editing at 9:30 am Oct 15
–Wells out Monday-Tuesday, on email
–Regular schedule for Thursday Oct 17.

Dow Jones News Fund Test
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/dj-news-fund/

Tulsa World Internship Interviews
–Jason Collington, Deputy Managing Editor of the Tulsa World, is coming to campus Monday, Oct 14 to interview students.
–Only requirement is you need to have been published, ie the Traveler
–Contact Prof. Gina Shelton for details: ginas@uark.edu

Google search terms:https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-advanced-search-operators/
Suspect Correlations: https://www.datasciencecentral.com/profiles/blogs/tutorial-how-to-detect-spurious-correlations-and-how-to-find-the-
Hadley Wickham Interview: https://www.propublica.org/nerds/hadley-wickham-your-default-position-should-be-skepticism-and-other-advice-for-data-journalists

Review Assignment #1
–Each team creates one Google Doc, fix issues on story, fix graphics
–Share with Google Drive space: razorbackreporter@gmail.com
–Due Wednesday, Oct. 9, 11:59 p.m.
–Each individual student submits on Blackboard a link to the team’s Google Doc with the completed story and graphics
—Link to Blackboard assignment

Basic Maps
Check this link for the mapping details
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/tableau-license/
– Median Debt by public schools
- Median Debt by private schools

 
Dual Maps
See details

https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/tableau-license/

Tutorial
 https://onlinehelp.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/maps_dualaxis.html


See Blackboard discussion assignment on Dual Maps and Reading, Due Saturday Oct 12, 11:59 p.m.



Who Reads the Newspapers

The Wall Street Journal is read by the people who run the country.

The Washington Post is read by people who think they run the country.

The New York Times is read by people who think they should run the country.

USA Today is read by people who think they ought to run the country but don’t really understand the Washington Post. They do, however, like their statistics shown in pie chart format.

The Los Angeles Times is read by people who wouldn’t mind running the country, if they could spare the time, and if they didn’t have to leave LA to do it.

The Boston Globe is read by people whose parents used to run the country and they did a far superior job of it, thank you very much.

The New York Daily News is read by people who aren’t too sure who’s running the country and don’t really care as long as they can get a seat on the train.

The New York Post is read by people who don’t care who’s running the country, as long as they do something really scandalous, preferably while intoxicated.

The San Francisco Chronicle is read by people who aren’t sure there is a country or that anyone is running it; but whoever it is, they oppose all that they stand for. There are occasional exceptions if the leaders are handicapped minority feminist atheist dwarfs, who also happen to be illegal aliens from ANY country or galaxy as long as they are Democrats.

The Miami Herald is read by people who are running another country but need the baseball scores.

The National Enquirer is read by people trapped in line at the grocery store.

16-Oct Mapping in Tableau

Update on Assignment #1: Photos, headlines. Build shell for stories on Razorbackreporter
–Do not upload text. Final edits pending.
–Upload photos, selected graphics.
–When ready, “For Review.”
–Have WordPress shells with headline, graphics and photos ready by 11:59 p.m. Sat Oct 19.
–Each student will post the link to your group’s story shell on Blackboard.


Create new Student Loan Data with Default Rates
–Using R to Build Tables

New Data:
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/files/2019/10/ARDebt17_10_15.zip

Using Tableau Public to Host Graphics
–Create Tableau Public account if you haven’t already
–Load your student loan graphic to Tableau Public.

Using WordPress
–Author powers 
–To access back end of datareporting: 
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/wp-admin
Login with UARK credentials.

Quick tips on Gutenberg editor
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/wordpress/


Embed Tableau in WordPress
–Post on WordPress.
Create a new post
Use Divi Builder, the Purple box above the formatting bar
Insert columns, pick a full row
Insert module, pick </> Code
Paste your Tableau Public embed code in the Content box
Scroll down, change the Admin Label to My Mind-Blowing Tableau Graphic (or something more humble). Save and Exit
Change Page Layout (upper right corner) to Fullwidth. Publish
Revel in your nerd powers

Default Map
Build a chart with the Arkansas schools with the highest default rates
Now map that data
–Longitude to Columns, Latitude to Rows. Don’t use Longitude (generated). Generates a blank Arkansas map
–Instnm to Labels. Your map now has all colleges
–CDR3 to Color. Green-Red Diverging, with Red as highest default
–Filter by CDR3 for top 10 default rates in state

Telling a Story With Data: Interactive Dashboards.
Search for Dashboard:
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/tableau-license/

Wells dashboard
https://public.tableau.com/profile/rob.wells#!/vizhome/IRE19_GDPVisualizingtheStateLocalEconomy/ArkansasEconomyinDetail

Class Exercise:
–Build A Dashboard Using Existing Maps and Graphics
Pane #1: Map
Pane #2: Graphic
Pane #3: Graphic with a slider to let readers interact with data (sort by most low-income student debt. sort by highest enrollment by race. sort by highest median debt. etc)

Dashboards
Create a Dashboard With The Following Elements
–Abbi and Parker:
Pane #1: Map of Default rates for colleges with more than statewide average of White enrollment. 
Pane #2: Map of Default rates for colleges with more than statewide average of Black enrollment. 
Pane #3: Map of Default rates for colleges with more than statewide average of Hispanic enrollment. 



–The Marys and Elena: 
Pane #1: Map of Default rates for colleges with more than statewide average first generation student debt.
Pane #2: Map of colleges with top 10 first generation student debt
Pane #3: Chart of first generation student debt for public, private colleges (see “control” column, check College Scorecard data dictionary)


–Hanna, Sophie, Kate: 
Pane #1: Default rates for colleges with more than statewide average low-income student debt.
Pane #2: Chart of colleges with more than statewide average Pell Grant Debt
Pane #3: Map of top 10 colleges showing most students with Pell Grants (PELL_EVER)


–Kirsten, Coleman, Abby:
Pane #1: Map of the female-male debt gap, the top 10 universities with the biggest gap.
Pane #2: Map of total female debt by school statewide
Pane #3: Chart of Male-Female Debt, statewide

–Brooke and Emily:
Pane #1: Map of top 10 default rates for public universities, plus describe average default rate for all public universities. (See data dictionary on College Scorecard for control)
Pane #2: Map of top 10 default rates for private universities. (See data dictionary on College Scorecard for control)
Pane #3: Chart of top 15 universities by Grad_Debt_Mdn, colored by private vs public institutions


Each team creates a single dashboard. 
Post dashboard on Tableau Public.
On datareporting WordPress, create a post, embed the dashboard using the Tableau Public embed code. Write a two-paragraph analysis of your findings (200 words) on that blog post.
Each student submits a link with the WordPress post for this assignment. Due Saturday, 11:59 p.m. 

Week #9: Tableau

22-Oct Fall Break!

 24-Oct 

Fix Tableau Dashboards. Charts and Formatting
 Tableau Analytics
Multimedia, headlines in Dashboards
Discuss Assign #2

Dow Jones News Fund Test: Tomorrow
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/dj-news-fund/

Tableau Analytics:

https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-gb/environ_workspace_analytics_pane.htm

Report about racial disparities with student loans.
It will really help you all understand the broader context of the student loan problem. Please read it and bring questions or observations so we can discuss this on Tuesday.
Goldrick-Rab, Sara, Robert Kelchen, and Jason Houle. “The Color of Student Debt: Implications of Federal Loan Program Reforms for Black Students and Historically Black Colleges and Universities.” University of Wisconsin: Wisconsin Hope Lab, School of Education, September 2014.
https://news.education.wisc.edu/docs/WebDispenser/news-connections-pdf/thecolorofstudentdebt-draft.pdf?sfvrsn=4


Beware of the Infographic
https://www.cjr.org/the_media_today/alberto-cairo-infographics.php


BuzzFeed spy planes
Peter Aldhous adds an example of his from BuzzFeed: BuzzFeed News Trained A Computer To Search For Hidden Spy Planes. This Is What We Found. Again there’s a GitHub page explaining the methods employed, and a GitHub repo with the data and an R Markdown file.
The project includes examples of abstraction (in this case, filtering) and algorithms (in this case the random forest algorithm).





29-Oct DataViz

Week #10: Data Viz

Higher Resolution Graphics in Tableau
–Embed with Tableau Public

Question: “a problem with the map titled “First-Generation Debt Higher than State Average.” We are seeing asterisks in areas where schools are being averaged together because of the same zip codes.”
https://public.tableau.com/profile/mary.hennigan#!/vizhome/Top10ArkCollegeswHighestFirst-GenDebt/ArkFirst-Gen

Solution: Drag the College Name (INSTNM) to Tooltip again. That clears up the asterisk problem.
https://kb.tableau.com/articles/Issue/asterisks-display-in-tooltip?_ga=2.54541547.179450172.1572394665-1129705566.1555298785


Question: no titles for each graphic,
Solution: Drag your graphics into a Dashboard. Then drag the Dashboard into a story. Your headlines will appear that way.

Question: fat bars for the chart
Solution: Tell the bars to stop eating at Pizza Hut.

Question: really, what about the fat bars for the chart 
Solution: See the attached video. 

Project Part 2:
Nov. 4: Racial Disparity in Arkansas Student Loan Debt
—Beginning interactive web graphics, include photos or short videos
—Maps of debt burdens
—Details on the debt discrepancy by race.
—Stories explaining the context.
—A small photo gallery or short video clips.
–A few interviews with actual students who have debt
—This is published as a special page on Razorback Reporter, before Thanksgiving
—Social media distribution for the finished work
Assignments will follow AP Style and Razorback Reporter style:

Tableau Can Be Dangerous, Part 1
Inner Joins. Outer Joins.

–The evils of the inner-join and how it can mess up your math.
Relational Databases: How They Work
Link on Common Fields
Inner, Left, Right joins
http://www.tableau.com/learn/tutorials/on-demand/join-types-union

https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/joining_tables.htm

Exercise on Inner Joins.
Spreadsheet at this link 
1) Do the four corners test. How Many in Violent 2013? In Violent 2017?
2) Load data into Tableau
3) Inner join Violent 2013 and Violent 2017 on zip code
4) Build bar graph that visualizes 2017 Violent crime by City.
6) From Analytics, drag total and average line to view
7) Display the totals with labels

Question: 
Totals and Average for Inner Join?
Totals and Average for Right Join?
Why are we getting different numbers?

Week #11: Project #2

Grouping:
–Group on sheet for specific view
–Grouping in dimensions pane is problematic

Exercise: Show the average graduate debt for HBCUs vs Public, Private Non-Profit, Private For-Profit

1) Build basic schools and Grad Debt Mdn graphic. Set to Average. Add Control to Filter
2) Group HBCUs
3) Filter Public schools, group them
4) Unfilter
5) Filter Private non profits, group them
6) Unfilter
7) Filter Private for profits, group them
8) Unfilter

Solution to Exporting Low Quality Images from Tableau
1) Worksheet | Copy | Image
2) Select Title & View
3) Open Preview
4) File | New From Clipboard
–Your Tableau graphic has been pasted into Preview.
5) Export. Change Format to JPEG. Increase Quality to Best. Option: Boost Resolution to 1000 pixels/inch



Bins and Groups
Bins and Groups
Create Bins: https://onlinehelp.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/calculations_bins.htm
Other options besides bins:
 Use parameters to organize data: https://onlinehelp.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/parameters_create.htm
 Use sets to organize data: https://onlinehelp.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/sortgroup_sets_create.htm#Use


Census Data

Census Data
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/census-data-download-and-cleaning/
Filtering
Reading Data Dictionaries

Data Cleaning in Excel:
=Trim, Paste Special, Values, Transpose, Find and Replace

Student Loan Explainer: See Blackboard for assignment details




 Jon Schleuss
Bio LinkedIn 
EXAMPLES-his projects involving data and visualizing it (both hard news and light)

Affordable Housing
Election project
Unclaimed Dead



12-Nov Census Data
Creating database #2: Student Loan
Analyzing Student Loan data “Basic of Coding, Data Analysis ; Diversity”

Great Tableau Map on a blog

https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/state-of-student-loan-debt/

Comments from Reading
Abbi – People-Focused Stories
Student debt does not just go away and definitely affects everyone’s version of the “American dream” differently, and it’s a concept that I think can add more depth to our discussions and work in class. We have all the numbers and stats that show how much debt people have and how long they have it, but it’s the people that make things stick and stories have meaning. I think looking at our stories with not only a focus on the data but also the people and how the debt is affecting them can add so much and is very important.

Elena – Resources for Students
I like to report on the numbers, but I would also want to provide resources on how students can avoid debt if they are first-generation students.

Brooke – Black women and debt
Comparing family income, student race and gender to the graduate debt medium may be able to explain why black women have higher debt.

Parker – Withdrawal Rates, Black Students
Even with the financial help, black students have higher withdrawal rates


Revise Assignment #2. Class Meetings With Teams
Due on Blackboard, 11:59 pm Thursday, Nov. 14

Reading: Washington Post covering elections
https://www.niemanlab.org/2019/07/how-to-cover-11250-elections-at-once-heres-how-the-washington-posts-new-computational-journalism-lab-will-tackle-2020/?utm_source=Daily+Lab+email+list&utm_campaign=eb41afd3fe-dailylabemail3&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_d68264fd5e-eb41afd3fe-396127905


Homework: Reading on Racial Disparity in Loans

Blackboard link

Student loans and Morehouse
https://www.wsj.com/articles/paths-of-2018-grads-show-potential-impact-of-billionaires-gift-11559655146

$1.5 trillion of student loan debt has transformed the American dream
https://qz.com/1367412/1-5-trillion-of-us-student-loan-debt-has-transformed-the-american-dream/

Black-White Disparity in Student Loan Debt More Than Triples After Graduation
https://ccrc.tc.columbia.edu/publications/black-white-disparity-in-student-loan-debt-more-than-triples-after-graduation.html
Young, Black, and (Still) in the Red: Parental Wealth, Race, and Student Loan Debt
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6049093/#R35

Black women have most debt
http://www.newsweek.com/student-loans-pay-gap-college-debt-black-women-white-men-women-gender-gap-1016776

Presentation at Investigative Reporters and Editors on Student Loans, Higher Ed Beat
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1l1nQ7Yged8cUwRtPONToJQyCV1GZdHnTowSDH1H_EIQ/edit#slide=id.p



Higher Resolution Graphics in Tableau
https://www.dataplusscience.com/HighResolution.html



Discuss Assignment #2 Proposals
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZXXjcigvKZBVgJD8VeZOWAZuxereRZeOw89KitCU7Bs/edit

Discuss student loans and race
Goldrick-Rab, Sara, Robert Kelchen, and Jason Houle. “The Color of Student Debt: Implications of Federal Loan Program Reforms for Black Students and Historically Black Colleges and Universities.” University of Wisconsin: Wisconsin Hope Lab, School of Education, September 2014.

Higher Resolution Photos: at least 72 DPI. Practically, should be higher.
–500k or more is a safe bet
–Cropping reduces file size. Grainy
Guidance: https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/59/Image_resolutions.pdf

Higher Resolution Graphics in Tableau
https://www.dataplusscience.com/HighResolution.html

Tableau Can Be Dangerous, Part 1
–The evils of the inner-join and how it can mess up your math.


Need to produce higher resolution graphics in Tableau
https://www.dataplusscience.com/HighResolution.html

Tableau Can Be Dangerous, Part 1
–The evils of the inner-join and how it can mess up your math.


Research – Data on Race and Lending

College Scorecard draws from multiple databases.

It provides details about student race/ethnicity by enrollment. 
It provides details about defaults and median debt by institution.
It does not provide details about race/ethnicity by loan amount per institution.
But it does provide details about race/ethnicity  by loan amount and defaults statewide.

It provides details about percentage of low-income students
It provides details about percentage of Pell grant recipients.


Question: What are some strategies to tell the stories about student loan debt by race and ethnicity given these limitations?

Jot down your ideas on this document:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Lux5x4kd4hIK22LbbWICfsSVfkU4aIRogenvPEAJcMM/edit

Suggestion: Look at data dictionary for source of this information. All 1,826 columns explained here.
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/assets/FullDataDocumentation.pdf


It does not provide details about race/ethnicity by loan amount per institution.
But it does provide details about race/ethnicity  by loan amount and defaults statewide

Question: What are some strategies to tell the stories about student loan debt by race and ethnicity given these limitations?

Suggestion: Look at data dictionary for source of this information. All 1,826 columns explained here.
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/assets/FullDataDocumentation.pdf

Discuss student loans and race
Goldrick-Rab, Sara, Robert Kelchen, and Jason Houle. “The Color of Student Debt: Implications of Federal Loan Program Reforms for Black Students and Historically Black Colleges and Universities.” University of Wisconsin: Wisconsin Hope Lab, School of Education, September 2014.

Key points:
Brief History of Federal Student Loans
Loan amounts white-black students were about the same. So what’s the big deal?
Key differences between HBCUs and majority white institutions

For Your Background: More Student Loan Readings

Student Loan Readings

Week #12: Data Cleaning, Analysis

14-Nov Data Analysis
Student Loan Calculator
Census Data

Student Loan Explainer

Student Loan Explainer
—What did you learn from this and how will it shape your interview questions?

Hennigan: No co-signer!
The maximum an undergraduate can borrow from federal student loans is $31,000 and most don’t require a credit check or co-signer.

Brooke: This would not be correct since a person’s credit score would limit private borrowing.
“Any amount of private loans can be taken out at banks and credit unions regardless of a student’s financial situation. “
If you are, say, a New York-based real estate developer who borrowed excessively and then filed for bankruptcy six times, you might have trouble getting a loan. Just to pick a random example…

Student Loan Calculator:
The current interest rate for subsidized loans for undergraduate students is 5.05% and is subject to change July, 1, 2019, according to Arkansas Student Loan Authority.


https://wallethub.com/student-loan-calculator/#calculator

Super basic compounding interest formula
https://www.ablebits.com/office-addins-blog/2015/01/21/compound-interest-formula-excel/

Monthly payment formula
https://exceljet.net/formula/calculate-payment-for-a-loan

Future value
https://exceljet.net/formula/calculate-compound-interest

College Loan Calculator from Excel
https://templates.office.com/en-us/college-loan-calculator-tm00000035

Census Data

Census Data
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/census-data-download-and-cleaning/
Filtering
Reading Data Dictionaries

Data will meet Monday, Nov. 18, 1:30 pm-2:45 pm. Jordan will take the data time slot on Tuesday, Nov. 19, 9:30 a-10:45 a
Data will have an online class Thursday, Nov. 21. There will be no class meeting that day.

18-Nov Basic Animation

Follow this tutorial and build a basic animation of a graphic in Tableau

https://www.absentdata.com/animation-tableau/

Week #13: Census Data – Visualization


Story Pitches Assignment #3

Loan Data By Race – Statewide
https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/files/2019/11/Ar-US-Student-Loan-Data-by-Race-2016.xlsx

https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/files/2019/11/National-Race-Student-Loan-Defaults-QuickStats.xlsx

https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/files/2019/11/Total-Aid-for-Independent-Students-at-HBCUs.xlsx

https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/files/2019/11/NCES-Race-percent-with-Multiple-Loans.xlsx

https://wordpressua.uark.edu/datareporting/files/2019/11/HBCU-students-Loans-and-Income.xlsx

Animation
–How data is organized for animation
–Demonstration with R
–Use one of your previous visualizations and animate it
–Tableau playback issue

Revisions to Assignment #2

Animation Issue
Tableau Public doesn’t allow the play button to display.

Play button missing from Published Dashboard |Tableau Community Forums

https://community.tableau.com/thread/116407
https://community.tableau.com/thread/202785

What is a workaround you would employ to achieve the same end? 

Week #14: Tableau Interactives

26-Nov DataViz Multimedia Production – WordPress Final Project: Visualize in Tableau “Basic of Coding, Data Analysis “


Media Future
Read and post for class discussion: Future Today Institute report on media trends
–Bring one question or observation to class on Wednesday
FTI_Journalism_Trends_2019_Final-1kcrlh3

Posted on

Syllabus Jour 5283

Data Journalism - Graduate Level
Lemke Digital Media Lab Course, Fall 2019
 School of Journalism and Strategic Media 
 University of Arkansas
 (Ver 8-22-19)
 Class Time and Location: Tuesday-Thursday 9:30 a.m.-10:45 a.m., Kimpel 145
 Instructor: Rob Wells, Ph.D.
 Office: Kimpel 128
 Office phone: 479-575-6305 E-mail: rswells@uark.edu
 Twitter: @rwells1961
 Office hours: Tuesdays 11 a.m.-Noon, 2 p.m.-3 p.m.  or by appointment

Course Goal: Students will be introduced to basic techniques in data analysis, management, visualization and production of data-driven articles and multimedia presentations. Students will learn best practices and common software tools to gather, visualize and interpret data effectively in daily journalism. With these skills, they will use data to report on a project for publication.

Course Description: The class provides an introduction to the basic data reporting skills, but it is much more than learning software and pressing buttons. This class will describe how to use data to guide and inform your reporting, and how this will change your relationship with sources and the people you cover. At each step, this class describes real-world examples of ethical issues and best practices in data reporting. The end goal is to use data to advance important journalism that helps us tell stories that better serve the public. 

Cultural Diversity: This course will advance the broader goal of the Lemke Journalism Department to provide a learning atmosphere that represents a variety of perspectives. Good journalism creates well-rounded, whole pictures that tell stories from multiple points of view. For that reason, this course will examine data sources that describe a diversity of sources and viewpoints, ranging from people of different color to different income levels, different sexual orientation, and different backgrounds. For example, this class will explore datasets that describe veteran’s health care outcomes throughout the state of Arkansas. We will examine how veterans of different gender, race and economic circumstances are affected. In the course of this class, students will learn the basic reporting and statistical tools to ask questions about such disparities. We will explore how a major government agency categorizes race, the pitfalls with this data collection problem and consequences for society. We will be speaking with members of local communities, such as the African American and Hispanic communities, as well as local business leaders, about the data we develop and solicit their perspectives on our findings. These activities will permit an exploration of questions about income inequality among gender and racial lines.

The University of Arkansas, nor Dr. Wells, will not tolerate statements, behavior, tokens or insignias that deride or disparage an individual or group because of race, ethnicity, creed or personal lifestyle, when such actions or statements fulfill no educational goal.

Learning Outcomes: 

1 Proficiency with Excel. 

You will be able to gather data and conduct basic and intermediate calculations using Excel. You will be able to import text and .csv files into Excel, format the data properly. 

2 Basic proficiency with data visualization. 

You will learn best practices to organize your data and to present it in charts and graphics. You will be able to create a chart using Tableau Public ready for publication from a basic spreadsheet. You will create a basic interactive map from a dataset. 

3 Reporting with data.

You will understand basic ethical issues with data journalism and how data journalism can advance reporting on diverse communities. You will learn basic numeracy and how to avoid common problems with numbers. You will learn best practices for fact checking data. You will learn basic statistical concepts and best practices, and how they apply to data journalism. 

4 Introduction to Coding

You will receive an introduction to the R programming language, which is used widely in newsrooms for data gathering, statistical modeling and data visualization. At the end of the course, you will be able to execute basic R commends and perform simple calculations.

5 Data Presentation

You will learn to use WordPress to manage and display your multimedia stories. This will include formatting photos, videos and audio and displaying text in a format appropriate for mobile news consumers.

6 Data Management

You will learn the best practices for organizing, managing and archiving data for a journalistic project

7. Identify the limitations, strengths and weaknesses of datasets.
Determine how institutions may be collecting and using data and how this may impact the public.

Required Texts: 

Cohen, Sarah. Numbers in the Newsroom: Using Math and Statistics in News. 2nd ed. Columbia, Mo.: Investigative Reporters & Editors Inc., 2014. https://www.ire.org/product/numbers-in-the-newsroom-using-math-and-statistics-in-news-second-edition-e-version $10, ebook

NICAR CoursePack: $20 online.

https://www.ire.org/product/nicar-courses-mac-version

Required Equipment:

Purchase a 2 TB USB external storage drive, such as this. $60 at Amazon.com or similar models available in campus bookstore.

Required Software:

Microsoft Excel for Mac. Free with your university account or provided on School of Journalism computers

Tableau Public / Tableau Desktop. Free one-semester license to Tableau Desktop. Tableau Public is installed on School of Journalism computers.

R Studio. Free, open source software. Installed on Digital News Lab computers.

WordPress. Free through university accounts.

Students will need to download the Microsoft Office for Mac (free at https://techarticles.uark.edu/microsoft/office/) and Tableau Desktop (http://www.tableau.com/tft/activation – free software keys will be provided). They need to prepare personal laptops or desktops to run this software, which means cleaning their hard drives to provide ample space and computer memory to run software such as Tableau Public. In other words, clear out the personal movies and photos to an external hard drive so you can do this class work.

Students will be given an orientation on the key software used in this class, such as WordPress, Google Drive, Excel and Tableau. Operation of these common programs on your personal computer is your responsibility; you will need to use Tableau and Excel a lot for homework and assignments. Seek campus technical support at the university bookstore if necessary. 

Optional Materials:

Cairo, Alberto. The Truthful Art: Data, Charts, and Maps for Communication. New Riders, 2016. https://www.amazon.com/Truthful-Art-Data-Charts-Communication/dp/0321934075/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Cairo%2C+Alberto.+The+Truthful+Art%3A+Data%2C+Charts%2C+and+Maps+for+Communication&qid=1565818327&s=gateway&sr=8-1 $39, paperback

Wong, Donna. The Wall Street Journal Guide to Information Graphics: The Dos and Don’ts of Presenting Data, Facts, and Figures. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2013. https://www.amazon.com/Street-Journal-Guide-Information-Graphics/dp/0393347281

Data Journalism Handbook http://datajournalismhandbook.org/1.0/en/  Free, online.

Meyer, Philip, The New Precision Journalism, 1991, University of Indiana Press, Bloomington, Ind.

https://www.amazon.com/Precision-Journalism-Reporters-Introduction-Science/dp/0742510875/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?keywords=Meyer%2C+Philip%2C+The+New+Precision+Journalism%2C+1991%2C&qid=1565818800&s=gateway&sr=8-1-fkmr0 $42, paperback

Important Note About Class Technology:

All course material is prepared on Apple OSX operating system; we will be conducting exercises in the Kimpel Hall computer labs on Apple computers. Software in this class, such as Excel, also runs on Windows-based operating systems but students will find it difficult to follow the course instructions due to significant differences in the programs’ user interfaces. In other words, you are on your own if you choose to do your work on a Windows-based computer.

Prerequisites:

A university statistics course. News Reporting I or equivalent in public relations or communications.  

This course is designed for undergraduate journalism, public relations, advertising and communications majors. Non-journalism majors will find these skills and tools of data gathering and analysis useful in their professional fields as they enhance your ability to articulate a narrative and illustrate it with graphics. 

Quizzes, memos and homework: 

There will be quizzes, memos and homework during the semester worth 40 percent of your grade. These are designed to be lower-stakes assessment to test your proficiency and build your skills for the relevant assignment. The homework and memos flow into the quizzes and they flow into the assignments. The classroom work is iterative and helps students perfect the skills needed for the assignments. 

Assignments: 

The four assignments are worth 50 percent of your grade. Assignments are due by 11 a.m., emailed or uploaded into Blackboard. 

The assignments are:

#1: Arkansas Debt Trend

#2: Racial Disparity in Student Loan Debt

#3: R Studio Coding – Student Loan Data

#4: R Data Visualizations

#5: Student Loans in Arkansas

An assignment uploaded late, according to Blackboard, will be reduced by one full grade, and will be reduced a full grade for every subsequent day. 

Students with excused absences should contact me immediately about making up missed assignments.

The final assignment represents the final examination; there is no separate final examination.

Grading: 
Quizzes, Memos, Homework: 35 percent
Assignments: 50 percent
Class Participation: 15 percent
Plagiarism or fabrication will result in your dismissal from class with an F for the course and a recommendation you be dismissed from the college. 
Your work will be marked on the following scale:
A+:   100 – 98
A:      97 – 93
A-:     92 – 90
B+:    89 – 88
B:       87 – 83
B-:     82 – 80
C+:    79 – 78
C:       77 – 73
C-:      72 – 70
D+:    69 – 68
D:       67 – 63
D-:     62 – 60
F:       Below 60

A – The work is of professional quality (for journalism “professional” track students) or high academic quality (for others). It reflects a depth of research, clarity of writing, and a complete grasp of the main concepts presented in the class.
B – The work is good but needs editing or is flawed in one of the categories mentioned above. 
C – The work is weak, needs major editing or reflects an average understanding of key concepts presented in class.
D – Work fails to meet requirements and needs a complete rewrite. 
F – Unacceptable.

Assignments will follow AP Style and Razorback Reporter style:

Libel: 

Any story that includes libelous material will result in an F (55 percent) Examples would be if you describe someone as a murderer in your story before he or she is convicted, or if you mistype the name of a convicted murder and thereby implicate someone not guilty of the crime.

Attendance: 
You are required to attend class and it will figure into your class participation grade. An excused absence requires notification by e-mail before the start of class. 
Be prepared to submit documentation to validate your absence, especially if it is for an extended period of time. 
Students who miss more than six classes may have their final grade reduced by a full letter grade.

Class Communications:  
Email: I will email individual students on occasion about important issues. I expect a timely reply, which is in the same day. It is your responsibility to check your email account. 
I respond to email quickly, usually within an hour. I stop responding to student email at 9 p.m.
I use e-mail, WordPress and Blackboard to communicate with students. 
WordPress: I will post readings, announcements and grades on the class WordPress site.  You will post some homework and project materials on WordPress.
Blackboard: Your graded work primarily is posted on Blackboard: Assignments, Discussion Posts, etc
It is your responsibility to check your email and Blackboard announcements.

Classroom Etiquette: 

We will be working in a computer lab. Show respect for your colleagues and instructor by refraining from personal computer use during class.

You are being rude to your instructor and distracting to your classmates when you engage in computer activities unrelated to class. Anyone misusing classroom computers for personal matters will receive a zero for class participation that day and may be asked to leave the class if the behavior persists. 

Please don’t eat during class.

Academic Honesty: 

Please refer to  http://provost.uark.edu/245.php for the academic integrity policy.

Class Weather Policy: 

If the university is closed, there will be no class. If I need to cancel class, for whatever reason, I will do my best to notify you by e-mail and notify the journalism office: 479-575-3601.  

CEA, Center for Education Access: 

If you are a student with special needs, contact me personally. The CEA is at 479-575-3104. I will accommodate students who require assistance. 

Emergency Preparedness Plan: 

The university has a new emergency plan; review it at http://emergency.uark.edu/

About the Instructor: 

Rob Wells is an assistant professor of journalism and has been teaching at the University of Arkansas since the Fall 2016 semester. He earned his doctorate in philosophy in Journalism Studies at the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism. As an adjunct instructor, he taught reporting classes at the Merrill College between 2010-2016. He was a 2012 Reynolds Visiting Professor at the University of South Carolina, Columbia, a program sponsored by the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism.

Wells is the former deputy bureau chief for Dow Jones Newswires/Wall Street Journal in Washington, D.C., where he oversaw 22 reporters who covered real-time business, economics and financial news in the nation’s capital. Prior to this, he was a business reporter for Dow Jones, Bloomberg News and The Associated Press. He holds a master’s degree in liberal studies from St. John’s College in Annapolis, where he studied philosophy, literature, history and political science. His academic research is in business journalism and history, along with data journalism and technology. His book on the future of business journalism will be released in November 2019 by the University of Illinois Press.

Rubric: Assessment of Student Class Participation

In this class, students must take responsibility for their own learning. Class participation/discussion represents 10 percent of your grade in Jour405V. This rubric is designed to give students a roadmap on how they will be assessed and graded on their participation and discussion.

1) Class Discussions

Content. Students who excel will display some or all of the following qualities, such as relating the discussion to current affairs; speaking up when they do not understand; making relevant points; asking topical questions; displaying curiosity.

In addition, these students advance class discussion by offering alternative perspectives with supporting data/ evidence. They also can challenge the instructor’s ideas, ideas of other students, or those presented in readings or other course materials. 

Frequency. Students who excel display these qualities in every class session.

Preparation. Students who excel have questions or observations prepared and they bring assigned readings to class. This class will closely examine texts we read for language, structure and argument. Students who fail to bring the text aren’t prepared for class, even if they have read the assignment. Students also will view assigned videos and bring questions or observations to class.

Behavior That Impedes Class Discussion includes using Facebook/Twitter/WhatsApp (any social networking site), web surfing or texting in class. If you are absent or late to class, you miss the opportunity to participate, and this will be reflected in your grade. 

Student Self-Assessment. Students also will assess their own contributions in a one-page essay:

  1. Propose what grade you deserve for class participation thus far, and
  2. Defend your proposed grade with evidence from the classroom.
  3. Students who can’t find enough evidence to make a case for an excellent grade can spell out specific steps they will take to improve. 

2) Group Work

Active participation means assisting your fellow students to help solve problems in the workshops.

Student Peer Assessment for Group Work. Students may be asked to anonymously rate each other’s work in group settings. 

3) Preliminary Assessment

Course Schedule:

https://wordpressua.uark.edu/razorback-reporter/jour-405v-fall-2019-schedule/

Posted on

DJ News Fund

SUMMER 2020 INTERNSHIPS
Aug. 23, 2019

Dear Rob, 

The Dow Jones News Fund is excited to share with your students its summer 2020 internship programs. We are almost finished putting together the tests and applications. 

We have been fielding questions about the status of the tests, so we wanted to share with you the timeline and what to expect.

Students will be able to apply and test for any of our four programs: data journalism, digital media, business reporting and multiplatform editing. All the tests, except for editing, will be available online. Paper copies of the other tests will be available for those who can’t accommodate online testing.

We have updated the test monitor directory, you can click here to review your school’s listing. 

Once the applications are live we will post the internship programs to Handshake, Purple Briefcase, and other internship sites.

COMING UP:
Sept. 2: We will send out the first mailing with brochures and posters. 
Sept. 9: Applications for summer 2020 internships should be live.
Sept. 10: We will host two info sessions via Go To Meeting at noon and 3 p.m. RSVP Here.
Sept. 16: Second mailing with the paper tests and the links to the online tests.
Oct. 2: Another info session webinar at 3 p.m. RSVP Here.
Oct. 17: Another info session webinar at noon. RSVP Here.
Nov. 8: Deadline for the applications and tests.

As you recruit and prepare your students for the tests, please take advantage of the previous tests posted here. We strongly recommend going through these with your students.

You can download printable flyers for the internship programs (PDF) and the ACBJ business reporting program (PDF).

We look forward to reviewing your students’ applications. We’re always willing to answer your questions by phone or email. Thanks for your help and all you do for students.

Best regards,
Heather Taylor

Details of DJ News Fund Program
https://dowjonesnewsfund.org/participate/apply/
 
 
College juniors, seniors and graduate students are invited to apply to the Dow Jones News Fund for paid summer 2018 internships in data journalism, digital media, business reporting and multiplatform editing. The application and test deadline is Nov. 1.
 
The Fund’s internship programs offer interns a week of advanced training at top universities in data journalism, digital media, business reporting and multiplatform editing before they report to work. During each residency interns are taught the latest news gathering, editing and storytelling technologies.
 
Data journalism interns are trained to collect, analyze and visualize data to unlock compelling stories; digital media interns augment their range of reporting skills using video, audio, data and social analytics; business reporters spend a week in New York learning to cover all sectors from Wall Street to personal finance and local companies; and the multiplatform editing interns hone their news judgment, headline writing, copy editing and page design skills.
 
The Fund and sponsoring media cover travel costs to and from training and to newsrooms. Interns are responsible for their housing and transportation costs during the internship. Students who return to school after a successful internship will receive $1,000 college scholarships.
 
Snapshots from summer 2017:
Cheyanne Mumphrey, a recent graduate of Northern Arizona University, spent 10 days at Arizona State University working with her fellow digital media interns to produce Ripple Effect Phoenix, before heading off to Hawaii News Now to cover stories like the Hokulea’s homecoming voyage.
Hayley Harding, a senior at Ohio University, honed her data journalism skills at our residency program taught by experts from Investigative Reporters and Editors. Hayley reported to work at McClatchy DC, earning a byline in her first week.
Allison Krug, a 2017 graduate of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, attended the editing program at Penn State and interned at the Virginian-Pilot. Read more about her experience.
James Rodriguez, a senior at the University of Texas at Austin, was selected for the American City Business Journal business reporting program. James was one of 10 interns who spent a week at New York University learning to cover all aspects of business before returning home to work for the Austin Business Journal.
College juniors, seniors and graduates enrolled full-time on Nov. 1 are eligible to apply, including December graduates, and U.S. students studying abroad.
To apply, students should visit the programs page on the Fund website. Applicants are required to complete an online application and take a one-hour test for the program(s) they are applying to by Nov. 1.
 
 
This test will be given once, Friday, Oct. 26 at 9 am in Kimpel 146. Sign up here: rswells@uark.edu
 
 
Programs

Sample tests
https://www.scribd.com/lists/21519819/Practice-Tests-for-DJNF-Internship-Programs

Posted on

College Scorecard Data

Learning to Love Data Dictionary 


https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/data/
All 1,826 columns explained here.
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/assets/FullDataDocumentation.pdf
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/assets/CollegeScorecardDataDictionary.xlsx
Group Assignment: Examine The Data Dictionary. Sketch out the broad categories describing the data. Hint: There’s a section on demographics – race, ethnicity. 
Consult this article for ideas about the types of data you can examine
http://libertystreeteconomics.newyorkfed.org/2016/09/the-changing-role-of-the-community-college-and-for-profit-college-borrowers.html
Questions:
What are the broad groupings?
What questions do you want to answer with this data and which data fields should we look at next?
Compose your thoughts at the bottom of this Google Doc:

Student Loan Data

Private vs. Public Colleges: How Does The Debt Load Differ? 
Return of the Data Dictionary: Student Loan Dataset
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/data/
All 1,826 columns explained here.
1) Find the field that distinguishes between public and private colleges:
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/assets/FullDataDocumentation.pdf
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/assets/CollegeScorecardDataDictionary.xlsx
2) Build a new spreadsheet from this raw data: AR2016ALL-1jwseiw
Name your new sheet ARDebt9_19  
It will have these fields:
      A) The private / public colleges field
      B) Latitude and Longitude
      C) The 8 data fields we have used so far in ARDebt.
      D) A data dictionary
 
3) Make Charts in Tableau
Import ARDebt9_19 into Tableau.
Create a chart of the overall median debt, median private, median public college debt.
Create another one, public, private for graduates and discontinued students.
Revel in your nerd powers

Add Context

Context
Overall averages, medians for particular topics.
What is the median student loan debt in 2016?
What is the median student loan debt for for-profit colleges in 2016?
What is the average default rate?


Context #1
Add the Quick Facts for city population, demographics.
Little Rock: African American comprise 42 percent of Little Rock’s population. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/littlerockcityarkansas,US/PST045217
Add typical salary from Occupational Employment Statistics database for Arkansas
https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_ar.htm

Data Adventure

Data Adventure
 
 
FY 2015 national cohort default rate is 10.8%, down from 11.5% in the previous year. 
 
By comparison, Arkansas’ cohort default rates dropped from 12.2% to 11.2%, inching closer to the national average. Five years ago, when ASLA initiated efforts to lower the state’s default rate, Arkansas ranked near the bottom of all 50 states at 49th. During that period, Arkansas’ default rate had declined from 19% in 2010 to the more manageable 12.2% in 2014.
 
Arkansas’ 351,000 student loan borrowers carried more than $10.8 billion in debt at the end of 2017
 
According to USDE data, Arkansas’ 351,000 college tuition borrowers carried average of $26,799 in student loan debt per student, slightly less that the $27,857 average balanced held by the other 43.6 million Americans that are still paying for college.
 
By far, college-goers attending the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville received the largest portion of federal student loan proceeds in the 2017-2018 academic years, when $107.6 million was handed out to enrollees at the state’s largest university
 
Arkansas State University in Jonesboro received the second-largest share of federal student loans at nearly $91.9 million in the 2017-2018 academic year.
 
Question: Where would we find these numbers in our current dataset?
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/assets/FullDataDocumentation.pdf
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/assets/CollegeScorecardDataDictionary.xlsx
[/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”New Data – or Is It?” _builder_version=”3.0.101″ background_layout=”light”]
New Data – or Is It?
https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/data/changelog/
 

 
Fine Print:
1 NSLDS -derived data elements will also be updated in the fall of 2018



More Student Loan Data
Dept of Ed Release
https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/national-student-loan-cohort-default-rate-falls
 
Instructions in Default Rates
https://www2.ed.gov/offices/OSFAP/defaultmanagement/instructions.html
 
Title IV Data
https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/about/data-center/student/title-iv
 
College InSight – Detailed Debt Data
http://college-insight.org/#explore/go&h=6d38087e46818e79ac32f5fab17eea08
 
Details on Student Loan Delinquencies by Type of Loan
https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/about/data-center/student/portfolio
Federal Student Loan Portfolio: The office of Federal Student Aid is responsible for directly managing or overseeing an outstanding federal student loan portfolio comprised of billions of dollars in Title IV loans and representing millions of borrowers. This federal student loan portfolio includes Direct Loans, Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL), and Perkins Loans with outstanding balances. The reports below provide information about the federal student loan portfolio.
 
 
Total disbursements by institution
https://studentaid.ed.gov/sites/default/files/fsawg/datacenter/library/DL_Dashboard_AY2017_2018_Q3.xls
 
PowerStats Tool
The National Center for Education Statistics has a PowerStats tool that requires registration. I got a password in a minute.
https://nces.ed.gov/datalab/powerstats/default.aspx
Once you log in, you can build your own tables with the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study: 2016 Undergraduates.

Portfolio-by-Location-by-Debt-Size
DL-by-Delinquency-Location
Portfolio-by-Location-by-Age***
Portfolio-by-Location
https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/sites/default/files/fsawg/datacenter/library/Portfolio-by-Location-by-Age.xls

Data Updates

From Fall 2018
All — CollegeScorecard has put out updated data that requires us to update our data visualizations. Many of the charts were built with Sept. 26 data. There is an Oct. 30 dataset that makes enough changes on default rates, debt and other metrics that we should use it. These differences became apparent in the editing process. Everyone used College Scorecard data so we all have to deal with the update.
Second, anyone using Debt_Mdn should be using GRAD_DEBT_MDN instead in their charts. The reason? Debt_Mdn is artificially reducing the scale of the student loan debt.
Debt_Mdn is aggregated by institution. 
GRAD_DEBT_MDN is aggregated by individuals. So someone who transferred from Hendrix to UofA would have that Hendrix debt factored in when they graduate from UofA.
Below is a video on how to update your CollegeScorecard visualizations in Tableau.
Here are the basic steps:
1) Create a new Tableau workbook and import the Oct30 data. It is here:ARDebt10-30-18
2) Open your existing Tableau workbook that used the Sept 26 data. Select the visualization, select its tab, left click and copy
3) Move to the new Tableau workbook with the Oct30 data. Select a blank worksheet. Left click and paste
Your visualization has now been pasted with the Sept. 30 data
4) On the Tableau toolbar, Select Data | Replace Data Source. It will say existing source is Sept 26. Select Oct 30 data as replacement
5) BOOM. You are done.
Things that can go wrong:
–Ensure your data that you want to chart is listed in the measures pane. Grad_Debt_Mdn or CDR3 may need to be converted to measures for this to work properly.
Posted on

Jour 5283: Pivot Table

Pivot Table Class Exercise: MA Students
Univ of Arkansas, Fayetteville financials
1) Watch Video On Gathering Financials, Pivot Table and Making A Chart

2. Open Adobe Acrobat Pro.
3. Download this document and open in Adobe Acrobat Pro. University of Arkansas financial report June 2016
(Data Note: Data in this exercise represents revenues pledged for repayment of various bond issues. They do not represent the full budget. If you are curious about that, see: http://financial-affairs.uark.edu/PDFs/1415annualrept.pdf)
4. Find “UAF Various Facility Pledged Revenues” from Pg. 3.
Highlight the table.
Cntl + click to bring up Menu. Select “Export Selection As…”
Export it as an Excel table.
You can only do this in Adobe Acrobat Pro
5. Check and verify your data was imported correctly. Check the totals against the original file.
Copy your data into a new tab.
Create a tab with a data biography, write down the source of your information.
6. Format into dollars, no decimals. Delete Totals Row. 
7. Insert New Column A to Categorize Revenues
Title Column “Category”
Code the “Tuition and Fees” and “Bookstore” as “School” in the new Category Column
Everything else is categorized as “Other” 
8. Create Pivot table.
Select just the data you downloaded, not the whole sheet
From the Main Menu: Data | Summarize with Pivot Table
A box appears with the select Table and Range and New Worksheet filled in. Select OK
9. Design Pivot Table
Drag Category field into rows
Drag 2012 and 2016 into Values
You have created a Table with two Columns and Two Rows Summarizing the Revenues from 2012 to 2016
10. In Column D, Create a Percentage Change Calculation, 2012-2016
Cell D4 Type formula =(C4-B4)/B4 for Other
Cell D5 Type formula =(C5-B5)/B5 for School
Cell D6 Type formula =(C6-B6)/B6 for School
Format as Percentage
11. Write a short news lead describing your main conclusions from this data
Part 2: Chart
5. Copy Data and “Paste as Values” into a new Tab
6. Delete “Sum 2012” and “Sum 2016″ columns. That leaves two columns, Row Labels and Pct Change
Highlight Source and % change,
On the ribbon bar in Excel, Click Insert and Select Clustered Chart.