Statehouse Reporting and Strategies for Building your Own Data Library
By Bryan Gardiner
Fellows share information
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Making a habit of requesting data – whether you need it or not – is paramount for any reporter investigating state and local government. Filing these requests on a weekly basis can not only help journalists build a library they will return to again and again, but also save them the headaches and stress associated with trying to track down important records at the last minute.
Holly Heyser, state editor for the Orange County Register, outlined some of her key strategies for building such a library and compared the regular data filing process to getting enough bran in your diet.
“It’ll be good for you when it comes through,” Heyser said.
During the “Statehouse Reporting” presentation, Heyser stressed the value of cultivating and maintaining good relationships with the people you request data from.
“You don’t always have to write a FOI or DPA request,” she said. “Sometimes the act of being nice allows you to ask for data and simply be given it – having someone hand it over.”
Filing your requests on a regular basis lets the people you’re dealing with know that you are serious about deadlines, and committed to the process.
“If you make requests and forget them, agency officials will not take you seriously,” Heyser said.
Reporters who cover state and local government should compile a wish list of all the data they want to have on hand, and then keep an accurate record of exactly what has been requested to fulfill that list.
“Some things take a long time to come through, some things come quickly,” Heyser said. “Follow-up is important, and knowing when to follow up and making sure you do call is imperative to collecting your data.”
Heyser pointed out the importance of refreshing the data you actually have.
“Data is a snapshot in time, and it’s important to freshen it periodically…at least once a year,” she said.
In many instances, legislatures do not have the files and documents you need collected or available, Heyser said. Therefore, it is important for reporters to build and maintain their own personal data libraries, which should include:
- The date the data was requested
- The contact (name and phone)
- The date the reporter wants the data delivered
- The deadline for the story
- A follow-through date
- The date the data was actually received
- A refresh date to update the data
Heyser also offered a few caveats for reporters who are in the midst of obtaining data for a story. Reporters should always negotiate the costs of data retrieval, she said, and asking officials to break down costs by labor, disk charges or paper fees can cause the officials to re-think the often exorbitant fees they attempt to charge news organizations.
Heyser also told reporters to be wary of omitting specific data during the negotiation process.
“The whole idea of a data library is to have all this information at your disposal when you need it,” she said. “So if you back down or don’t ask, you’re the one that loses out.”
She concluded her talk with a list of records that all government reporters should start collecting, which includes:
- Payroll
- Contracts
- Campaign finance
- Statements of economic interest (top lawmakers and officials disclose sources of income, and gifts)
- Lobbying data
- Voter registration
- DMV
- State grants
- State spending and revenue reports
- Old state budgets
Reporters who are working on stories concerning local and state government budgets often have to try to calculate the effects of inflation. The inflation adjuster calculators available at the websites http://www.newengine.com and http://www.bls.gov, are useful resources.
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