New York Times, ProPublica Reporters Headline UA Journalism Day Panel

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. —Two national experts in data-driven journalism will speak Thursday, March 29 during J-Day activities at The University of Alabama.

The panel, “Driving the CAR: Creating clutch journalism through computer-assisted reporting,” begins at 6:45 p.m. in room 216 of Reese Phifer Hall.

ProPublica’s Jennifer LaFleur and The New York Times’ Andrew Lehren have built and analyzed databases for dozens of award-winning investigative stories. Their work has won dozens of national awards since the 1990s, on topics ranging from WikiLeaks to presidential pardons to the economics of Super Bowl tickets.

Their forte is computer-assisted reporting, a specialty for journalists skilled in working with spreadsheet and database programs, mapping and data-analysis software. They are experts in using Freedom of Information laws to acquire government data, as well as mastering the writing skills needed to turn statistical information into compelling stories.

“They are among the nation’s best at what they do,” said Dr. Chris Roberts, a database editor at two Southeastern newspapers before joining The University of Alabama’s journalism faculty. “Their skills and experience let them find stories hiding inside of data, and the result is that they tell important stories that few others can tell.”

LaFleur is database editor for ProPublica, a nonprofit investigative newsroom that has partnered with The New York Times, “60 Minutes,” and dozens of other news organizations. She previously was database editor at The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, The Dallas Morning News and The San Jose Mercury News, and is a member of the National Freedom of Information Act Hall of Fame.

Lehren is a reporter for The New York Times, which he joined after working as an investigative producer for NBC News. He contributed to a Times’ examination of the pharmaceutical industry that won a 2008 Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting, and he worked on reports that won Polk, Peabody and Emmy awards.

Both earned master’s degrees in journalism from the University of Missouri, where they worked on the staff of the National Institute of Computer-Assisted Reporting.

The event is part of UA’s J-Day activities, sponsored by the journalism department in the College of Communication and Information Studies. The full list of activities can be viewed here.