The Risk of Poor Coverage of Risk

Why does a healthier-than-ever world feel so scary?

By David Ropeik   Nov 30, 2010 at 03:30 PM

There is a hidden danger in this modern world of unprecedented plenty and healthier, longer lives: our growing fears about... More

From “Arab Newsrooms,” Day Two

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 30, 2010 at 03:18 PM

Yesterday, Foreign Policy’s Marc Lynch and Meris Lutz at the LA Times’s Babylon & Beyond blog both took a look... More

WikiLeaks Coverage, Day Two

A look at second-day WikiLeaks coverage from The New York Times, The Guardian, Der Spiegel, and others

By The Editors   Nov 30, 2010 at 02:22 PM

The New York Times Day two of the Times’s coverage of the latest WikiDump arrives with few “explosive” revelations, but... More

Diplomatic Cable Writing “A Bit Like Journalism”

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 30, 2010 at 01:18 PM

Slate today has an Explainer addressing two basic questions raised by Cablegate: "What's a diplomatic cable? And why is the... More

Are You Angry about WikiLeaks?

If so, why? If not, why not?

By The Editors   Nov 30, 2010 at 12:50 PM

From Sarah Palin to the Times readers who grilled Bill Keller over that paper’s right to publish information contained in... More

The Prosaic Mosaic Theory

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 30, 2010 at 12:25 PM

The New York Times is trying to play catchup with The Wall Street Journal, which has dominated the hedge-fund investigation... More

Startup Rocket Science

Technical specs for a modern journalism business

By Michael Andersen and Barry Johnson   Nov 30, 2010 at 10:59 AM

CJR’s “Launch Pad” feature invites new media publishers to blog about their experiences on the news frontier. Past columns by... More

The Record Keeper

Carol Rosenberg owns the Guantánamo beat

By David Glenn   Nov 30, 2010 at 08:00 AM

2:55: First prisoner comes off. He is wearing a fluorescent orange jump suit, a shiny turquoise facemask, goggles, similar colored... More

Audit Notes: Up Next For Wikileaks: The Banks, Forbes, Gaming Google

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 29, 2010 at 07:19 PM

Julian Assange is Forbes's cover boy this week. No surprise there. He just turned the diplomatic community on its head... More

Salon’s Top 30 Hacks List Hits Hard

By Joel Meares   Nov 29, 2010 at 05:10 PM

So we were mostly out of the office when Salon published “The War Room Hack Thirty,” a list of what... More

Ugly American(isms)

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 29, 2010 at 05:10 PM

At The Guardian's Mind Your Language blog, David Marsh defends against a common reader complaint that "too many 'Americanisms'" appear... More

“Tense Scenes in Arab Newsrooms Right Now”

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 29, 2010 at 04:33 PM

About those leaked cables that point to, as the New York Times puts it, “a largely silent front of Arab... More

WikiPublishers Face Their Readers

Times and Guardian Answer Questions on Leaks

By Joel Meares   Nov 29, 2010 at 04:14 PM

The two English-language newspapers given early access to the WikiLeaks diplomatic cable dump have published two very different Q&As with... More

Corporate Welfare Rocks!

The Wall Street Journal and Newsweek give Utah the puff treatment

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 29, 2010 at 04:10 PM

The Wall Street Journal reports that government activism is good... when it benefits Big Business. It's a puff piece about... More

WikiLeaks Coverage Roundup, Again

A look at coverage from The New York Times, The Guardian, Der Spiegel, and elsewhere

By CJR Staff   Nov 29, 2010 at 03:59 PM

On Sunday, the online secret-sharing site WikiLeaks began the process of releasing approximately 250,000 previously classified U.S. Department of State... More

Never the More

Replacing a word in a quotation can lead to trouble

By Merrill Perlman   Nov 29, 2010 at 02:40 PM

What happens when a public official misspeaks? Should a news outlet edit the quotation, paraphrase it, or just leave it... More

CBS Fumbles Again

A lopsided report on Social Security

By Trudy Lieberman   Nov 29, 2010 at 01:15 PM

If there were prizes given for the most one-sided, misleading story about Social Security this year, a segment aired on... More

Spy vs. Spy

Times and Guardian differ on WikiLeaks “spying” revelations

By Joel Meares   Nov 29, 2010 at 12:23 PM

The New York Times copped flak in October for what some perceived to be a watered-down reporting of the WikiLeaks... More

NYT on the Irish Mess

A private-sector crisis turned into the people’s problem by politicians.

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 29, 2010 at 11:16 AM

This New York Times lede from Friday is terrific, conveying as it does the Bizarro world of the Irish bailout:... More

Big Wheel Keep on Turnin’

Hamster for the holidays from the NYT, WSJ, and Politico

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 24, 2010 at 03:09 PM

Audit boss Dean Starkman wrote a CJR cover story a couple of months ago called "The Hamster Wheel," decrying journalistic... More

From Copenhagen to Cancun

A challenging year for the climate story

By Cristine Russell   Nov 24, 2010 at 01:57 PM

It’s been a challenging time for the climate change story on just about every front. A year ago, the unauthorized... More

Shorting the “Heard”

By Felix Salmon   Nov 24, 2010 at 11:26 AM

Does the Ireland crisis bespeak a major weakness in the Basel capital-adequacy regime? Simon Nixon thinks so: the fact that... More

Assigned to Review Palin’s Book?

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 24, 2010 at 11:20 AM

At Slate, David Weigel reviews Sarah Palin's latest book, America By Heart, and, mid-review, offers this "how to" for others... More

Number Cruncher

A new biography vindicates a forgotten innovator

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 24, 2010 at 09:54 AM

The Man Who Invented the Computer: The Biography of John Atanasoff, Digital Pioneer | By Jane Smiley | Doubleday |... More

A Curious Omission at the Times

Three Social Security proposals, or two?

By Trudy Lieberman   Nov 24, 2010 at 09:44 AM

It was puzzling to see Jackie Calmes’s brief story in The New York Times last week with its provocative headline:... More

Audit Notes: Hypocrisy on Warren, Just… Why?, Congress’ Net Worth Soars

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 24, 2010 at 12:33 AM

Former Timesman Peter S. Goodman is out of the gates fast over at The Huffington Post. He points out the... More

Quick Facts on the China Trade

You didn’t read them in Fortune

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 23, 2010 at 07:53 PM

CNBC's Becky Quick tosses off a dud over at Fortune, telling us all to "Stop the Beijing bashing!" because the... More

Tabbed Out

A key has lost its place

By Karen Stabiner   Nov 23, 2010 at 02:18 PM

In his heyday, he was the zelig of late-twentieth-century journalism, present for every watershed event that appeared in print: Watergate,... More

Opening Shot

In an election season, the press must sort fact from fiction and follow the money

By The Editors   Nov 23, 2010 at 02:12 PM

The midterm election season produced stories that tested journalism’s ability to do what it must during political campaigns: sort fact... More

AOL and Its Algorithm

The company is hiring hundreds of journalists. What will they produce?

By Lisa Anderson   Nov 23, 2010 at 02:02 PM

“Are you a passionate and entrepreneurial online journalist? Want to be part of a dynamic and innovative team of journalists,... More

The Ultimate Mortgage Fraud Anecdote

The Miami Herald finds a Miami woman defrauded at every turn

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 23, 2010 at 01:31 PM

The Miami Herald has found the perfect anecdote for the foreclosure scandal, the mortgage crisis, and how both are two... More

Expertise Mission Creep

A sensationalist headline shows how TV tempts commentators to reach

By Felix Salmon   Nov 23, 2010 at 12:15 PM

Last week, Chris Whalen appeared on Tech Ticker with Henry Blodget; he said, in the accurate if sensationalist words of... More

The Power of the Drones

Inside Slate’s efforts to crowdsource good ideas

By Daniel Luzer   Nov 23, 2010 at 11:46 AM

People have to be damn committed to an idea to attend an event about it on a Monday night, even... More

Reporting on Al-Qaeda’s English-Language Magazine

Proceed with caution

By Joel Meares   Nov 23, 2010 at 11:32 AM

Amid all the news about TSA scanners and full-body pat-downs this past week came a reminder of why the government... More

Thanksgiving Time

Tell us what in journalism you are thankful for

By The Editors   Nov 23, 2010 at 11:17 AM

Holidays are a reminder that we’ve gone another turn around the sun, a time to take time to take stock.... More

How to Tackle the Sales Demon

Launch Pad: Portland, Oregon

By Michael Andersen and Barry Johnson   Nov 23, 2010 at 10:59 AM

CJR’s “Launch Pad” feature invites new media publishers to blog about their experiences on the news frontier. Past columns by... More

Enterprise Reporting at the AP

The retirement age debate finally reaches the public

By Trudy Lieberman   Nov 23, 2010 at 10:47 AM

Kudos to the AP for obtaining a report from the government’s watchdog agency, the General Accountability Office (GAO), showing that... More

Siberian Rhapsody

Ian Frazier ventures across the steppe and back in time

By Ted Conover   Nov 23, 2010 at 09:00 AM

Ian Frazier is one of the few true stylists in nonfiction writing today. Along with Susan Orlean and not many... More

Benjamin Wey and the Power of PR

By Felix Salmon   Nov 23, 2010 at 12:33 AM

In September, one Benjamin Wey, calling himself "Chinese American Financial Expert Foremost Expert On Chinese Business in U.S.," put out... More

Audit Notes: Countrywide, WSJ Stays Ahead on Probe, Blodget

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 22, 2010 at 07:59 PM

All the biz/econobloggers are going gaga over a nugget of information buried deep in Gretchen Morgenson's column yesterday. Consider a... More

The Daily for iPad is On Its Way

Rupert Murdoch skips the web, goes straight for the store

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 22, 2010 at 02:30 PM

Women’s Wear Daily broke the news last week that NewsCorp’s iPad “newspaper,” the Daily, will launch next month in a... More

All But Ignoring the Fed’s Call for More Stimulus

Deficit-obsessed newspapers stuff Bernanke’s plea for near-term spending or tax cuts

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 22, 2010 at 12:51 PM

Last week, Ben Bernanke, Federal Reserve chairman, Republican, Bush appointee, calm technocrat, called for more fiscal stimulus (government spending and/or... More

Degrees of Rejection

‘Refudiate’ may have a use after all

By Merrill Perlman   Nov 22, 2010 at 11:31 AM

The “words of the year” lists are beginning to appear, and we’re generally going to ignore them, since those words... More

The Biggest Fish in Albany?

Liz Benjamin’s multimedia rise

By Joel Meares   Nov 22, 2010 at 10:57 AM

On one of her first days at Capital Tonight, the nightly political program she began hosting this year on New... More

Audit Notes: WSJ Scoop, SAC’s Golf Guy, Two Old Guys Flailing

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 19, 2010 at 11:53 PM

The Wall Street Journal has a big scoop out this evening, reporting that the federal government is winding up a... More

Unemployment Benefits as Search Engine Bait

Readers want to know about this issue. Many of them need to know

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 19, 2010 at 06:23 PM

When I think of SEO (search engine optimization), silly slide shows and headlines about Lindsey Lohan come to mind. But... More

Drop Out?

Suggested closure of Colorado journalism school sparks controversy

By Curtis Brainard   Nov 19, 2010 at 01:39 PM

The University of Colorado at Boulder kicked up a cloud of dust when it announced in August that it had... More

I Have No Strings

Nicky Diaz back in the news, with her backers

By Joel Meares   Nov 19, 2010 at 01:34 PM

You’ll recall straw-that-broke-the-CEO’s-back Nicky Diaz Santillan, the former housekeeper to California’s unsuccessful gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman. Diaz Santillan made well-orchestrated... More

Has Tunisia Mesmerized Journalists?

Tunisia is one of the world’s worst places for journalists—but you wouldn’t know it

By Justin D. Martin   Nov 19, 2010 at 12:08 PM

Tunis, Tunisia—The first time I heard the word “Tunisia” was as a child watching The Cosby Show. In one episode,... More

Covering the Unemployment Benefits Extension Vote

The reporting and play on a critical issue for millions needs to be a lot better

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 19, 2010 at 11:37 AM

(UPDATE: Thanks for the comments, all. All I can say is I hope things turn around for you—soon. I've quoted... More

The Authenticity Contest

Knight News Challenge solicits authenticity-related projects

By Craig Silverman   Nov 19, 2010 at 11:35 AM

Accuracy is hot stuff these days, let me tell you. On Wednesday, Thomas Friedman of The New York Times dedicated... More

Haiti Coverage and “Disaster Porn”

Cholera epidemic offers convenient B-roll for nightly newscasts

By Maura R. O'Connor   Nov 19, 2010 at 11:22 AM

Last month I was reporting a story on the opening of a mango warehouse in Haiti’s countryside when a fellow... More

The Former Car Czar Kicks Back on CNBC

Network lets Rattner guest host as subpoenas, settlements, and lawsuits fly

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 18, 2010 at 07:24 PM

It's probably not the best idea to let somebody in the news for bribing public officals guest-host your news show.... More

The Chamber of Commerce, Front for Hated Industries

Bloomberg reveals health insurers gave $86 million to oppose Obama’s reform plan

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 18, 2010 at 05:21 PM

Bloomberg gets a great scoop on the Chamber of Commerce, reporting that the health-insurance industry gave the secretive nonprofit a... More

Schwarzenegger a Rotten Tomato?

Golden State critics give governor the thumbs down

By Joel Meares   Nov 18, 2010 at 03:13 PM

For an action star who built a career out of mispronouncing words and blowing stuff up, Arnold Schwarzenegger didn’t do... More

Deflation Warning Signs, Mostly Buried in the Press

Core inflation at a 57-year low isn’t big news for the NYT, WaPo, and LAT

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 18, 2010 at 01:09 PM

Core inflation hit a record low last month, a warning sign that the economy could be heading toward Japan-style deflation.... More

Still Looking for Good MSM Coverage of Indian Microfinance Crisis

By Felix Salmon   Nov 18, 2010 at 01:08 PM

Are we ever going to get a good article on the hugely important microcredit crisis in the Indian state of... More

The Felix Thing

Concerns from a friend about our new blogger

By Dean Starkman   Nov 18, 2010 at 11:36 AM

We’ve gotten a couple of private notes expressing concern about our naming Felix Salmon as our new Peterson Fellow to... More

Social Security in the Heartland: Jim Bean

What Social Security means to real people

By Trudy Lieberman   Nov 18, 2010 at 10:57 AM

This is the sixth in a series of posts that discuss how possible changes in Social Security will affect the... More

How to Place a Story?

Survey finds top environmental newsmakers still target traditional media

By Curtis Brainard   Nov 18, 2010 at 10:00 AM

Despite disruptive changes in the media industry, which have made it more difficult to place stories and develop relationships with... More

A Faustian Bargain

Slideshows are the scourge, and the savior, of online journalism

By Chadwick Matlin   Nov 18, 2010 at 08:00 AM

In May 2009, Thebigmoney.com was shouting into the void. Slate’s business site was eight months old, but it was still... More

Audit Notes: Catching Up With Wall Street, Princess Dresses, Olbermann and Objectivity

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 17, 2010 at 06:21 PM

The New York Observer's Max Abelson takes a look at the Wall Street people who nearly crashed the world. Where... More

WSJ’s Casino Piece: A Few Details Short of a Full Deck

By Felix Salmon   Nov 17, 2010 at 04:07 PM

Alexandra Berzon has an enjoyable piece in today's WSJ about the Cosmpolitan, the new $4 billion casino, fully paid for... More

The FT Talks to the Little Guy

A story told through regular folks in Ireland, rather than Davos Men

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 17, 2010 at 04:03 PM

This isn't a particularly great story by the Financial Times, but I'm going to applaud it anyway, because it shows... More

“Months of Juicy Speculation” Ahead, You Say?

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 17, 2010 at 03:45 PM

"Prince William and Kate Middleton sat down with advisers Wednesday to begin planning the royal wedding that some Britons have... More

“WalmartAd” Ghost in the Daily Beast/Fox Machine

By Joel Meares   Nov 17, 2010 at 03:04 PM

We don’t want to kick anyone for what’s essentially a technical glitch—there but for the grace of choose-your-God go I—but... More

The Washington Independent Will Close Down

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 17, 2010 at 02:58 PM

A post on The Washington Independent announced today that the three-year-old online startup will be shutting down as of December... More

Steal This Heat Map!

Easy, free program to turn spreadsheets into maps

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 17, 2010 at 02:30 PM

In the vein of CJR’s “data visualization for beginners” posts, here’s another free and easy tool available for journalists who... More

Palin Critiques Lamestream Media in Lamestream Media

Shows how to not meet the press

By Joel Meares   Nov 17, 2010 at 12:04 PM

Prolific political reporter Robert Draper has a 7,720-word piece on Sarah Palin in this weekend’s New York Times magazine, which,... More

Support Injured Photographer João Silva

By Joel Meares   Nov 17, 2010 at 11:11 AM

Last month, New York Times-contracted photographer João Silva stepped on a landmine near the southern Afghan town of Arghandab. Silva... More

Covering the Dems Big Donor “Huddle”

Only Politico showed up?

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 17, 2010 at 11:03 AM

Last week, reports started appearing that a big group of deep-pocketed Democratic donors would be gathering this week in Washington,... More

A Particularly Weak WSJ Page One

One-sided on the deficit, plus stale news, and a royal yawner

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 17, 2010 at 10:37 AM

Boy, this morning's Wall Street Journal page one leaves a lot to be desired. First, there's this story: States Offer... More

Audit Notes: ProPub vs. BofA, Wall Street in the White House, Short-Armed

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 16, 2010 at 08:02 PM

I love to see the press just flat-out say somebody's full of it. ProPublica's Karen Weise does that today, calling... More

Reporting Commodity Price Swings

Stories often lead readers to believe inflationary impact is greater than it really is

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 16, 2010 at 05:03 PM

Bloomberg shouts this headline today about commodity prices going up: Gap, Wal-Mart Clothing Costs Rise on ‘Terrifying’ Cotton Prices Its... More

Jim VandeHei Talks Politico Pro

“We’re going to dig really deep… really cover what’s happening.”

By Joel Meares   Nov 16, 2010 at 03:44 PM

Politico has just announced it will be launching a subscriber service, Politico Pro, next February. According to a press release,... More

Zagat Remains a Profitable Brand

Does it matter that it hasn’t won the web?

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 16, 2010 at 02:50 PM

The New York Times ran a story over the weekend called “Zagat Survey Aims to Regain Its Online Balance,” about... More

Echoes of Grit and Humor

Great Lakes news startup brings on an inspiring new voice

By Curtis Brainard   Nov 16, 2010 at 02:30 PM

If all goes as planned, Tom Henry’s decision to take on more work—in the form of a monthly column for... More

LAT Watchdogs Wall Street on the GM IPO

The banks just can’t help themselves, and if shares soar, political problems await.

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 16, 2010 at 01:03 PM

The L.A. Times takes a smart tack on the General Motors IPO story, reporting that it shows how Wall Street... More

Why Journalists are Terrible at Time Management

Launch Pad: Portland, Oregon

By Michael Andersen and Barry Johnson   Nov 16, 2010 at 12:49 PM

CJR’s “Launch Pad” feature invites new media publishers to blog about their experiences on the news frontier. All of Michael... More

Leakapalooza on the Hill

Public relations bends this morning’s banking committee previews

By Dean Starkman   Nov 16, 2010 at 12:45 PM

Bank of America previewed and helped to soften its executives' planned apology before Congress today by letting the Times... More

The Education of Congressman-Elect Andy Harris

What does he know about health insurance?

By Trudy Lieberman   Nov 16, 2010 at 12:33 PM

Politico published a rather astonishing story yesterday that should make the constituents of Maryland’s first congressional district scratch their heads... More

Whither NewsBeast?

What do you think of the Daily Beast/Newsweek merge?

By The Editors   Nov 16, 2010 at 12:29 PM

News of the merger deal between IAC’s The Daily Beast and Sidney Harman’s Newsweek lit up the Internet last Friday.... More

China’s Chess Match

How the web has empowered the people

By Howard W. French   Nov 16, 2010 at 06:00 AM

Early in 2003, like millions of other migrants of his generation, Sun Zhigang, a young graphic designer, left central China,... More

Good Ship MSNBC Prone to Leaks

Is it a trickle-down effect?

By Joel Meares   Nov 15, 2010 at 02:54 PM

There must be something in the water at 30 Rock, the spiritual and actual home of news-breaker/news-maker MSNBC. It feels... More

Newsweek.com Editors Are Feeling Burned

As they take to Tumblr to plead for their jobs

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 15, 2010 at 02:20 PM

When Newsweek and The Daily Beast announced on Friday that they were merging the two brands and installing Tina Brown... More

Passing the Blame

A “scapegoat” by any other name …

By Merrill Perlman   Nov 15, 2010 at 12:38 PM

Antonio Pierce, on ESPN, was talking about how the Washington Redskins seemed to be blaming their quarterback for a lot... More

Stewart and Maddow: Civilly Warring

By Joel Meares   Nov 15, 2010 at 12:26 PM

Admittedly we’re a little behind the eight ball in posting this interview from last Thursday night’s Rachel Maddow Show, in... More

Sarah Palin’s Alaska. Not Just About Alaska?

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 15, 2010 at 11:53 AM

Sarah Palin's Alaska debuted on TLC last night and this morning one can read in any number of places how... More

L.A. Times Quantifies the Dominance of the Finance Lobby

No “obtained” records here or even FOIAs; this info was in plain sight

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 15, 2010 at 06:57 AM

The Los Angeles Times drops some good reporting this morning on regulation and the financial lobby, aggregating publicly available records... More

The Treasury Stops by Freakonomics

By Felix Salmon   Nov 14, 2010 at 11:31 PM

I love the way that Michael Mundaca, the assistant Treasury secretary for tax policy, has taken to the blogs to... More

Re-examining the mortgage interest deduction

By Felix Salmon   Nov 14, 2010 at 11:21 PM

One of the positive effects of the deficit commission report is the way that it has brought the stupid mortgage-interest... More

The NYT’s attempt to fix the budget

By Felix Salmon   Nov 14, 2010 at 11:05 PM

In the wake of his excellent rent-vs-buy calculator, David Leonhardt has helped create another interactive tool, this one called... More

Gruesome Graphic Labels

FDA’s new anti-smoking labels light up the web

By Cristine Russell   Nov 12, 2010 at 06:08 PM

It was inevitable that the FDA’s new proposal to put graphic, and often gruesome, pictures of dead bodies and diseased... More

Press Pass Problems

Cetacean Society’s decision to deny a reporter raises questions about access

By Curtis Brainard   Nov 12, 2010 at 04:30 PM

On Tuesday, the American Cetacean Society denied a freelancer’s request for a press pass to attend the society’s annual meeting... More

NewsBeast Notes

Wherein two media brands merge, and the Internet says hmmm

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 12, 2010 at 04:00 PM

The Tweets: @TheTinaBeast We’re getting hitched! Daily Beast, Newsweek To Wed http://thebea.st/dCdnfB @Newsweek It's official, we're merging with @TheDailyBeast http://bit.ly/9PGYz7... More

Database Shows L.A. its “Worst Legislator”

But is it fair? And is it news?

By Joel Meares   Nov 12, 2010 at 03:39 PM

San Jose Mercury News social services reporter Karen de Sa earned accolades this July for an investigative series which revealed... More

Audit Notes: Free Trade “Hit,” Taxing Wall Street, Bruce Karatz v. Tron Carter

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 12, 2010 at 03:29 PM

One thing the financial press doesn't much pretend to be neutral about is "free trade." They love that stuff. See... More

Well, What Do You Know, Sherlock?

The media discover Social Security

By Trudy Lieberman   Nov 12, 2010 at 03:15 PM

Ouch! That was the media’s general reaction yesterday to the ideas in the report issued by the co-chairs of the... More

Parker/Palin

By Joel Meares   Nov 12, 2010 at 02:07 PM

Turns out Parker/Spitzer is still on the air. And, heck, the show is even making news thanks to former governor,... More

Another WSJ Deficit Plan Headline Misses the Mark

By Felix Salmon   Nov 12, 2010 at 12:18 PM

The WSJ does none of its readers any favors with its silly headline attempting to sum up the effects of... More

The State of Online Corrections

News sites lag far behind print and broadcast outlets

By Craig Silverman   Nov 12, 2010 at 11:13 AM

In July, the media error reporting serviceMediaBugs released a survey that revealed twenty-one out of twenty-eight Bay Area news websites... More

The $600 Million Homeowner Bailout

An economic disaster for the country and a political one for Obama

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 12, 2010 at 07:27 AM

Remember when a little ol' homeowner bailout set off CNBC's Rick Santelli, igniting the Tea Party movement back in February... More

Man(n) the Torpedoes

Climate scientist Michael Mann goes on the offensive

By Cristine Russell   Nov 11, 2010 at 04:58 PM

NEW HAVEN, CONN.—It’s been exactly a year since “Climategate” broke, putting Penn State University researcher Michael Mann and climate scientists... More

MSNBC’s Ratigan Goes Way Off the Deep End

Discussing violent revolution as if it’s just another policy option

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 11, 2010 at 04:06 PM

MSNBC host Dylan Ratigan not only decided it was a good idea to have on far-left cartoonist Ted Rall to... More

Inside the Haiti Earthquake: a Simulation

Learn about the decisions made by survivors, aid workers, and journalists in a crisis

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 11, 2010 at 03:50 PM

After I wrote about the Toronto Star’s excellent multimedia coverage of the Haiti earthquake and its aftermath, I was alerted... More

Overplaying the Two Old Guys’ Report

The Times busts out the war font for a deficit plan with dubious prospects

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 11, 2010 at 02:00 PM

The Wall Street Journal and New York Times misplay the report out of the deficit commission panel today. The Journal... More

IWMF Grant for Women in Digital Media

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 11, 2010 at 01:30 PM

The International Women’s Media Foundation is awarding three grants of $20,000 each to female journalists “who aspire to be new... More

Medicare and the Deficit

The commission noise aside, it’s all that matters

By Felix Salmon   Nov 11, 2010 at 11:40 AM

The most clear-eyed view of the silliness of the deficit commission report comes from Kevin Drum, who points out that... More

The Education of Sen. Bennet

NPR passes along misinformation about Social Security

By Trudy Lieberman   Nov 11, 2010 at 11:34 AM

The squeaker victory of Colorado’s Sen. Michael Bennet landed him a spot on NPR’s Morning Edition the other day, and... More

Peggy Noonan vindicated!

By Clint Hendler   Nov 11, 2010 at 11:16 AM

It would be too easy to write this off as your News of The Weird for the day. No way... More

Darts and Laurels

Reporters at two weeklies keep the memories of unknown murder victims alive

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 11, 2010 at 08:00 AM

In 2008, L.A. Weekly reporter Christine Pelisek learned that the Los Angeles Police Department had recently dedicated a secret task... More

A Biovail/60 Minutes Coda

By Dean Starkman   Nov 10, 2010 at 06:13 PM

Some stories just never go away. 60 Minutes's poor decision four years ago to portray a small pharmaceuticals company... More

Amid Industry Turmoil, “The New Journalism Ecosystem” Thrives

i-Lab’s new database of investigative nonprofits

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 10, 2010 at 05:35 PM

Investigative Reporting Workshop founder Charles Lewis offers a few sobering—though unfortunately unsurprising—PEJ statistics in the introduction to his latest report... More

Audit Notes: WSJ Explains Ireland, Eisinger, Tragedy of the Technocrats

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 10, 2010 at 04:13 PM

Every once in a while, we get one of those page-one stories in The Wall Street Journal that remind you... More

A Times Story Bodes Ill for the Washington Post

An investigation shows how Kaplan used predatory tactics to get students and government money

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 10, 2010 at 03:32 PM

The for-profit college business just looks worse and worse, and a New York Times investigation this morning paints a disturbing... More

Magic Wall Memories with John King

By Joel Meares   Nov 10, 2010 at 02:55 PM

According to the New York Post’s Page Six—which keeps a close watch on media meltdowns—CNN’s John King let off some... More

“Might” of Politico

Two stories on 2012 show the website stretching

By Joel Meares   Nov 10, 2010 at 01:29 PM

Midterms are over, the prez is in Asia, and Olbermann’s back at his desk—what’s a niche political site to do?... More

Some Stories are “Un-Webbable”

The Washington Post’s Mark Luckie on multimedia moderation

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 10, 2010 at 01:00 PM

The Hearst Foundation and Columbia University’s J-School Digital Media Program hosted its annual panel on Tuesday night, entitled “The Changing... More

Audit Notes: Foreclosure Scandal, Gold Still Not a Record, Facebook Ads

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 9, 2010 at 06:11 PM

The Washington Post drops this eye-raising info from a Long Island judge who's not happy with the banks' actions in... More

Tucker Carlson: Agent Provocateur?

By Joel Meares   Nov 9, 2010 at 04:27 PM

Looks like ex-MSNBC personality, bowtie fan, and current head of The Daily Caller Tucker Carlson wasn’t content to sit on... More

Brad DeLong’s Fiscal Manifesto

By Felix Salmon   Nov 9, 2010 at 03:13 PM

Brad DeLong is fed up with vague hand-waving from technocrats, Bob Rubin very much included, who call for the government... More

Virtual Haiti

The Toronto Star’s 360-degree photography shows the earthquake’s aftermath

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 9, 2010 at 03:10 PM

The earthquake that rocked Haiti in January leveled its capital, killed at least 230,000 people, and made another million homeless.... More

Launch Pad: Portland, Oregon

Two news entrepeneurs explain why they struck out on their own

By Michael Andersen and Barry Johnson   Nov 9, 2010 at 02:10 PM

CJR’s “Launch Pad” feature invites new media publishers to blog about their experiences on the news frontier. All of Michael... More

Gag Time in Cairo

An interview with Egyptian journalist Ibrahim Eissa

By David Lepeska   Nov 9, 2010 at 01:42 PM

Few leaders stay in power for thirty years without occasionally embracing their inner gangster. So it is that the aging,... More

The Olbermann Question

What are the journalistic consequences of reporters donating to political campaigns?

By The Editors   Nov 9, 2010 at 01:22 PM

One question which has gone largely unaddressed in the Keith Olbermann controversy is this: Is there a difference between donating... More

“Help, I Don’t Understand”

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 9, 2010 at 12:25 PM

Bob Woodward plays the straight man himself to Ben Bradlee’s zany future-thinking exec in this new Washington Post video for... More

Q&A: Former Detroit News Reporter Charlie LeDuff

“The point is if there’s something calamitous, let’s point it out.”

By Joel Meares   Nov 9, 2010 at 12:23 PM

Charlie LeDuff left The Detroit News last month after a two-year stint in which he reported stories, wrote a regular... More

Yes, Virginia, it Really Was a Republican Plan

By Trudy Lieberman   Nov 9, 2010 at 11:40 AM

Sunday, the president admitted to Steve Kroft of CBS that the health reform law now known in the vernacular as... More

“Snapshots of a Time Before War”

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 9, 2010 at 10:42 AM

"I was greeted by snapshots when I first entered Iraq in 2003," writes the New York Times's Marc Santora at... More

WaPo: OCC Had the Banks’ Back on Foreclosures

Comptroller John Dugan rejected requests from states to investigate

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 9, 2010 at 09:58 AM

This Washington Post story yesterday didn't get as much attention as it ought to have. Zachary Goldfarb reports on yet... More

Serious Fun With Numbers

We’re drowning in data, but few reporters know how to use them

By Janet Paskin   Nov 9, 2010 at 08:00 AM

The story was already great, even before Daniel Gilbert opened his first spreadsheet. Thousands of citizens in the southern Virginia... More

Sarah Palin, Media Critic

The former veep candidate (and journalism major) misleads readers on the WSJ with selective quotes

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 8, 2010 at 09:25 PM

Aw, shucks. Sarah Palin is "just a former governor and current housewife from Alaska, but even humble folks like (her)... More

Audit Notes: Palin Holds Forth on QE2, Top 400 Taxes, Too Big to Jail

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 8, 2010 at 05:25 PM

If you, like me, had been eagerly awaiting Sarah Palin's thoughts on Quantitative Easing: Part Deux, the wait is over!... More

“Gut Feeling” Guides Pay-for-Play at Gawker

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 8, 2010 at 05:18 PM

How does Gawker decide whether (and how much) to pay for a story, wondered Simon Owens over at TNW? Writes... More

Lauer’s “Tone” Landed Bush

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 8, 2010 at 03:06 PM

Last week, Gary "Baba Booey" Dell'Abate and Buddy "The Cake Boss" Valastro talked about their new books (They Call Me... More

Stock Answers

A stylebook takes on financial terms

By Merrill Perlman   Nov 8, 2010 at 02:42 PM

If you’ve been reading too much “financial porn,” you might be tempted by the “skirt-length theory” and try to “buy... More

Beyond Just-the-Facts

A debate illuminates the Fed’s latest moves

By Felix Salmon   Nov 8, 2010 at 12:15 PM

After the Fed formally announced its new bout of quantitative easing, the CFR’s Sebastian Mallaby lost little time in declaring... More

Local Ad Networks Bring Home the Bacon

Community sites team up to hire sales staff and share ad revenue

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 8, 2010 at 11:45 AM

When Washington, D.C. local news site TBD.com launched in August, it got a fair amount of attention for the blog... More

What Should John Boehner Do?

Kaiser asks the health cognoscenti

By Trudy Lieberman   Nov 8, 2010 at 11:24 AM

One of the more interesting and informative pieces of journalism to cross my computer screen in recent months was a... More

The News That Wasn’t

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 8, 2010 at 10:50 AM

Fans of the late William Safire know that before he was a the New York Times Magazine “On Language” columnist,... More

A Big Story or a “Technicality”?

Sorkin, Nocera, and other intra-newsroom battles over whether the foreclosure scandal matters

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 8, 2010 at 07:42 AM

I get the sense that the foreclosure scandal has opened up some rifts in at least a couple of newsrooms.... More

A Referendum on Energy Issues?

Not so fast

By Curtis Brainard and Cristine Russell   Nov 5, 2010 at 05:14 PM

There is something ironic about the post-election surge of articles about the environmental consequences of various outcomes at the polls... More

Audit Notes: A Foreclosure Tragedy, Dirty Diapers, 1994, Hyatt’s Jingle Mail

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 5, 2010 at 04:57 PM

The Miami Herald finds a sad twist on the foreclosure scandal: Who do you sue when your toddler drowns in... More

Olbermann Out For Now

But was it the right call?

By Joel Meares   Nov 5, 2010 at 04:21 PM

MSNBC head honcho Phil Griffin announced this afternoon that he was suspending Countdown host Keith Olbermann indefinitely, after it... More

Olbermann Isn’t Alone

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 5, 2010 at 03:30 PM

Countdown host Keith Olbermann has just been indefinitely suspended for donating money to three Democratic campaigns, and thereby violating MSNBC... More

Yahoo’s Ask America Infographic

Pretty, but pretty dumb

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 5, 2010 at 01:45 PM

In anticipation of the midterm elections, Yahoo created an interactive project called Ask America, part of which is the “Issues... More

How The West Was Lost

California Watch Rummages Through Whitman’s Purse

By Joel Meares   Nov 5, 2010 at 01:30 PM

Much has been written this election cycle about all the self-funded business-background candidates who stepped into the campaign fray, checkbooks... More

BBC Journalists’ Strike is On

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 5, 2010 at 11:55 AM

Our colleagues across the pond have initiated a two-day strike over pension benefits, the AP reports. Some radio and TV... More

Star Trek Insurrection

Commenters force news site to admit “Patrick Stewart is a handsome man”

By Craig Silverman   Nov 5, 2010 at 11:23 AM

“We're sorry for claiming Captain Kirk was in command of Captain Picard's starship,” reads the headline on a rather remarkable... More

WSJ vs. FT on QE2

The pink paper wins the page-one battle by focusing on the long-term repercussions

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 5, 2010 at 10:55 AM

Quantitative Easing II: Good or bad? Take your pick from the respective front pages of The Wall Street Journal and... More

Nasiripour on America’s Failing Monetary Policy

By Felix Salmon   Nov 5, 2010 at 08:52 AM

Shahien Nasiripour has delivered a massive 4,000-word article on the Fed’s monetary policy, laying out with great clarity just... More

Plagiarists’ Favors

By Dylan DePice   Nov 4, 2010 at 04:46 PM

Today, numerous outlets reported on an episode of the print vs. online media saga in which a proud member of... More

Audit Notes: Derailed; Tax Know-Nothings, Press Bubble, Etc.

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 4, 2010 at 04:40 PM

John Collins Rudolf writes at The New York Times's Green blog about the effect Tuesday's GOP landslide will have on... More

Pic Is Worth 140 Characters in Palin vs. Politico

By Joel Meares   Nov 4, 2010 at 04:33 PM

Sarah Palin has always had beef with the “lamestream media,” but she started getting more specific about that beef... More

Hey Bernanke, Say It Again…in English

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 4, 2010 at 04:00 PM

When Slate’s Jeremy Singer-Vine debuted the “Plain English” tool on Slate Labs, I was curious to see how people would... More

Tracking Tea Party Sentiment Among Pundits

By CJR Staff   Nov 4, 2010 at 03:36 PM

The Sam Adams Institute, benefactors of Houston based investigative startup "Texas Watchdog", has produced a handy chart tracking the evolving... More

Baying for Tears

President’s answers no neat lede

By Joel Meares   Nov 4, 2010 at 02:40 PM

In a blog post following yesterday’s “sad sack press conference” at the White House, The Guardian’s Michael Tomasky wrote that... More

An Attack Ad That Might (Still) Grab You

PBS on campaign spending: he-said, she-said, and something more

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 4, 2010 at 01:38 PM

At this point, a political attack ad would probably sound to you something like the voice of Charlie Brown's teacher:... More

In Demand

A week inside the future of journalism

By Nicholas Spangler   Nov 4, 2010 at 01:30 PM

I spent eight years at The Miami Herald, mainly writing features, and when the paper laid me off in 2009,... More

Interactivity on a Budget

How several smaller newsrooms dealt with election data

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 4, 2010 at 11:55 AM

Earlier this week I did a quick rundown of some eye-catching interactive graphics that newsrooms at papers like The New... More

A Gift On Bloggingheads.tv’s Birthday

By Joel Meares   Nov 4, 2010 at 11:30 AM

To mark its fifth anniversary, pundits-on-webcams site Bloggingheads.tv has put out a number of highlights videos. Our favorite is this... More

The Election Story Not Told

The irony of health reform

By Trudy Lieberman   Nov 4, 2010 at 10:43 AM

For months we knew that health reform was in big trouble. Tuesday night, we found out how big. Health care... More

Bernanke Explains QE2

But a press conference is needed

By Felix Salmon   Nov 4, 2010 at 10:06 AM

Ben Bernanke might not be giving Trichet-style press conferences, but he is at least taking to the op-ed page of... More

The Journal Misfires on the Economy and the Election

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 4, 2010 at 09:47 AM

The Wall Street Journal makes a logical error this morning in reporting that the "Economy Wasn't Sole Voter Concern." Now,... More

Six Nuggets from the 2010 Exit Polls

Who voted for whom, and what did they think?

By Clint Hendler   Nov 3, 2010 at 03:16 PM

If you watched cable last night, you may have had so much exit poll data thrown your way that you’re... More

The Tea Party Faction and the Business Agenda

It’s worth watching how the new members toe the corporate line

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 3, 2010 at 03:03 PM

What will the historic Republican landslide mean for business? Lots of things, says Bloomberg, in a long look at what... More

A Future for Cooperative Politics?

New York Times story on candidates’ psychology is overly optimistic

By Curtis Brainard   Nov 3, 2010 at 02:49 PM

Thankfully, the days of “neuropunditry,” which sought to decipher voters’ thoughts with brain imaging and which blighted coverage of the... More

The Advice Columnists

Pundits and their post-midterms tips

By Joel Meares   Nov 3, 2010 at 01:55 PM

The post-midterm op-ed pages were full of advice this morning. Nearly all offered tips for a beleaguered president who took... More

Morning-After Headlines: Shift, Surge, Stampede

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 3, 2010 at 11:58 AM

So many ways to say it. A sampling of newspaper front pages from around the country this morning. In Nevada,... More

Myopia on Wall Street

The Observer’s Max Abelson finds a prime example in a new book

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 3, 2010 at 11:54 AM

Wall Street still hasn't taken responsibility for its central role in creating the housing bubble, the predatory lending, the financial... More

The Economic Consequences of Gridlock

By Felix Salmon   Nov 3, 2010 at 10:59 AM

“The conventional wisdom likely to be repeated over the next few weeks,” writes Mohamed El-Erian today, “is that political gridlock... More

Rubin’s Unhelpful Fiscal Exhortations

By Felix Salmon   Nov 3, 2010 at 09:31 AM

Oh dear, what have I signed up for? No sooner do I agree to start blogging more about economic journalism... More

Election Night Coverage Roundup

What was said on CNN, NPR, the BBC, the NYT, and elsewhere

By CJR Staff   Nov 3, 2010 at 01:46 AM

CNN CNN clearly wants to wow viewers with the whiz-bang: the “data wall,” the “election matrix,” the “sentiment analysis” of... More

Audit Notes: Jamie’s WaMu Dud, Sloan on Foreclosuregate, Sorkin

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 2, 2010 at 06:30 PM

Bloomberg Bloomberg Markets takes a long look at the troubles facing JPMorgan Chase, the latest of which is that Jamie... More

What Did WikiLeaks Really Tell Us about Iran?

Use caution in reading the Iraq war logs—and news coverage of them

By Ali Gharib   Nov 2, 2010 at 04:25 PM

A source provides details to the American government about the nefarious activities of a Middle Eastern country. That information ends... More

Captive Customers

NPR reveals a behind-the-scenes role by private prisons in Arizona’s tough immigration law

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 2, 2010 at 03:19 PM

An NPR investigation goes right to the heart of the problem with private prisons: Putting a profit motive behind taking... More

Some Helpful Guides to Election Night TV

What to read while you watch

By Joel Meares   Nov 2, 2010 at 02:59 PM

My colleague Liz Cox Barrett previewed the big guns' plans for tonight’s coverage. But just what should you have in... More

Election Day Tools, Maps, and Graphics

A rundown of the best interactive projects online

By Lauren Kirchner   Nov 2, 2010 at 02:15 PM

Election Day is an occasion for high drama on the Internet: data coming in all day and night, polls, pundits,... More

Felix Salmon is the Columbia Journalism Review’s New Peterson Fellow

Will blog about media coverage of fiscal and economic policy

By Dean Starkman   Nov 2, 2010 at 12:54 PM

Felix Salmon, the finance blogger for Reuters and a leading voice on financial and economic issues, has been appointed the... More

Whiz. Bang. It’s Election Night

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 2, 2010 at 11:56 AM

The Associated Press reports today that "after losing viewers to cable news networks on recent election nights, television's biggest broadcasters... More

Olbermann Suspends “Worst Person” Segment

What other segments, programs, or people should be cut from cable news?

By The Editors   Nov 2, 2010 at 11:54 AM

After accusing Jon Stewart of jumping the shark on Twitter over the weekend, Keith Olbermann last night gave in to... More

If You Don’t Beat ‘Em, Join ‘Em?

NYT, LAT on outside groups, election spending, and 2012

By Liz Cox Barrett   Nov 2, 2010 at 09:45 AM

Those heavy-spending outside groups that have come out in force this election season? We're likely to see their ilk (and... More

Escape the Silos

How the press can help rebuild the American conversation

By The Editors   Nov 2, 2010 at 08:00 AM

In his wonderful book, The Earl of Louisiana, A. J. Liebling takes many a detour on his way to explaining... More

Audit Notes: Magnetar, Comfort the Comfortable, Minimum Wage

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 1, 2010 at 06:50 PM

ProPublica reports that the SEC is investigating a specific JPMorgan deal with the Magnetar hedge fund and whether the bank... More

Election Night Bingo

By Joel Meares   Nov 1, 2010 at 04:42 PM

As my colleague Greg Marx has pointed out in the past, political science can get short shrift in political journalism.... More

Politico Puffs, Palin Huffs

Buzzy article on ’12 chances has little to say

By Clint Hendler   Nov 1, 2010 at 03:35 PM

Late on Halloween night, Politico published an article claiming that after the midterm elections, Republican bigwigs plan to set off... More

Midterms Metaphor Madness

A primer on the cycle’s language of disaster

By Joel Meares   Nov 1, 2010 at 03:17 PM

This week’s elections have headline writers reaching for just the right metaphors to characterize the coming Republican gain. For inspiration,... More

Leading Questions

How some journalism terms were born

By Merrill Perlman   Nov 1, 2010 at 01:52 PM

The Associated Press recently said it would stop using some wire-service jargon as instructions on its stories. Among them were... More

Jon Stewart’s Never-Never Land

When the going gets tough, the tough get ironic

By Lester Feder   Nov 1, 2010 at 01:43 PM

The first irony of the major outlets’ prohibiting their employees from attending this weekend’s Stewart/Colbert rally is that their effort... More

On Spec

A roundup of pre-election guesswork

By Joel Meares   Nov 1, 2010 at 01:40 PM

Among the expected slew of same-same “Expect Big GOP Gains” stories running nationally today, there is a smaller cabal... More

Medicare Beat Memo

What the campaign advertising missed

By Trudy Lieberman   Nov 1, 2010 at 12:04 PM

There are some uncomfortable truths about Medicare changes lurking in the health reform law. Because the pols on both sides... More

Setting the Record Straight on Campaign Ads

Who’s telling the truth about Medicare?

By Trudy Lieberman   Nov 1, 2010 at 11:54 AM

Pity the senior citizens in the voting booth Tuesday. Who should they believe about Medicare—the Dems and their surrogates, who... More

Robo-Signers Aren’t Limited to Foreclosures

The Times finds debt collectors signing up to 2,000 affidavits a day

By Ryan Chittum   Nov 1, 2010 at 11:27 AM

The New York Times does an excellent job this morning finding a new angle on the robo-signers scandal. It's a... More