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Articles by Sasha Chavkin | Email the Author
Do super PACS have a right to lie?
In an unsettled legal environment, media’s role—and responsibilities—are central
By Sasha Chavkin Dec 17, 2012 at 06:50 AM
In a bitter campaign for the Florida State Senate this fall, incumbent Maria Sachs was pummeled with negative TV ads... More
The Ad Wars: Was outside money futile?
After Election Day, the press seizes on a new conventional wisdom
By Sasha Chavkin Nov 8, 2012 at 11:10 AM
Throughout the 2012 campaign, dozens of reporters and advocates kept a close eye on the flood of outside money that... More
The Ad Wars: GOP advantage in the House
In local races, outside money can tip the scales, and the GOP is trying to do just that
By Sasha Chavkin Nov 5, 2012 at 03:44 PM
As Americans cast their votes for the next president, the Obama campaign and its supporters have maintained an unexpected advantage... More
The Ad Wars: Romney’s Last-Minute Deceptions
Swing state reporters—watch for ninth-inning spitballs
By Sasha Chavkin Nov 1, 2012 at 01:37 PM
As the presidential race enters its critical final days, Mitt Romney’s campaign has drawn fire for two advertisements that it... More
The Ad Wars: a laurel to the Sunlight Foundation
Report brings scrutiny to new political ad database
By Sasha Chavkin Oct 26, 2012 at 01:40 PM
In an important victory for transparency advocates, the Federal Communications Commission recently began requiring broadcasters to post the files... More
The Ad Wars: Obama’s special message in Spanish
A review of Obama’s and Romney’s Spanish-language TV ads finds contrasts in style, strategy, and sophistication
By Sasha Chavkin Oct 23, 2012 at 04:35 PM
Barack Obama gazes directly into the camera and speaks in his warmest baritone. “In the young people known as the... More
The Ad Wars: Is the IRS throwing in the towel on political nonprofits?
Politico identifies thirteen “social welfare” groups misleading the IRS
By Sasha Chavkin Oct 16, 2012 at 03:00 PM
On Monday, Politico published a powerful investigation of so-called “social welfare” groups that mislead the Internal Revenue Service about their... More
The Ad Wars: how to expose a dishonest ‘Social Welfare’ group
Telling the IRS one thing, then doing another
By Sasha Chavkin Oct 12, 2012 at 03:34 PM
We all know that in the 2012 election season, outside groups fueled by unlimited checks from wealthy donors have been... More
The Ad Wars: The strange silence on foreign policy
In presidential campaign ads, there have been 22 mentions of jobs for every reference to Iraq and Afghanistan wars
By Sasha Chavkin Oct 8, 2012 at 10:45 AM
In past elections, the critical threshold for presidential candidates was the commander-in-chief test: whether Americans felt they could trust them... More
The Ad Wars: From every source, a different number
What should reporters do to provide the best information to their audience?
By Sasha Chavkin Oct 4, 2012 at 11:00 AM
Tracking campaign ads in the 2012 elections is no easy feat. Between the flurry of spots from the Obama and... More
The Ad Wars: Super PACs not super? Not so fast
The Journal’s flawed logic on page one
By Sasha Chavkin Sep 27, 2012 at 11:00 AM
On Monday, The Wall Street Journal reached a bold conclusion on one of the central debates of the 2012 elections:... More
The Ad Wars: The numbers don’t add up
When it comes to political ad spending, we don’t know as much as we think we do
By Sasha Chavkin Sep 25, 2012 at 03:15 PM
An extraordinary feature of the 2012 elections has been the barrage of outside money unleashed on America’s airwaves. Deep-pocketed groups... More
The Ad Wars: How do we cover them?
CJR’s guide to the best sources
By Sasha Chavkin Sep 19, 2012 at 11:00 AM
With less than two months before Election Day, America’s airwaves are under full-scale bombardment. Voters in the crucial swing states... More
#Realtalk: This isn’t another ‘golden age’ for print - But it is one for media
Social media in smaller markets - How three social media managers deal with smaller markets and more local coverage.
A rally for laid-off Sun-Times photogs - A protest Thursday morning drew about 150 picketers to the newspaper’s headquarters
Reporting, or illegal hacking - Scripps reporters are accused of violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act
Exchange Watch: California Dreaming - Low healthcare premiums on the West Coast were trumpeted as a big, good-news Obamacare story. But: “Compared to what?”
Things have always been getting worse
Yes, women’s magazines can do serious journalism
In fact, we’ve been doing it for a while
The people who run the American security apparatus are in the overwhelming majority diligent people with a deep concern for civil liberties. But their job is to find creative ways to collect information. And they work within an institution that, because of its secrecy, is fundamentally inimical to democracy and to a free society
Fast Company is hacking the newsroom
Here’s why
Rachel Maddow’s tribute to Michael Hastings
“Michael was angry … he was angry about things that weren’t right in the world. He was angry with war and with loss, and that drove his reporting.”
CJR's Guide to Online News Startups
Uptown Messenger – Hyperlocal news for a neighborhood in New Orleans
Who Owns What
The Business of Digital Journalism
A report from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
Questions and exercises for journalism students.
