The Observatory
Q&A: Eric Roston, Bloomberg’s sustainability editor
A new section tracks businesses’ response to the global “resource crunch”
By Curtis Brainard Feb 16, 2012 at 01:00 PM
At the end of November, Bloomberg News launched a Sustainability section “to uncover what businesses are doing, or what... More
“Economy Class Syndrome” Debunked
Personal blood-clot narrative makes for bad science writing in Washington Post
By Curtis Brainard Feb 10, 2012 at 04:55 PM
Telling a first-person story about a health problem is a popular frame in medical writing, and it can be effective... More
What Drives Public Opinion About Climate Change?
Politicians, economy more influential than media coverage, study says
By Curtis Brainard Feb 8, 2012 at 12:00 PM
The media influence public opinion about climate change, but not as much as national politicians and the state of the... More
The Presidential Energy Narrative
Campaign coverage takes on a green hue
By Curtis Brainard Jan 27, 2012 at 05:30 PM
In the last week, President Obama has rejected the Keystone XL pipeline, focused his first campaign ad on clean energy,... More
Keystone XL Jobs Bewilder Media
Reporters still fumbling numbers in wake of pipeline’s rejection
By Curtis Brainard Jan 24, 2012 at 04:30 PM
God help the poor news consumers of America, especially the would-be voters. President Obama’s decision to reject the Keystone XL... More
Does Big Pharma Pay Your Doctor?
New federal database could be a boon for reporters … but it needs their input
By Curtis Brainard Jan 19, 2012 at 02:30 PM
How useful would a database cataloguing the money that doctors receive from medical drug and device makers—for speaking, research, meals,... More
Critical Juncture for HuffPo Science
With new section, David Freeman has an opportunity to raise the bar
By Curtis Brainard Jan 13, 2012 at 12:00 PM
The Huffington Post’s announcement last week that it had launched a new section intended to be a “one-stop shop for... More
Media Made Hawking Famous
Amid 70th birthday adoration, reporters ignored their role in the physicist’s celebrity
By Declan Fahy Jan 11, 2012 at 10:15 AM
The extensive coverage of Stephen Hawking’s seventieth birthday on January 8 focused on the physicist’s status as the world’s most... More
Down, But Not Out?
A closer look at the quantity of climate coverage in 2011
By Curtis Brainard Jan 10, 2012 at 10:00 AM
Just how scarce was climate-change coverage in 2011? It’s hard to get a fix on the details, but the broad... More
Climate Coverage Crashes
Downward spiral in English-language news media continued in 2011
By Curtis Brainard Jan 4, 2012 at 04:45 PM
Twelve months ago, The Daily Climate, a website that produces and tracks media stories about climate change, declared that 2010... More
Best of 2011: The Observatory
From extreme weather to the crisis in Japan, Curtis Brainard picks the top CJR stories from the past year
By Curtis Brainard Dec 30, 2011 at 06:00 AM
The Hottest Thing in Science Blogging: The hot ticket for science bloggers and online writers this year was ScienceOnline, a... More
Methane Mysteries
Coverage of permafrost melt creates confusion about level of worry
By Curtis Brainard Dec 21, 2011 at 02:00 PM
Methane—a potent greenhouse gas that could be released in vast quantities as climate change melts Arctic permafrost—has received quite a... More
Phone-Hacking Inquiry Eyes Science Journalism
Nature calls on scientists to “fight agenda-driving reporting”
By Curtis Brainard Dec 16, 2011 at 04:00 PM
The Leveson inquiry into the “culture, practice, and ethics” of the British press resulting from the News International phone-hacking scandal... More
Newsweek Fetishizes an “Epidemic”
Voyeuristic sex-addiction cover misses an important debate
By Curtis Brainard Dec 15, 2011 at 03:30 PM
A “sex addiction epidemic” is unfolding like a plague in the US, according a recent Newsweek cover story—but don’t reach... More
Calling Dr. Crowd
News outlets rely on the masses for public health stories
By Alysia Santo Dec 14, 2011 at 03:47 PM
When we feel ourselves coming down with something, we look it up. If you type the words “I think I’m... More
Woman’s work - The twisted reality of an Italian freelancer in Syria
Sourcing Trayvon Martin ‘photos’ from stormfront - Not a good idea, Business Insider
Elizabeth Warren, the antidote to CNBC - The senator schools the talking heads on bank regulation
Art Laffer + PR blitz = press failure - The media types up the retail lobby’s propaganda
Reuters’s global warming about-face - A survey shows the newswire ran 50 percent fewer stories on climate change after hiring a “skeptic”
In one tweet
Luke Russert is the Golden Boy of DC
And it drives young journalists crazy
It’s official: We never need to worry about the future of journalism again!
The NYT shows us why
Why does Florida produce so much weird news? Experts explain
CJR's Guide to Online News Startups
ACEsTooHigh.com – Reporting on the science, education, and policy surrounding childhood trauma
Who Owns What
The Business of Digital Journalism
A report from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
Questions and exercises for journalism students.
