United States Project
Embracing the myth of the campaign wizard, again
The Jim Messina profile industry is part of a long tradition
By Walter Shapiro Jun 21, 2012 at 05:18 PM
Maybe it began with the lionization in the press of the Irish Mafia that helped elect John Kennedy in 1960.... More
Harrisburg’s Patriot-News sits down with Romney
There are lessons here for campaign reporters and editors along future bus tour routes
By Ken Knelly Jun 20, 2012 at 05:30 PM
PENNSYLVANIA — While campaigns and aligned PACs are raising and spending hundreds of millions of dollars, old-school, retail politics has... More
A laurel to WaPo’s debunking of ‘EPA drones’
David Fahrenthold chronicles the “life cycle of a falsehood”
By Liz Cox Barrett and Greg Marx Jun 20, 2012 at 11:44 AM
Starting today, we’ll be bringing a venerable CJR tradition, Darts & Laurels, to The Swing States Project. Each Wednesday,... More
The failure to explain health reform
The public doesn’t understand it. Whose fault is that?
By Trudy Lieberman Jun 20, 2012 at 06:51 AM
If the Supreme Court rules the health reform law or its central feature—the individual mandate requiring people to have health... More
When ads attack in Virginia
Roanoke’s WSLS-TV, Hampton Roads’ Daily Press did more than repeat claims and counter-claims
By Tharon Giddens Jun 19, 2012 at 04:45 PM
VIRGINIA — Turn on a local morning television newscast on any given day in Virginia and you’ll likely get a... More
Why Romney looks more ‘confident’ in reporters’ eyes
It’s journalism-speak for “seeming more likely to win”
By Brendan Nyhan Jun 19, 2012 at 12:05 PM
NEW HAMPSHIRE — One of the most frequent problems with campaign reporting is the way that journalists construct candidate-centric narratives... More
Beyond TV sound bites in the Silver State
There is a plethora of public affairs programming on Jim Rogers’s three Nevada TV stations
By Jay Jones Jun 18, 2012 at 11:15 AM
During the somewhat less frantic months of the presidential campaign season—between the primaries and the nominating conventions—the Swing States Project... More
The brave new world of health insurance exchanges
It’s time to take a look at how they are working in Massachusetts and beyond
By Trudy Lieberman Jun 18, 2012 at 11:05 AM
New York Times reporter Abby Goodnough’s piece last week about the health insurance exchange in Massachusetts is instructive—especially since other... More
How the duel for Ohio played in the Buckeye State
Local news offers workmanlike coverage for workmanlike speeches—and one memorable metaphor
By T.C. Brown Jun 15, 2012 at 03:27 PM
OHIO — The hype was heavy. Media outlets, locally and nationally, couldn’t resist billing Thursday’s speeches in the Buckeye State... More
Smart Post piece asks: Do campaign ads work?
Campaign cash is eye-popping, but impact at presidential level is likely limited
By Greg Marx Jun 15, 2012 at 12:15 PM
I’m late to this, but The Washington Post’s Paul Farhi had a sharp piece the other day about the uses... More
The Times finds the people angle on Social Security
A human story clarifies a policy question
By Trudy Lieberman Jun 15, 2012 at 11:15 AM
It was good to see The New York Times publish the kind of story we have been urging—one that describes... More
Why can’t the press let politicians have principles?
Plus: HuffPost’s good work on campaign consultants, and a better way to cover gaffes
By Walter Shapiro Jun 14, 2012 at 03:09 PM
No one—not even the love child of Horatio Alger and Ayn Rand—rivals campaign reporters when it comes to worshipping ambition.... More
Do campaign gaffes matter? Not to voters
Overhyped gaffe coverage is a sign that editors should shift resources to other stories
By Brendan Nyhan Jun 13, 2012 at 02:55 PM
Since Friday, the national political conversation has been dominated by a debate over the importance of President Obama’s statement, at... More
In Ohio, the money-in-politics story is rich
Reporters in Cleveland, Columbus, and Dayton follow the money
By T.C. Brown Jun 13, 2012 at 11:00 AM
OHIO — The money being thrown at political campaigns and advertising here in Ohio is coming so fast and furious... More
When it comes to Jeb Bush, ‘no’ is not enough
Memo to the media: He really doesn’t want to be vice president.
By Brian E. Crowley Jun 11, 2012 at 11:03 AM
FLORIDA — Sitting across from Jeb Bush last week on the set of CBS This Morning, Charlie Rose asked: “You... More
‘See you on the other side’ - Meet Jessica Lum, a terminally ill 25-year-old who chose to spend what little time she had practicing journalism
#Realtalk: This is the best moment to be in journalism - The old stuff isn’t coming back, but that’s okay
Streams of consciousness - Millennials expect a steady diet of quick-hit, social-media-mediated bits and bytes. What does that mean for journalism?
Sticking with the truth - How ‘balanced’ coverage helped sustain the bogus claim that childhood vaccines can cause autism
An ink-stained stretch - Can Aaron Kushner save the Orange County Register—and the newspaper industry?
This is the best moment to be in journalism (25)
The WSJ editorial page hits rock bottom (19)
The completist guide to Star Trek
Matt Yglesias watched every Star Trek movie and every episode of every TV show in the franchise
The uncomfortable questions not raised by Benghazi
The press and Congress are asking the wrong questions
Rob Ford in ‘crack cocaine’ video scandal
A video that appears to show Toronto’s mayor smoking crack is being shopped around by a group of Somali men involved in the drug trade
Why the underwear-bomber leak infuriated the Obama administration
The threat of even grander leaks
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.
