IRE offers Webinars in DocumentCloud, broadcast investigations, Twitter, and doing great work with less

By Linda Austin on Aug 05, 2010 in Basics, Best Practices, Career tips, Investigation, IRE, Networking

Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) is offering Webinars this fall in doing broadcast investigations, analyzing text with DocumentCloud, using Twitter, and doing great work with limited resources. Training Director Jaimi Dowdell offers these descriptions of the sessions, which are all at 2 p.m. EDT and cost $10 for IRE members and $20 for non-members, unless otherwise indicated:

Aug. 26 – Broadcast investigations: Join Tisha Thompson of WTTG in Washington to find out how documents and computer-assisted reporting (CAR) can juice up your stories.
Sept. 16 — Corral and analyze text with DocumentCloud: Document Cloud Program Director Amanda B. Hickman explains how DocumentCloud can strengthen your document-driven investigations with tools for annotating, organizing and publishing those records on the Web. FREE.
Sept. 22 — Twitter tools for journalists: IRE Training Director Doug Haddix explains how journalists can best utilize the popular social networking to report, learn more from their sources, as well as share their work.
Oct. 13 — Doing great work with fewer resources: Get tips and practical advice on feeding the daily copy beast while working on bigger enterprise stories from Daniel Gilbert and Doug Pardue. Gilbert is a staff writer at the Bristol (Va.) Herald Courier, where his work won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. Pardue is watchdog editor for The Post & Courier in Charleston, S.C.

For more information, or to register go here. On that same page, you can review IRE’s list of archived Webinars, including tips on tracking down data online and analyzing stimulus data. Recordings usually cost $5 for members and $10 for non-members, although some are free. E-mail Dowdell with questions about any of the Webinars.

If you’re looking to polish your computer-assisted reporting (CAR) skills, IRE has partnered with the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism to offer two free, daylong workshops. “Be a Better Business Watchdog — CAR for Business Jo urnal i sts” will be in Atlanta on Oct. 11 and Milwaukee on Nov. 9. The morning will consist of hands-on training in the basics of Excel spreadsheet software, while the afternoon will highlight useful databases for business reporters and how to download them. Space is very limited, and registration is required.

IRE also has boot camps coming up in mapping at the University of Missouri in Columbia from Aug. 13-15 and in CAR at San Diego State University from Aug. 16-20. While not free, IRE offers a sliding-scale for tuition, depending on the size of your news organization. The weeklong CAR session focuses on Excel for two days and the Access database software for three days.

About the Author

Linda Austin is the executive director of the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism. A former business editor at The Philadelphia Inquirer, she spent a decade as a top newsroom leader, serving as the editor of the Lexington Herald-Leader in Kentucky; executive editor of The News-Sentinel in Fort Wayne, Ind.; and managing editor of the News & Record in Greensboro, N.C. She offers business-story ideas and notes good #bizreads @LindaAustin_