Reporting on Data

Author: The Global Media Migration Academy
Level: Beginner
Time: 2 hours
Quizzes: 4
Assessment: 2

Course description

Understanding how to use data is a vitally important skill for journalists. Data journalism serves two important purposes, namely (a) finding unique stories; and (b) executing a watchdog function.
Data is also often also used as a 'weapon' in the spread of mis-and disinformation. Audiences are conditioned to trust numbers, so it's important to understand data to be able to debunk and call out false narratives.

This module is aimed at introducing you to key concepts in data driven journalism and giving you basic data reporting and visualisation skills. You can begin lesson one below.

1. Knowledge Assessment

2. Reporting on Data (5 Lesson)

L1. Introduction to Data Driven Journalism

What is data journalism?

Where has data driven journalism come from?

Why do we need to use data driven journalism?

What can we do with data?

What does data journalism look like?
How does it work, exactly, and what does data look like?

Types of data
What is the process of data driven journalism?

What kind of skills do I need in data journalism?

Knowledge check

L2. Migration, misinformation and the weaponization of 'bad' data

Fear of numbers and misunderstanding statistics
Visualisations and reinforcing messages
'Weaponising' data and graphs
Data 'fake news' and social media
Tackling data misinformation and disinformation
Fact checking with migration data
Knowledge check

L3. Skills for DDJ part one- summary statistics

Understanding how data is held and structured
What are we looking to find when analysing
Summary Statistics
Relationships, patterns, and outliners
Statistical significance
The power of data storytelling
Knowledge check

L4. Skills for DDJ part two-viz and mapping

What are visualisations in data storytelling
Why accuracy is paramount
The importance of visual literacy
Tupes of charts
Good examples of migration data visualisations
Things to watch out for when visualising data
Poor visualitions and misrepresenting data

L5. Official migration data and using the Migration Data Portal

Introduction
Tools for analysing data
Tools for creating visualisations
What is the Migration Data Portal?

3. Knowledge Test
4. Evaluation

5. Exam / Certificate of completion

The Global Media Migration Academy

The Foundation Course consist of a series of diverse connected modules. 'Reporting on Data' is the first module of a high standard educational programme developed by IOM.

Our rights-based course provides a global overview about the different trends, developments, policies and laws governing migration, as well as offering practical guidance for ethical, safe and effective migration reporting.It offers participants an understanding of the various aspects of migration, the media cycle and digital environment in the context of migration including online and social media; learning to understand statistics and use them to confirm and debunk information. Finally, it offers the opportunity to learn create compelling alternative and engaging stories on migrant and the migrant experience.

We are a coalition of migration experts, academics and media professionals offering accessible and relevant courses to support people in the fields of media and communication to report factually about migration and bring genuine stories to light.

Reporting on Data

Course description

Course content

The Global Media Migration Academy

Who we are

Featured links

Connect with us