The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. Add to that more than 3,000 tipsheets from our national conferences on how to cover specific beats or do specific stories and you have a resource that no reporter or editor should be without. These stories and tipsheets are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Logged-in members can view the tipsheets free online:
Search results for "labs" ...
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Mobile + DataViz: Friends or frenemies?
Look at how storytelling works on mobile devices in terms of design and building stories for "longevity."
Tags: Storytelling design; data visualization; mobile apps; news sites
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Tools, Techniques, and Research for Public Affairs Reporting
The Reporter's Lab aims to produce reviews that are consistent, independent, fair and above all, useful for a reporter with little time or patience for technical details.
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Using Testing in Your Stories
The authors of this tipsheet bring to light the potentially strong impact that testing can bring to an investigative story. Some of the information found in this tipsheet includes ways to determine what to test and how to test it, how to choose a testing device, how to keep costs low and suggestions on sample size.
Tags: California Watch; Consumer Reports; consumer-focused; science; samples; lead; lab; testing; tests
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Tweets telling stories; Tweets as data
Marcus explores how twitter can be used to aid in telling stories and collecting data thru the use of tools such as TwitInfo and TweeQL.
Tags: twitter; tweets; SQL; TwitInfo; TweeQL; data; storytelling; structured queries;
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Investigating Public Health Agencies & Programs
The author discusses how to investigate public health agencies. She includes advice for reporting in crisis situations, as well as story ideas for enterprise pieces about the agencies. The tipsheet includes sources for covering notifiable diseases in your area, bioterrorism funds, lab safety, and lab animal welfare.
Tags: public health; local government; state government; CDC; MMWR; story ideas; beat reporting
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Using Testing for Stories
The authors discuss how to go about an investigation based on testing, such as determining bacteria levels in restrooms, lead in toys or levels of caffeine in coffee. The tipsheet includes information about determining what to test, finding a lab, financing the investigation, methodology and writing the final story. The tipsheet also lists many examples of successful testing-based investigations.
Tags: testing; public safety; bacteria; science; writing; story telling
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Doing your own lab testing
This tipsheet briefly goes over the Tribune's process of extensively testing fish for mercury and gives advice for future lab testing.
Tags: fish; mercury; testing; labs; investigating; broadcast track
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Investigating forensics
Mejia comprehensively explains crime lab investigations. She suggests what questions to start with, what types of tests to examine, online resources, sources to interview, and documents to find.
Tags: crime labs; law enforcement; forensics; science; criminal justice system; courts; FBI; police
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Doing your own laboratory testing
Katches, Roe and Barry's tipsheet offers extensive guidance for conducting investigations that involve laboratory testing. The suggestions aim to ensure validity of scientific investigations and make them as affordable, efficient and useful as possible. Katches, Roe and Barry each have conducted award-winning investigations using laboratories.
Tags: science; laboratories; mercury; pollution; toxic waste; dumping; lead poisoning
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Wrongful convictions: Reasons and possible safeguards
This tipsheet will help journalists from falling into the trap of convicting an innocent person along with the legal system. Mahoney gives suggestions for making sure eyewitness are accurate, testimonies are truthful and lawyers are doing their jobs.
Tags: Conviction; crime; innocent; guilty; police; false; testimony; trial