Develop essential skills with this introduction to Computer Assisted Reporting and open the door to a treasure trove of stories hidden in huge databases.

Led by our world-renowned partner Columbia Journalism School, this certified e-Master Class is for journalists who already have a basic knowledge of Excel or google sheets but want to add to their expertise.

In this certified e-Master Class you will gain insights on using public databases, internet databases, social media, information extraction to create powerful visualisations. With more and more people relying on social medias and blogs to be informed, it is becoming increasingly difficult for the historic news outlets to attract an audience. Data journalism is gathering, filtering and visualising what is happening beyond what the eye can see has a growing value. By using the data to connects the dots, journalists can give meaning to little points of information that are often not relevant in a single instance, but hugely important when viewed from the right angle. And they can cover a wide range of topics such as the next financial crisis that is in the making, the economics behind the products we use, the misuse of funds or political blunders and then present it in a compelling visualisation of the data that leaves little room for argument. Working with data is like stepping into vast, unknown territory. At first look, raw data is puzzling to the eyes and to the mind.

Data as such is unwieldy. It is quite hard to shape it correctly for visualisation. It needs experienced journalists, who have the stamina to look at often confusing, often boring raw data and see the hidden stories there. And it is now possible for you to acquire these skills. By knowing how to develop simple codes, you can find the relevant information in databases which have millions of lines. You can also identify the names or the words in documents that would take centuries for a team of people to read through. Furthermore, you can increase your capacity to make sense of it all by developing graphics that give a totally new dimension to your story.  This Introduction to Computer Assisted Journalism is led by our partner, Columbia Journalism School and it will give you what you need to reach the next level in your profession. The e-Master Class will cover the following topics:

• How to work with public databases of all size, and to extract valuable information.
• How to create your own sets of data from the internet and social media.
• How to use the information to create powerful visualisations.

Register and enrol here.

Visit https://academy.ebu.ch