Programming for Journalists / Journalism for Programmers (N432-10)

Never before have programmers offered so much promise to those who pursue journalism. Unfortunately, the partnership often fails because the two groups just don't know how to work with one another. This new Poynter seminar can change that. Journalists will learn the programmer's mindset, and programmers will learn how to see the world through a journalist's eyes. Programmers will teach journalists how to turn data into usable information — and share great examples of efforts that worked.

Throughout the seminar, participants will discuss how they can apply what they are learning to the 2010 Census, the results of which will be released early next year. Together, we'll learn how to scope out viable projects that use programming to do the best journalism we can do.

Journalists will learn:

• The basics of "computational thinking"
  
• An introduction to Web frameworks
  
• Best practices in data-driven, non-narrative online publishing
  
• How best to present data to programmers
  
• How to work with programmers in agile project management
  
• FOIA, legal and ethical issues around data usage
• Opportunities for non-narrative storytelling with the 2010 Census
  

• Journalism ethics and standards
• How to scope out a project
  
• How other programmers have created great data-driven projects
  
• FOIA, legal and ethical issues around data usage
• How to work with journalists in agile project management
  
• How to manage a project on newsroom deadlines
• How to use Census data to tell powerful, non-narrative stories about your communities
  

Other Faculty:

• Aron Pilhofer, Editor, Interactive News Technologies at The New York Times
• Matt Waite, Senior News Technologist, St. Petersburg TImes/tampabay.com and PolitiFact
• Jeremy Bowers, News Technologist, St. Petersburg TImes/tampabay.com
  
• David Stanton, Technology Fellow, The Poynter Institute
• Steve Myers, Poynter Online Managing Editor