Archive
27 Mar

Mining for data

QUESTION: What’s the best way to obtain government data? Answer by Fred Vallance-Jones More and more reporters are incorporating computer-assisted reporting techniques into their work, and for many this means […]

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4 Mar

Access to hospital info

QUESTION: Is a hospital a public institution, subject to access to information requests if they are not related to specific patient information? Answer by Robert Cribb Remarkably, hospitals in Ontario […]

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25 Feb

A brand new beat

QUESTION: What are the first things I should do when I start a new beat? Who do I call? What should I read? How do I start? Answer by Helen […]

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11 Jan

Ask J-Source

If you are seeking a more informal response to a journalism-related question, ask J-Source through a comment to this post. You will then be notified by e-mail if anyone responds. […]

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11 Jan

Requests to preview copy

QUESTION: What’s the protocol when sources ask to see a copy of my story before it’s published?Answer by Rachel Boomer Never, never, never offer up a finished story to the […]

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19 Nov

Is there money in a journalism career?

QUESTION: I am writing to you on behalf of my partner, who changed careers about two years ago and is now pursuing a career in journalism. His focus is on […]

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15 Oct

Redaction redux

QUESTION: What you can do when long-awaited government documents land with more blacked out parts than real content?Answer by Andrew McIntosh For a beat or investigative reporter in need of […]

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14 Sep

Covering courts without pictures

QUESTION: What’s the best way for a television news reporter to cover a court case, since cameras aren’t normally allowed in courtrooms and we need pictures to tell stories? Do […]

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16 Aug

BTW, can I quote you on that?

QUESTION: Can I use quotes from e-mail listservs and online newsgroups in my articles? What people have to say in these online forums is often really interesting and colourful. These […]

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5 Jul

Getting started in researching a business

QUESTION: What are some of the basic steps I have to take in order to begin researching a business? ANSWER by David McKie The first question you have ask is […]

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