We swim in a world of data that is ingrained in our everyday life – in election results, municipal budgets, census figures, online shopping, and health studies. But data takes center stage almost invisibly across the globe through updates and image and video uploads on social platforms like Facebook and Twitter.

The goal of the Data Journalism Program is to train students to tell stories by mining this ever expanding collection of numbers and categorized observations.

At Newmark J-School we approach data journalism teaching on two intersecting tracks:  First, there is behind-the-scenes work which involves finding, gathering and analyzing data. Second is the audience-facing work that involves presenting the most compelling element of the data in a customized and engaging visualization or interactive that allows audiences to directly understand how the data affects them personally.

Over three-semesters of progressively more complex courses and modules, students learn to use computer programming to gather and analyze information, and to then visualize it in unique and customized ways that allow audiences to explore and interact with that content. In addition to the technical skills, we are also intent on training journalists who are deft at finding and producing the human stories beneath the numbers and at producing compelling human stories.

Our courses train students to push the boundaries of reporting and storytelling so that after graduation they will be well-positioned to succeed in this fast-growing discipline which is at the crossroads of coding, analysis, information design, and storytelling.