Numbers in the newsroom: A qualitative examination of a quantitative challenge

Journalism and Mass Communication Quaterly

Volumn 78, Issue 4, 2001, Pages 720-738

  Curtin, Patricia A ^a   Maier, Scott R ^b  

^a UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA   (United States)

^b UNIVERSITY OF OREGON   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 0035648664     PISSN: 10776990     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1177/107769900107800407     Document Type: Article

References (73)

1. James J. Kilpatrick, “Numbers and Writers Just Don't Add Up," The Buffalo News, 28 February 1999, sec. G, p. 5.
2. R. Ciotta, “Baby You Should Drive This CAR," American Journalism Review, March 1996, 35-39.
3. Philip Meyer, The New Precision Journalism (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1991), 1.
4. Melvin Mencher, “Young Journalists are Terrified by Numbers," Editor & Publisher, 25 November 1995, 48.
5. Mencher, “Young Journalists," 48.
6. Mitchell V. Charnley, “Preliminary Notes on a Study of Newspaper Accuracy," Journalism Quarterly 13 (December 1936): 394-401.
7. See, for example, Charles Brown, “Majority of Readers Give Papers an A for Accuracy," Editor & Publisher, 13 February 1965,63; Fred Berry Jr., “A Study of Accuracy in Local News Stories of Three Dailies," Journalism Quarterly 44 (autumn 1967): 482-90; William A. Tillinghast, “Newspaper Errors: Reporters Dispute Most Source Claims," Newspaper Research Journal 3 (4, 1982): 14-23.
8. See, for example, Charles Brown, “Majority of Readers Give Papers an A for Accuracy," Editor & Publisher, 13 February 1965,63; Fred Berry Jr., “A Study of Accuracy in Local News Stories of Three Dailies," Journalism Quarterly 44 (autumn 1967): 482-90; William A. Tillinghast, “Newspaper Errors: Reporters Dispute Most Source Claims," Newspaper Research Journal 3 (4, 1982): 14-23.
9. See, for example, Charles Brown, “Majority of Readers Give Papers an A for Accuracy," Editor & Publisher, 13 February 1965,63; Fred Berry Jr., “A Study of Accuracy in Local News Stories of Three Dailies," Journalism Quarterly 44 (autumn 1967): 482-90; William A. Tillinghast, “Newspaper Errors: Reporters Dispute Most Source Claims," Newspaper Research Journal 3 (4, 1982): 14-23.
10. Max Frankel, “Margin of Error: We Are Growing Too Dependent on Virtual Numbers and Facts," The New York Times Magazine, 15 December 1996, 34.
11. Marc Levinson, “Banking on Scare Stories: The Press Is Determined Not To Miss the Next Crisis," Newsweek, 2 November 1992, 73.
12. Christopher Hewitt, “Estimating the Number of Homeless: Media Misrepresentation of an Urban Problem," Journal of Urban Affairs 18 (fall 1996): 431-48.
13. Martin Gilens, “Race and Poverty in America: Public Misperceptions and the American News Media," Public Opinion Quarterly 60 (winter 1996): 515-42.
14. Gilens, “Race and Poverty," 515-42.
15. "Understanding Child Abuse Numbers," Nieman Reporte 47 (spring 1993): 20-22.
16. Ben Wildavsky, “Poll-watchers Dress Down the Press," National Journal, 13 September 1997, 1786.
17. James Orcutt and J. Blake Turner, “Shocking Numbers and Graphic Accounts: Quantified Images of Drug Problems in the Print Media “ Social Problems 40 (May 1993): 190-207.
18. David C. Berliner and Bruce J. Biddle, “The Awful Alliance of the Media and Public-school Critics," Education Digest 65 (September 1998): 4-10.
19. Max Frankel, “Innumeracy 2," New York Times, 5 March 1995, p. 24. Also see, Daniel Seligman, “Ask Mr. Statistics," Fortune, 29 May 1995, 175.
20. Max Frankel, “Innumeracy 2," New York Times, 5 March 1995, p. 24. Also see, Daniel Seligman, “Ask Mr. Statistics," Fortune, 29 May 1995, 175.
21. N. Reisner, “On the Beat," American Journalism Review, March 1995, 44-47.
22. Victor Cohn, News & Numbers: A Guide to Reporting Statistical Claims and Controversies in Health and Other Fields (Ames: Iowa State University Press 1989), 3-4.
23. See, for example, Stacy Jones, “Numbers Expose Truths: Demographer Urges Newspapers to Take Advantage of Powerful Analytical Tool," Editor & Publisher, 3 May 1997, 41.
24. See, for example, Jennifer LaFleur, “Impressions from a NICAR Trainer," The IRE Journal, July-August 1996, 3.
25. John Allen Paulos, A Mathematician Reads the Newspaper (New York: Doubleday, 1996), 3-4. Also see by the same author, Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and its Consequences (New York: Random House, 1988).
26. John Allen Paulos, A Mathematician Reads the Newspaper (New York: Doubleday, 1996), 3-4. Also see by the same author, Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and its Consequences (New York: Random House, 1988).
27. Eleanor Emmons Maccoby and Carol Nagy Jacklin, The Psychology of Sex Differences (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1974).
28. Kathleen T. Campbell and Cay Evans, “Gender Issues in the Classroom: A Comparison of Mathematics Anxiety," Education 117, (spring 1997): 332-38. Math anxiety was measured on the 98-item Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (MARS), which has been well validated in the literature (coefficient alpha =. 96). Also, see Joseph G. Smith and William B. Michael, “Validity of Scores on Alternative Predictors of Success in a College Algebra Class," Psychological Reports 82 (April 1998): 379-87.
29. Kathleen T. Campbell and Cay Evans, “Gender Issues in the Classroom: A Comparison of Mathematics Anxiety," Education 117, (spring 1997): 332-38. Math anxiety was measured on the 98-item Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (MARS), which has been well validated in the literature (coefficient alpha =. 96). Also, see Joseph G. Smith and William B. Michael, “Validity of Scores on Alternative Predictors of Success in a College Algebra Class," Psychological Reports 82 (April 1998): 379-87.
30. Campbell and Evans, “Gender Issues"; M. Beth Casey, Ronald L. Nuttall, and Elizabeth Penzaris, “Mediators of Gender Differences in Mathematics College Entrance Test Scores: A Comparison of Spatial Skills with Internalized Beliefs and Anxieties," Developmental Psychology 33 (July 1997): 669-80.
31. Campbell and Evans, “Gender Issues"; M. Beth Casey, Ronald L. Nuttall, and Elizabeth Penzaris, “Mediators of Gender Differences in Mathematics College Entrance Test Scores: A Comparison of Spatial Skills with Internalized Beliefs and Anxieties," Developmental Psychology 33 (July 1997): 669-80.
32. Casey, Nutall, and Penzaris, “Mediators of Gender Differences"; Smith and Michael, “Validity of Scores."
33. Casey, Nutall, and Penzaris, “Mediators of Gender Differences"; Smith and Michael, “Validity of Scores."
34. Sue Austin, Elizabeth Wadlington, and Joe Bitner, “Effects of Beliefs About Mathematics on Math Anxiety and Math Self-Concept in Elementary Teachers," Education 112 (spring 1992): 390.
35. The instruments included in the study were the Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (MARS), the Mathematics Anxiety Questionnaire (MAQ), and the Mathematics Anxiety Scale (MAS). See Richard Kazelsias, “Some Dimensions of Mathematics Anxiety: A Factor Analysis Across Instruments," Educational and Psychological Measurement 58 (August 1998): 630.
36. A search of the Infotrac Expanded Academic Index using the keywords journalism and writing produced 502 entries, the majority of which focused on pedagogical techniques to improve writing through examination of the writing process, the use of AP Style quizzes, evaluation techniques, etc. A search of the same database using a combination of the keywords journalism, newspaper[s], and math[ematics] yielded thirty articles. Four were critiques of newspaper performance, one an announcement of statistical software for sports reporters, six miscellaneous articles tangential to the topic, and, ironically, seventeen were studies of how to use newspaper coverage in primary school curricula to promote math literacy. Only two articles addressed journalists' math skills and abilities.
37. For a full discussion of the utility of in-depth case studies to obtain context, generate new perspectives, and conduct exploratory research see Robert K. Yin, Case Study Research: Design and Methods, 2d ed., vol. 5, Applied Social Research Methods (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishing, 1994), and John W. Cresswell, Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design: Choosing Among Five Traditions (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishing, 1998).
38. For a full discussion of the utility of in-depth case studies to obtain context, generate new perspectives, and conduct exploratory research see Robert K. Yin, Case Study Research: Design and Methods, 2d ed., vol. 5, Applied Social Research Methods (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishing, 1994), and John W. Cresswell, Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design: Choosing Among Five Traditions (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishing, 1998).
39. For a full discussion of the utility of in-depth case studies to obtain context, generate new perspectives, and conduct exploratory research see Robert K. Yin, Case Study Research: Design and Methods, 2d ed., vol. 5, Applied Social Research Methods (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishing, 1994), and John W. Cresswell, Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design: Choosing Among Five Traditions (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishing, 1998).
40. Richard A. Kreuger, Focus Groups: A Practical Guide for Applied Research, 2d ed. (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 1994); Michael Quinn Patton, Qualitative Evaluation and Research Methods, 2d ed. (Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications, 1990).
41. Richard A. Kreuger, Focus Groups: A Practical Guide for Applied Research, 2d ed. (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 1994); Michael Quinn Patton, Qualitative Evaluation and Research Methods, 2d ed. (Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications, 1990).
42. Subjects were recruited with a letter on university letterhead giving the purpose of the research, promising participants confidentiality and grouping with their peers, and inviting their input into the content of the subsequent math skills training sessions. Management encouraged participation and supplied time off regular work duties. As an additional incentive, participants were entered in a drawing for tickets to a top sporting event in the area.
43. As a pilot study for the focus groups with journalists, in-depth interviews were conducted in fall 1998 with a convenience sample of eight journalism graduate students, many with professional backgrounds, who had just completed a research methods course. The data from the pilot interviews helped construct the focus group interview guide, particularly in regard to the potentially sensitive and abstract concept of math anxiety. Debriefing of the subjects after the interviews indicated they believed the techniques used kept problems with self-disclosure, discomfort, and reactivity to a minimum. The interviews lasted an average of forty-five minutes.
44. Barney G. Glaser and Anselm L. Strauss, The Discovery of Grounded Theory: Strategies for Qualitative Research (Chicago: Aldine Publishing Company, 1967).
45. Anselm L. Strauss, Qualitative Analysis for Social Scientists (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1987).
46. Anselm Strauss and Juliet Corbin, Basics of Qualitative Research: Grounded Theory Procedures and Techniques (Newbury Park: Sage Publications, 1990); Anselm Strauss and Juliet Corbin, “Grounded Theory Methodology: An Overview," in Handbook of Qualitative Research, ed. Norman Denzin and Yvonna Lincoln (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 1994), 273-85.
47. Anselm Strauss and Juliet Corbin, Basics of Qualitative Research: Grounded Theory Procedures and Techniques (Newbury Park: Sage Publications, 1990); Anselm Strauss and Juliet Corbin, “Grounded Theory Methodology: An Overview," in Handbook of Qualitative Research, ed. Norman Denzin and Yvonna Lincoln (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 1994), 273-85.
48. Emerging from the subjects own terms or constructed by the researchers' terms, respectively.
49. Strauss and Corbin, Basics of Qualitative Research, 112.
50. This distinction also was supported by the data from the in-depth interviews in the pilot study with graduate students.
51. Generative situations involve calculating a number to get a result. Interpretive situations involve interpreting and applying statistical data to the everyday world. For a complete explication of working with numbers in either generative or interpretive situations, see Iddo Gal and Ashley Stoudt, “Numeracy: Becoming Literate with Numbers," Adult Learning 9 (winter 1997): 13.
52. Smith and Michael, “Validity of Scores," 385.
53. Similarly, during the pilot interviews, math-phobic graduate students frequently revealed that they had often done well in math courses, usually getting A's.
54. Strauss and Corbin, Basics of Qualitative Research.
55. Albert Bandura, Social Foundations of Thought and Action: A Social Cognitive Theory (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1986); Albert Bandura, Self-efficacy: The Exercise of Control (NY: W. H. Freeman, 1997).
56. Albert Bandura, Social Foundations of Thought and Action: A Social Cognitive Theory (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1986); Albert Bandura, Self-efficacy: The Exercise of Control (NY: W. H. Freeman, 1997).
57. Bandura, Social Foundations, 391.
58. Bandura, Social Foundations.
59. Bandura, Social Foundations.
60. Bandura, Social Foundations.
61. Bandura, Social Foundations.
62. Bandura, Social Foundations.
63. Albert Bandura, “Self-efficacy," Harvard Mental Health Letter 13 (March 1997): 4.
64. Frank Pajares and M. David Miller, “Role of Self-Efficacy and Self-Concept Beliefs in Mathematical Problem Solving: A Path Analysis," Journal of Educational Psychology 86 (June 1994): 193-203; Judith L. Meece, Allan Wigfield, and Jacquelynne S. Eccles, “Predictors of Math Anxiety and Its Influence on Young Adolescents' Course Enrollment Intentions and Performance in Mathematics," Journal of Education Psychology 82 (March 1990): 60-70.
65. Frank Pajares and M. David Miller, “Role of Self-Efficacy and Self-Concept Beliefs in Mathematical Problem Solving: A Path Analysis," Journal of Educational Psychology 86 (June 1994): 193-203; Judith L. Meece, Allan Wigfield, and Jacquelynne S. Eccles, “Predictors of Math Anxiety and Its Influence on Young Adolescents' Course Enrollment Intentions and Performance in Mathematics," Journal of Education Psychology 82 (March 1990): 60-70.
66. See, for example, R.W. Lent, F.G. Lopez, and K.J. Bieschke, “Predicting Mathematics-related Choice and Success Behaviors: Test of an Expanded Social Cognitive Model," Journal of Vocational Behavior 42 (2, 1993): 223-36; Meece, Wigfield, and Eccles, “Predictors of Math Anxiety."
67. See, for example, R.W. Lent, F.G. Lopez, and K.J. Bieschke, “Predicting Mathematics-related Choice and Success Behaviors: Test of an Expanded Social Cognitive Model," Journal of Vocational Behavior 42 (2, 1993): 223-36; Meece, Wigfield, and Eccles, “Predictors of Math Anxiety."
68. Meece, Wigfield, and Eccles, “Predictors of Math Anxiety," 69
69. Bandura, Self-efficacy.
70. Bandura, Self-efficacy.
71. See Lee B. Becker, Gerald Kosicki, Heather Hammat, Wilson Lowrey, S.C. Shin, and Jeffrey M. Wilson, “Enrollment and Degrees Awarded Continue 5-year Growth Trend," Journalism & Mass Communication Educator 54 (autumn 1999): 5-22; Gerald Kosicki and Lee B. Becker, “Annual Survey of Enrollment and Degrees Awarded," Journalism & Mass Communication Educator 53 (autumn 1998): 65-82; and Linda Grist Cunningham and Barbara A. Henry, The Changing Face of the Newsroom (Washington, DC: ASNE, 1989).
72. See Lee B. Becker, Gerald Kosicki, Heather Hammat, Wilson Lowrey, S.C. Shin, and Jeffrey M. Wilson, “Enrollment and Degrees Awarded Continue 5-year Growth Trend," Journalism & Mass Communication Educator 54 (autumn 1999): 5-22; Gerald Kosicki and Lee B. Becker, “Annual Survey of Enrollment and Degrees Awarded," Journalism & Mass Communication Educator 53 (autumn 1998): 65-82; and Linda Grist Cunningham and Barbara A. Henry, The Changing Face of the Newsroom (Washington, DC: ASNE, 1989).
73. See Lee B. Becker, Gerald Kosicki, Heather Hammat, Wilson Lowrey, S.C. Shin, and Jeffrey M. Wilson, “Enrollment and Degrees Awarded Continue 5-year Growth Trend," Journalism & Mass Communication Educator 54 (autumn 1999): 5-22; Gerald Kosicki and Lee B. Becker, “Annual Survey of Enrollment and Degrees Awarded," Journalism & Mass Communication Educator 53 (autumn 1998): 65-82; and Linda Grist Cunningham and Barbara A. Henry, The Changing Face of the Newsroom (Washington, DC: ASNE, 1989).