As journalism strives to diversify its genres, data journalism has emerged as a prolific avenue to explore and source for data.
Internews,an international non-profit organization that empowers local media worldwide to give people the news and information they need, is on the forefront to tap this new genre.
Currently, Internews whose offices are located in I & M Bank in Nairobi, is training journalists on data journalism and is picking journalists from all registered media houses in Kenya.
The three-day training is meant to enable journalists find stories in data through interviewing it, according to Prof Aimee Edmond, one of the trainers from Ohio University.
“Journalists can find stories in data from various sources. It calls for one to interview the data, negotiate with it, clean it and come up with a powerful and detailed narrative story,” says Prof Aimee.
The shift into data journalism is propelled by the fact that news is not detailed due to time limit.
“There is more into the news than what we receive everyday and through data journalism one can give blow by blow details into a breaking news item,” says Earnest Waititu, a trainer at Internews.
Data journalism helps simplify a complex story for it incorporates use of info graphics and other compelling visuals to tell a story. Internews is training journalists to come up with health stories that can trigger policy makers to change the way they govern the country.
After the training, a panel discussion is held and journalists come up with topics, prepare a proposal and send it to the discussants who in turn approve it and provide funds for the research on the topic, using data.
The journalists are supposed to embark on the project and do a data journalism story, within a stipulated time limit.
