Computer-Assisted Reporting, or CAR, has changed the landscape of the heart-pounding field of journalism. Reporters are no longer at a long table in the press box, typing notes from a big game. The days of reporters performing as human microphone stands are out the window. They are now required to dig hard for stories through online databases and records to find tips that their competition would never be able to discover.
Amy Shipley, investigative sports reporter at the Sun-Sentinel newspaper in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, admits that she is new to the computer-assisted reporting form of journalism.
"We have two full-time data people that crunch numbers and help the investigative reporting team," said Shipley. "I believe it is absolutely critical. I'm starting to use it. My colleagues have used it. At the Sun-Sentinel, we believe in this approach 100 percent."
Before her time at the Sun-Sentinel, Shipley was a full-time sports reporter for The Washington Post, covering several topics such as Olympic sports, the NFL and performance-enhancing drugs.
Shipley said that even though she is labeled as an investigative reporter, she still feels the itch of going with her "gut feeling" when she is working on a story.
"Project reporting is the wave of the future for journalism," mentioned Shipley. "Numbers really provide you protection legal wise while you are reporting."
When Shipley wrote for the Washington Post, she was working a sexual abuse story that lasted three years. But, that was not three years of excellent reporting skills. It was trying to get the limited records.
"I have encountered so many times in my career where you know something, but you just can't go with it," said Shipley. "With Computer-Assisted Reporting, databases and records are now online. Agencies rarely keep information in hand-written files. Information is now more readily available."
Although most public agencies keep information online, Shipley said a high school in Fort Lauderdale keeps all of their public records in hand-written form and it was "simply mind-boggling, but it allows them an easy excuse to not give the reporter the needed records."
Shipley typically wrote game-day stories such as Usain Bolt winning the 200 meter race in the Summer Games of 2012, becoming the first man to ever sweep consecutive Summer Games.
When she moved on to accept a position at the Sun-Sentinel, Shipley covered the Miami Heat basketball team for a short time. She admits that even though "it was a blast," she said everyone is covering those stories.
"Reporting at games was just fun," said Shipley. "Those game stories that you do day after day, while they do serve your audience, so many people are covering the Miami Heat."
She said the main portion of her advancement in journalism within the last year was stepping out of her comfort zone and tackling major stories that were affecting the community.
In just one year at the Sun-Sentinel, Shipley has discovered ground-breaking material through computer-assisted reporting and "old-school interview" journalism.
Later in August of 2013, Shipley worked with her investigative reporting team at the Sun-Sentinel and learned that parents were condoning the use of performance-enchancing drugs to their children. Reports from a four-month long investigation include drugs that were taken out by parents from Miami to Vero Beach, Florida. The intention was for parents to provide their student athletes the competitive edge in sports. Computer-Assisted Reporting helped her break down national and local data and insurance company statistics. She said the piece was driven by countless interviews, but also with the use of CAR, it helped her organize her information.
Her current story that she is working on involves violence in youth sporting events. She is now in the process of collecting police reports from local school, referee records, and any sports records that she can legally see.
"You have to distinguish yourself by being a real reporter," mentioned Shipley. When she was a young reporter, she said that she "always wanted to know when the next trade was going to happen." As she has progressed in her career, Shipley understood that to survive in this business, change is necessary and computer-assisted reporting helps keep the locomotive of journalism running.
The value of numbers can go a long way in producing quality work as a reporter. Shipley believes that it is critical for any future journalist to always stay on top of what data is out there and to always keep sending public records requests to public agencies. She advises students to never take "no" as an answer.
"The most important thing is don't let people criticize you for doing negative stories. That always gets me," said Shipley. "Whatever you do to expose any problems anywhere is a public service. Negative stories are always positive in my eyes."
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