Rules
Seven developing news briefing problems and how to fix them
Developing news briefing problems explained with fixes for stale leads, false certainty, weak attribution, time confusion, clutter, and hidden corrections.
Archive
September 2026
Guides
How to build and maintain a news timeline
News timeline method for recording event times, source times, publication changes, uncertainty, corrections, dependencies, and the next expected action.
Reviews
Court documents compared: pleadings, motions, evidence, and rulings
Court documents compared by author, purpose, evidentiary status, legal effect, reporting verb, common error, and the next procedural step to verify.
Guides
Court reporting: a guide to allegations, rulings, and case status
Court reporting guide covering jurisdiction, parties, allegations, dockets, hearings, evidence, rulings, remedies, appeals, sealed records, and corrections.
Maintenance
Court story checklist for accurate case coverage
Court story checklist for identity, jurisdiction, allegations, procedure, docket status, hearings, rulings, remedies, privacy, response, and appeal language.
Guides
Developing news stories: a guide to facts, context, and updates
Developing news story guide covering confirmed facts, open questions, timelines, background, attribution, update notes, corrections, and reader needs.
Maintenance
Developing story context checklist for editors
Developing story context checklist for facts, attribution, chronology, definitions, affected people, uncertainty, fairness, corrections, and updates.
Guides
Government policy reporting: a guide from proposal to results
Government policy reporting guide covering authority, proposals, enactment, rules, funding, implementation, affected groups, measures, deadlines, and results.
Reviews
News briefing formats compared: event, issue, and accountability
News briefing formats compared by reader question, evidence, time frame, structure, update pattern, limits, and best use for developing coverage.
Reviews
Official record types compared: proposals, decisions, reports, and data
Official record types compared by purpose, authority, version, evidence, common misreading, update pattern, and the claims each document can support.
Maintenance
Policy briefing checklist for authority, operation, and results
Policy briefing checklist for authority, stage, dates, public input, funding, implementation, affected groups, enforcement, evidence, outcomes, and updates.
Reviews
Policy tools compared: laws, rules, budgets, guidance, and contracts
Policy tools compared by authority, decision-maker, legal effect, funding role, public process, implementation record, common mistake, and reporting use.
Reviews
Poll estimates compared: results, margins, averages, and forecasts
Poll estimates compared across point results, sampling margins, credibility intervals, polling averages, forecasts, assumptions, and safe reporting language.
Guides
Public records reporting: a guide to finding and reading documents
Public records reporting guide covering record ownership, searches, requests, versions, exemptions, document context, verification, citations, and findings.
Maintenance
Public records request checklist for focused reporting
Public records request checklist for identifying custodians, defining scope, choosing formats, tracking fees, reviewing responses, and planning appeals.
Guides
How to read a court docket and ruling before publication
Court docket and ruling method for confirming cases, tracing entries, separating party claims, finding operative language, checking stays, and stating status.
Guides
How to read an official document without losing its context
Official document reading method for provenance, version, authority, definitions, footnotes, attachments, omissions, comparisons, citations, and reporting limits.
Guides
How to read a public opinion poll before reporting it
Public opinion poll reading method for sponsor, population, sample, field dates, mode, question wording, weighting, uncertainty, subgroups, and claims.
Maintenance
Statistical claim checklist for news editors
Statistical claim checklist for source, measure, sample, denominator, uncertainty, comparison, chart, causation, subgroup, revision, and headline checks.
Guides
Statistics and polls: a reporting guide to estimates and uncertainty
Statistics and polls reporting guide covering populations, samples, estimates, uncertainty, weighting, comparisons, revisions, causation, and clear language.
Guides
How to trace a policy from proposal to implementation
Policy implementation method for collecting text, authority, comments, dates, funding, guidance, systems, enforcement, appeals, measures, and revisions.