Data and news

Research often starts and ends with data. And it is no coincidence that I chose this topic. In addition to a lifelong passion and fascination for data, in my opinion, it is precisely on this front where facts in stories often go wrong. After all, news is more than a piece of paper in which you clean the fish.

A good newspaper, I suppose, is a nation talking to itself.

Arthur Miller

What is news actually?

A new meaning to the word

If you search for the meaning of the word news, you will come across some crazy answers, such as the explanation on Wikipedia:

News encompasses all information of a certain public interest that has hitherto been hidden from public perception. It is usually about a recent fact, a current event, in which there is collective interest.

Or as The Oxford Encyclopedia puts it:

Newly received or noteworthy information, especially about recent events.

This in itself sounds clear and logical. Take a look at the following claims:

• The Earth is round
• Women live longer than men
• Trump is a bad president
• 1 + 1 = 2
• Global warming is a fact

Just a series of random sentences, which you could consider as facts, or purely as an opinion. But is it also news? Not specifically, unless there’s new evidence that the Earth is flat, or that Trump is a brilliant president.

Every news has an origin

Looking for the story

Strangely enough, news is not always as 1 dimensional as it sometimes seems. There may be hidden prejudices, unclear or unrepresentative data, wrong quotes, or connections that simply don’t exist.

For example, take a look at the chart below created by Tyler Vigen.

Just to be clear, the link between movies with actor Nicolas Cage in it, and people drowning in a swimming pool is pure nonsense. The website is intended as entertainment and to show us that we sometimes very quickly make connections where there are none.

1 number economy

Nice and manageable

Have you ever wondered how it is possible that the economic state of a country can be crammed into 1 number? The GNP (or nowadays the GNI, Gross National Income).

If you dive into the dictionary again you will come across the following statement:

GDP is the total value added of all goods and services of a country in a year.

Here, too, you might initially think that this explanation is fairly clear, but if you read carefully, something stands out: added value.

What is that actually, added value? When is something of value and when does it add something? Again a little dip in the dictionary:

1. to add to something: to add something to those words
2. give as help; assign; of a lawyer by the president of the court
3. say to: he added him: shut up!

So if it is not clear what added value exactly is, how is it calculated?

Data is everywhere

Almost every sector likes to sprinkle it

If you do your best, you can find data everywhere these days. At least I do. For example, I like baseball very much and anyone who watches a game knows that it is full of statistics. There’s even a word for it, Sabermetrics.

But you will also find plenty of statistics and data closer to home. From things such as elections, polls, and stock prices, to data on all your surfing behavior on the internet. Not only that, insurance companies also use data and base the prices for your monthly premium on it.

Let me make one thing clear, I am not a scientist or expert. What I do have is an enormous curiosity and hunger for knowledge and I believe that you can find the answers with an open and curious mind. So, let’s see.