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How Journalists think about statistics -- and how they don't

Published on May 14, 2018

Professional Development Talk; AP Statistics Readers Conference; Kansas City, Missouri; June 12, 2018

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How journalists think about statistics
(and how they don't)

Regina Nuzzo, Ph.D.
Professor, Gallaudet University
Freelance Science Writer

June 12, 2018
AP Statistics Reading
Kansas City, Missouri

Photo by Taylor Kiser
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Hearing ≠ Listening



Telling ≠ Commu-nicating

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“Explainability Strategist”
“Algorithmic Forensic Analyst”

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JOURNALISTS
find the story amidst
the facts.

STATISTICIANS
find the signal amidst the noise.

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JOURNALISTS:
"If your grandmother says she loves you, check it out anyway."

STATISTICIANS:
"What's the strength of evidence that Granny loves you?"

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STORY-HACKING

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“Winner’s Curse”

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“Amid Statistical Illiteracy, 62% of Colleges See a Rise or No Change in Applicants”

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P-hacking & Story-hacking:
Confirmation bias
Motivated cognition

Combat these with:
Teach about cognitive biases;
Instill a healthy fear of being called out.

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"STATISTICAL SIGNIFICANCE IS SIGNIFICANT."

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P-Dazzled and Ignoring
Effect Size:
Assuming p Failing to connect results to the real world


Combat with:
Less p-value worship;
The oh-come-on “story behind the story”

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“WARNING: DON’T TOUCH THE NUMBERS”

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Avoidance of touching the numbers:
Fear of numbers;
Fear of going “off script”

How to combat:
Teach the power of descriptive statistics and data manipulation;
Less emphasis on one right answer;
Encourage playing around with data in fun and creative ways

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What if . . . statisticians and journalists worked together to create meaningful, accurate, and truly human-centered data communication?

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Hard work, but worth it.

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Regina.Nuzzo@Gallaudet.edu
@ReginaNuzzo

Photo by Orin Zebest

Regina Nuzzo

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