Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World

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Publications

  • report

    The American Newsroom

    A newly released book based on four decades of surveys of US journalists finds a profession that is steadily growing grayer, but lagging behind when it comes to integrating women and minorities into the newsroom. This demographic stagnation may well be a reflection of a mainstream media beset by a series of economic woes.

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    Riding the Waves of “Web 2.0”

    “Web 2.0” has become a catch-all buzzword; the Pew Internet Project and Hitwise provide data to put it in perspective.

  • transcript

    The Vatican and Islam: Pope Benedict XVI Prepares to Visit Turkey

    Washington, D.C. Pope Benedict XVI is scheduled to visit Turkey on Nov. 28-30, a trip that has already attracted exceptionally close attention because of the pope’s remarks about Islam during a September speech in Regensburg, Germany. More than 50 Islamic nations have demanded an apology for the speech, which aroused anger in the Islamic world […]

  • short reads

    Gay Marriage Constitutional Amendment

    That’s the proportion of Americans who support a constitutional amendment to ban marriages between gay and lesbian couples. Even among groups most strongly opposed to gay marriage (white evangelicals, Republicans, conservatives and senior citizens), fewer than a majority favor an amendment.

  • short reads

    Property Rights on State Ballots

    That’s the number of states that will feature property rights measures on their 2006 ballots, making the issue a hot new topic on state election slates this fall.

  • short reads

    Columbus Day

    More than 500 years after Columbus first arrived in the New World, nearly half of Americans (48%) think that the United States has had special protection from God for most of its history, according to a 2002 survey.

  • report

    Bloggers Hit the Campaign Trail at What Cost?

    Many of those in the blogosphere see themselves as watchdogs arrayed against an insular political establishment dominated by consultants, interests groups, and the mainstream media. But with bloggers taking an increasingly active role in some of the key 2006 political races, are they sacrificing that independence to become part of the system they decry?

  • report

    Can “Newspaper Next” Help Revive Print Media?

    Earlier this year, a research team led by a Harvard professor unveiled a strategy to help reverse the revenue and circulation ills of the newspaper industry and encourage it to reinvent itself. Some publications have reported early success in adopting the plan that asks readers: “What do you hire a newspaper to do for you?”