Open data reuse in journalism: a window to new business models and communities

We recently reflected on the rise of data journalism in the media, a discipline that is becoming increasingly important. Through technologies and tools linked to data, this journalistic modality makes it possible to offer readers more documented, attractive and comprehensible information. To this end, data journalists perform actions such as interpreting municipal budgets, combining statistics and financial reports or exploring geospatial information to tell stories based on large amounts of data.

Here, we want to highlight the role that data journalism plays in serving as an impetus for the creation of new companies, associations and user groups that reuse data to boost the economy or drive accountability.

Next, we will analyse how the reuse of data, within the field of journalism, has favoured the emergence of new business models, non-profit organisations and transparency, research or political fact-checking activities in which data journalism is at the core of their business or daily activity.

Organisations involved in data journalism

News agencies: EPDATA

EpData is the platform created by Europa Press whose main objective is to facilitate the use of public data by journalists to enrich the news through graphics, as well as to analyse the context and contrast the figures offered by the different sources.

This platform was created with the aim of transferring the spirit of a news agency to the world of data journalism. To achieve this, they have created an extensive data repository with all the statistics that are often reported in Europa Press, with more than 60 million data from public and private sources. Any user can consult them through this link.

EpData's activities linked to data journalism

This repository allows EpData to offer graphs, statistics and data visualisations related to current events on a daily basis. For example, over the last year they have been showing updated data on the current pandemic that other media and scientific publications have used for their news.

However, the range of topics they combine on their platform is very broad, as they offer statistics and graphs based on data on topics as diverse as employment, economic developments, society, politics, etc.

Fact-checking: Maldito Dato

According to its coordinators, "Maldito Dato is the project within the verification media Maldita.es in which data journalism, transparency, investigation and political fact-checking, i.e. the verification of political discourse, are carried out".

In other words, Maldito Dato is the section of Maldita.es that carries out data journalism, made up of specialists in this field. Among its main functions is the production of journalistic pieces based on data, political fact-checking and topics based on the use of the Transparency Law.

Maldito Dato's activities linked to data journalism

Open data is an important part of Maldito Dato's nature, both in terms of publishing and reusing it in its news. Some examples are:

• Map of coronavirus cases at the municipal level throughout Spain, developed based on data published by each autonomous community.
• Ministry of Health data on vaccination, using data published by the Ministry of Health, either in the form of open data or daily reports.
• In this other example, you can see how they use data from the Statistical Portal of the Government Delegation against Gender Violence to make various comparative graphs on the increase in the number of calls to 016. They have also made comparative graphs based on INE data or even CIS data.

In addition to using open data from public administrations, sometimes they publish open data themselves. For example, when they release databases obtained by requests for information through the Transparency Law. Some examples are the database of public information requests made by citizens on the Transparency Portal, the database of health inspections of swimming pools in Madrid or the database of Ministry of the Interior subsidies for 'catastrophic situations'.

Non-profit organisation: CIVIO

CIVIO is a non-profit organisation that promotes the transparency of institutions and that people can access public information through technology combined with journalism. To achieve this goal, it has three main lines of action:

• Journalism
• Public Advocacy
• Transparency services of public authorities

CIVIO's activities linked to data journalism

This organisation has recently published research on the use of emergency procurement during 2020. They have used the emergency contracts awarded during the past year that have been published on the Public Sector Procurement Portal and the platforms linked to the different autonomous communities. A search engine for emergency contracts can be found at this link and the main conclusions of the research can be found here.

At the end of this article, CIVIO explains the methodology used to carry out the analysis of this data, as well as the difficulties encountered in the process. The data used in this research have been made available to all users in Datos Civio in formats that facilitate their reuse. Thanks to this, several media outlets have used the CIVIO database to produce their own information.

Data analysis, visualisation and communication: STORYDATA

Storydata is an organisation of women experts in data research, analysis, visualisation and communication. They are characterised by offering a global communication service aimed at public and private entities that want to transform a set of their own or external data into a communicative story. To do so, they use a variety of media and formats, from the preparation of reports to the creation of campaigns and the dissemination of content on social networks.

Storydata's activities linked to data journalism

Open data is part of Storydata's DNA. Some of its most relevant projects are:

• The Data against noise project, which aims to combat opinions on male violence through open data.

• Collaboration in the data section of the Barcelona Metròpolis magazine of Barcelona City Council.

• Writing of dissemination articles on data in the dossier of the Associació de dones periodistes de Catalunya (Association of Women Journalists of Catalonia).

• Collaboration agreement with Blanquerna's Master's Degree in Data Journalism and Fact Checking.

• Training to multiple media, institutions and universities on data journalism and visualisation, such as the Escola de dades de Sentit Crític, the Master of Information Design and Data Visualisation of Elisava, Euromediterranean Institute (Euromesco), Juries and training pill in the Big data Challenger of Fundación la Caixa.

Currently, Storydata collaborates with media such as Crític, for example, creating a data visualisation that shows inequality in times of confinement or this one on how the coronavirus affects the different municipalities of Catalonia.

User groups and list of data journalists

If you are a data journalist, or are interested in the subject, you may be interested to know that there are different platforms where you can find user groups related to the reuse of data in the field of journalism.

• On LinkedIn, the “Periodismo de datos” group stands out, created so that interested parties and professionals in data journalism can contribute and share knowledge related to this discipline.
• On MeetUp, we find the user group “Periodismo y visualización de datos”. Organised by Adolfo Antón, it has more than 1,200 participants who interact in relation to the use of data for its reuse in journalism.
• Also on MeetUp is the “Madrid Abriendo Datos” group.
• Telegram or Slack groups: many users organise through Telegram (in groups such as postdata, periodismodatos and visualizar) or Slack (periodismodatos.slack.com).

On the web we can also find a list of communicators specialised in data in Spain and Latin America, made up of more than 300 journalists. This project brings together a series of professionals who see data as the true raw material of journalism. If you want to consult the complete list, you can do so through the following link.

This is just a sample of organisations, companies and user groups linked to data journalism. If you know of any others that may be of interest, do not hesitate to write us a comment or send us an email to dinamizacion@datos.gob.es.

Content prepared by the datos.gob.es team.