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January 15, 2008
"To check whether your story is true, you need data."
This is why Megan will only go so far in the world of journalism. She believes that data is useful.
To know whether one event caused another, you would first want to know that the event you are seeking a cause for was actually unusual. That's why you need to know whether the homicide rate among veterans actually spikes when compared to a) soldiers who didn't go to war b) similar demographic groups among the population. The New York Times doesn't even try. Their work is not merely anecdotal silliness; it's anecdotal silliness masquerading as actual information. This puts my hackles up.
Posted by CrankyProfessor at January 15, 2008 9:20 AM