Release Notes: Better looking article images, more shareable request templates, and DocumentCloud improvements
The tech team has been busy working on improvements to both our FOIA filing platform as well as DocumentCloud, our document analysis and hosting tool. For MuckRock, we gave a nice graphical bump to our article images — doubling the resolution — and fixed a bug that prevented sharing cloned request links with logged-out users. With DocumentCloud, the incorrectly labeled “rotate” button now does what it says on the tin. Plus: More localized versions coming soon!
Missouri coroner training commission can’t convene due to lack of action by governor
In July 2020, Gov. Mike Parson signed into law a potentially sweeping change for coroners across the state of Missouri, many of whom lack medical or forensic training. The law, which creates a governor-appointed commission to write new standards and training for coroners, was written in response to the botched investigation into the 2011 death of 27-year-old Jayke Minor in Fayette and pressure from the Missouri Coroners’ and Medical Examiners’ Association.
How you can use ‘Uncounted’ CDC data to explore the COVID-19 pandemic’s hidden death toll
The Documenting COVID-19 project and the USA TODAY Network spent months investigating where and why COVID-19 deaths go uncounted.
Uncounted: The hidden death toll of the COVID-19 pandemic
In some places, just half of the spike in deaths during the pandemic is blamed on COVID-19. Researchers say that points to a massive undercount.
Science backs mask mandates. But in Missouri and elsewhere, they’re politically toxic
Studies have repeatedly found mandates encourage mask use and slow COVID spread. But politics and lawsuits make them unattractive to policymakers.
Projects See all
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FOIA 101: Tips and Tricks to Make You a Transparency Master
★ FeaturedWhether it's your first request or your first request *today,* it never hurts to go over the basics. MuckRock's compiled a lot of FOIA advice over the years, and with this project, it's all in one place. -
U.S. Officials Response to COVID-19 in the Navajo Nation
★ FeaturedIn partnership with the Indigenous Investigative Collective and the Native American Journalists Association, we're building investigative journalism infrastructure in Indian Country by supporting networked reporting on COVID-19. -
DockIns: Machine Learning on Deadline for Journalists
★ FeaturedAs journalists dealing with data and document sets, we find that the most interesting information is usually hidden in large, unstructured, and incomplete sets of documents. Especially information in public contracts: what the government is buying, how much money is being spent, and who are the suppliers. To answer these questions, four media organizations — La Nacion, CLIP, Ojo Público, and MuckRock — joined forces under the JournalismAI Collab and experimented with different machine learning tools and techniques in order to build a platform that helps investigative reporters understand and process unstructured documents to get useful insights.