Initiate conversations with your readers
A reader questions your policy for reporting suicides. A retailer challenges your staff to produce timely and relevant business news. A reporter...
Use your special insight to recommend election choices
Coverage of public affairs – recording the actions and inactions of governing bodies from local to federal levels – demands attention from newsrooms year-round....
Special projects energize staff, community
I fondly characterize newsrooms as organized chaos. That definition has aptly described operations for the past 18 months with the impact of COVID-19. The...
Carefully screen columns by public officials
How will the Legislature deal with a record budget surplus, and what will it mean for taxpayer pocketbooks? Are there implications for public safety...
Press politicians on election promises
Elections are over, and you breathe a sigh of relief. The exhaustive campaign season has concluded, and newsrooms can return to some level of...
If one tip can improve your work, it would be…this one!
Bart Pfankuch is an investigative reporter for South Dakota News Watch. Write to him at bart.pfankuch@sdnewswatch.org.
“Hey you: Get the heck out of the office!”
In the Internet age where information is easy to get, it may seem almost quaint to seek out first-hand, up-close, eyes-on experiential reporting opportunities.
With...
How a reporter can avoid being laid off
Bart Pfankuch
Better Writing
with Bart
Bart Pfankuch, an investigative reporter for South Dakota News Watch, an independent, nonprofit public-service news agency online at sdnewswatch.org, will offer...
Enterprise reporting goes beyond the obvious
When it comes to interviewing reporter candidates, many editors want to see examples of so-called enterprise reporting.
I just finished serving as a judge for...
Scrutinize letters during election season
Campaigns are in full swing as Election Day nears. Editors should pay extra attention to letters that give a thumbs up or thumbs down...