Election Tools for the Homestretch
Election Tools for the Homestretch
Oct. 15, 2024
As we zero in on the Nov. 5 election, I wanted to share some more tools and resources for covering not just national, but also local elections. I’ve covered election fact-checking tools in a past newsletter and have a large collection of links on the Journalist’s Toolbox AI elections page.
But I wanted to highlight some useful tools you can use right now:
FEC.gov
Find campaign contribution data by candidate and much more
FEC Itemizer from Propublica
Lets you browse electronic campaign finance filings from the FEC \
State Campaign Finance Databases
Search this interactive map to find them
FedSpending.org
Sort this database by state, district, agency, etc.
Open Secrets Anomoly Tracker
Highlights “anomalies” in its money-and-politics data. An anomaly, as we define it here, is an occurrence that is out of the ordinary. It is not necessarily an indication that there is something amiss.
Vote-Smart.org
Covers candidates and elected officials across several categories
Common Cause
Election watchdog org.
Trusting News: Election Toolkit
Trainings and materials to build trust with readers with your election coverage.
TrollBusters Navigator Bot
Are you being harassed by political trolls? Powered by Claude and TrollBusters content, this bot helps journalists who need advice on how to handle harassment from trolls. It has some excellent starter prompts to get you rolling. I’ll write more about this tool in a future newsletter.
The News Literacy Project: U.S. Election Misinformation Dashboard
Misinformation that’s been debunked by fact checkers.
The News Literacy Project: Election 2024 Resources
A good checklist of resources at the bottom of the page
Knight Election Hub
Links to free election coverage resources or greatly-reduced costs for tools through this Knight Foundation resource.
Rolli Election Dashboard: One-hundred days before Election Day, Rolliapp launched a MUCH-needed tool: a new elections dashboard that tracks social media engagement from the official presidential and VP candidate accounts. One of the most useful sections is the “Daily Sentiment Analysis” of candidate X/Twitter accounts (see image above). It groups posts into positive, negative and neutral categories. Lower on the dashboard, it lists top posters writing about candidates, as well as hashtags the candidates are using. Watch the video below on how to use it.
Rolliapp: Full disclosure: Rolliapp is a sponsor of this newsletter, but I’ve been using this tool long before that. Not only is it free for journalists, but it delivers expert sources and social media analysis on any topic you type in (person’s name, issue or hashtag). It’s free for journalists: Use the JOURNOAI code when you set up the account to get instant access.
Money in Politics: New to covering campaign finance? This online dictionary of terms will be of great help.
Sponsor
Be sure to check out the incredible production tools suite with our new sponsor at HeyNota.com
Free RTDNA/Google Election Tools Training Sessions
We’re less than three weeks away from election, but it’s not too late: RTDNA and Google have teamed up to launch an election fact-checking training program targeted to broadcast and digital newsrooms. We’ve extended the program beyond the election, so your staff can be trained in November and December.
The trainings, which last one to three hours, can be taught in-person or over Zoom. Once you decide when, where and which trainer you want, you can fill out a form linked off the program’s web page. The program costs nothing; Google covers the trainers’ time and travel costs.
Training Video
Learn how to build election charts using the free Flourish.studio tool.
Sponsor
Free! Power your election coverage with deep insights from the 2024 Election Dashboard. Analyze trends, online engagement patterns, topic spreads, and more!
Click here or visit rolliapp.com/election-2024.
Unlock Rolli's AI tools for journalists with code: “JOURNOAI” at Rolli.ai
ONA AI in Journalism Trainings Extend Through the Fall
You can still sign up for the Online News Association/Microsoft AI in Journalism Initiative training program, which is continuing through fall 2024 with more sessions. The trainings are free for ONA members and $25 for non-members. You can register for the training here.
The trainings, which last 60 to 90 minutes, will run each month with a few extra trainings and mini-labs sprinkled in. They will be recorded for those who miss the live Zoom trainings or want to replay them. I helped them design the trainings and will conduct several of them.
Want Custom Training?
Contact Mike Reilley at mikereilley1 (at) gmail (dot) com to schedule an AI tools training for your staff.
Also consider a paid subscription to this newsletter or donate to Buy Me a Beer so I can build more training videos.
More AI Tools and Other Resources
Does It Exist
This search engine helps you generate ideas and find if a tool or app already exists.Atlas.co
A collaborative GIS and mapping platform in the browser. Build, share, and edit maps.ShadeMap
Every mountain, building and tree shadow in the world simulated for any date and time. Great for fact-checking images.
Become a sponsor: Would you like to sponsor future Journalist’s Toolbox™ newsletters? Our rates are reasonable and our sponsors get results. Contact me at mikereilley1 [at] gmail [dot] com
Textbooks
The Journalist’s Toolbox
My new book, “The Journalist’s Toolbox A Guide to Digital Reporting and AI” was published by Routledge in December. You can order it here,
Data + Journalism
Samantha Sunne and I co-authored a textbook, “Data + Journalism” that’s available now on Routledge. (Order here). It’s an introductory- to intermediate-level guide to learning data storytelling from A to Z.
In Quotes …
“Machine intelligence is the last invention that humanity will ever need to make.” — Nick Bostrom, philosopher and author of more than 200 publications
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