John Maines has been a computer-assisted reporting specialist at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel since 1998 and oversees the newspaper’s computer-assisted reporting projects. Projects he has worked on include the statewide analysis of voting irregularities in the 2000 presidential election; an analysis tracking the Florida connections of the 9/11 terrorists; and an investigation into fraud and waste involving FEMA disaster aid. Prior to 1998, Maines was a newspaper reporter for 21 years, working at the Massena (N.Y.) Observer , the Ithaca (N.Y.) Journal , and the Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, Miss. He has also been a contributing writer for Washington Technology newspaper and American Demographics magazine. He is the recipient of numerous honors, including the Associated Press Managing Editors Public Service and First Amendment Awards, the Investigative Reporters and Editors Award, and the Roy W. Howard Award in Public Service Reporting from the Scripps Howard Foundation; and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting in 2006 for the FEMA series.

Audio

Listen to Maines discuss the opportunities and risks of data analysis.
Length: 65 sec