Journalism: Data Sets

Guide to doing research for Journalism

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General Social Survey from National Opinion Research Center
A dataset compiled from interviews of 40,000+ U.S. participants responding to 3.500+ different questions. Most recent data available via this link. Historical data (1972-1998) available from library computers only.

Data.gov - Data catalog
Portal to the federal government's open data, providing not only data but tools and resources
Data and Statistics about the U.S.
Provides access to the full range of official statistical information produced by the federal government.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Data
U.S. Census Bureau
The official U.S. Census site, including current population and economic indicators.

Gallup Poll News via Nexis Uni
Use the Search Within Results box (left margin) to narrow results.
Dates of coverage: February 20, 2003 through October 19, 2018 only.
One of the most authoritative polling systems in measuring people's opinions and behaviors.
Roper iPoll
A database of opinion poll datasets. Includes survey results data from academic, commercial and media survey organizations.
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The Roper Center archives national opinion polls back to 1935, both U.S. and some international polls, such as Gallup, Harris Interactive, Pew Research Associates, ABC, CBS, Wall Street Journal and more.

CQ Researcher from CQ Press This link opens in a new window
Articles often include information on polling results
Issues and Controversies@Facts.com from Facts On File This link opens in a new window
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Contains in-depth articles about contemporary controversial issues. Designed for initial research or debate prep. 1995 - present.
This resource (in addition to CQ Researcher) is an EXCELLENT starting point for research on contemporary topics. September 25, 1995 to present.

American National Election Studies
National survey of U.S. voters conducted since 1948 before and after every national election. Based out of the University of Michigan.
ARDA - Association of Religion Data Archives
A collection of surveys, polls, and other data submitted by researchers about religion. Includes: country and regional profiles of religious composition and freedoms, demographics, and more; and congregational membership for US states, counties, and urban areas.
Historical Statistics of the United States
Statistical tables downloadable in Excel or CSV format. Colonial era to 21st century.

IMF Data from International Monetary Fund This link opens in a new window
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Download time series data for international financial variables. Mostly 1970's to present, but some go much further back.
From the IMF's monthly publication of the same name. Variables include: GDP growth, inflation, unemployment, payments balances, exports, imports, external debt, capital flows, commodity prices, and more.

Panel Study of Income Dynamics
Located at the University of Michigan, the PSID is a longitudinal survey of a representative sample of US individuals and the families in which they reside. Starting with 1968, the data has been collected annually. PSID data can be used for cross-sectional, longitudinal, and intergenerational analysis and for studying both individuals and families. Data can be downloaded in ASCII text with SPSS documentation.
Pew Research Center
Extensive data sets on media, politics, religion, social issues, technology, hispanic issues, and global trends.
University of Wisconsin - Madison Data and Information Services Center (DISC)
Central repository of data collections used by the social science research community at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Not all data sets are freely available for downloading, however, there is a subset (containing data in SPSS format) which is freely available to the public.
University of Wisconsin - Madison's Internet Crossroads in the Social Sciences
Contains over 650 annotated links to data-related resources on the Internet.