NewsTrust - Blog Archive

Immigration: Join our News Hunt

Arizona's new immigration law has been met with mixed reactions. Supporters feel it's a necessary solution to the difficult problem of illegal immigration, while detractors argue the state law oversteps federal law -- and may encourage racial profiling. 

How have news media investigated and explained this contentious issue? To find out, join our Immigration News Hunt. 

Immigration News Hunt
From July 19 to August 1, 2010, NewsTrust is partnering with USA Today and its On Deadline blog to find good (and bad) journalism about immigration -- with a focus on Arizona’s controversial law and its effects on local and national politics.

During this two-week Immigration News Hunt, we will collectively post and review stories on that issue from a wide range of print, broadcast and online news providers. On Wednesday, August 4, we'll feature on this blog some of the best (and worst) coverage we found together on this important topic.

Join the News Hunt
Join the Immigration News Hunt -- and get more informed!

Can you help find good journalism on this topic? You can participate in just minutes. First login (see below), then review some of our recommended stories on our Immigration topic page. In the process, you will learn more about immigration issues, and you will become more aware about the quality of the news you consume.

If you are not yet a NewsTrust member, please sign up on our special welcome page for this project. You can also login through Facebook, if you prefer. This will let you review stories on NewsTrust and get the full benefit of our free service.

News Hunt Schedule
Here's a day-by-day schedule for the next two weeks:

Week 1 (July 19-25): By Medium/Type

• Mon. 7/19 - National Print Media (Newspapers, Wires, Mags.)
• Tue. 7/20 - National Broadcast Media (TV and Radio)
• Wed. 7/21 - National Blogs and Online
• Thu. 7/22 - Local News (all media)
• Fri. 7/23 - Opinions (all media)
• Sat. 7/24 - Community Picks
• Sun. 7/25 - Weekend Reads & Features

Week 2 (July 29 - Aug.1): By Theme

• Mon. 7/26 - Economics of Immigration
• Tue. 7/27 - Law Enforcement
• Wed. 7/28 - Immigration Reform
• Thur. 7/29 - Arizona Law
• Fri. 7/30 - Bad Journalism
• Sat. 7/31 - Community Picks
• Sun. 8/1 - Best & Worst Stories

Featured Stories
Throughout the News Hunt, we will UPDATE this blog post to feature stories recommended by our hosts and reviewers for each of these themes. Please review some of the stories below:

Monday, July 19: National Print Media (Newspapers, Wires, Mags.)

• Immigration re-enters national debate - USA Today
• Obama Gains Evangelical Allies on Immigration - New York Times
• Arizona's immigration law isn't the only one - Los Angeles Times
• Farmers Tackle Immigration Issues - Wall Street Journal

Tuesday, July 20: National Broadcast Media (TV and Radio)

• Getting Control of the Border? - Fox News
• GOP Faces Internal Divide On Changes To Immigration - NPR
• Ariz. Immigration Law Roundtable - CBS News

Wednesday, July 21: Online and Blogs

• Immigration law author claims 60 percent of Arizona Hispanics support the measure - PolitiFact
• Is Arizona's New Immigration Law Preempted? - Balkinization
• U.S. v. Arizona: Who wins? - Texas Monthly
• Should the U.S. Restrict Immigration? - Cato Institute

Thursday, July 22: Local Arizona Media

• Open season: Arpaio plans massive sweep, tent city expansion - Arizona Capital Times
• Political rhetoric ignores reality at United States border with Mexico - Arizona Republic
• SB 1070 Lawsuit Preview - KJZZ
• Phoenix Police Department's policy on enforcing SB1070 comes under scrutiny - ABC15

Friday, July 23: Opinions

• Borderlines - The New Yorker
• Dispute Over Controversial Arizona Immigration Law Heads to Court - PBS Newshour
• Humane tweak to immigration enforcement - Dallas Morning News
• No Win in Arizona - American Prospect
• Time for Obama to Put Up or Shut Up on Immigration - Pajamas Media

Saturday, July 24: Community Picks

• Judge mulls Arizona immigration law - Politico
  - posted by Samuel W. Velsor IV
• Arizona immigration law has groups readying for court - USA Today
  - posted by Joseph W Kalb
• Profiling's enabler: High court ruling underpins Arizona immigration law - Washington Post
  - posted by Elishia Windfohr
• ‘Immigrant’ List Sets Off Fears - New York Times
  - posted by Chris Finnie

Sunday, July 25: Weekend Reads

• Arizona Girds for Immigration Law - Wall Street Journal
• Immigrant 'sanctuaries' rouse opponents' wrath - Los Angeles Times
• Adios, Democrats - Slate (Opinion)

Monday, July 26: Economics of Immigration

• Migrants' place in the 'underground' economy often reflects culture as well as caution - Arizona Republic
• Downturn Does Little to Slow Global Flow of Workers - New York Times
• Policing Citizenship and Worker Status Puts Employers in a Bind - Wall Street Journal
• Arizona immigration law opens farm jobs to unemployed - Arizona Republic

    Opinions

• Immigration Reform Is Good for Big Business - Truthdig
• Arizona's Bill Is Bad For Business - Forbes

Tuesday, July 27: Law Enforcement

• Obama takes action on immigration enforcement - Washington Post
• Immigrant groups criticize fingerprint initiative - Associated Press
• What's a Little Marriage Fraud Between Amigos? - Village Voice
• How racial profiling cases changed Arizona policing - Arizona Republic
• Free pass for sanctuary cities? - San Francisco Chronicle [opinion]

Wednesday, July 28: Judge Rules on SB 1070

• Arizona immigration law: Key parts struck down by judge - Arizona Republic
• Officials react to ruling on SB1070 - ABC15
• Judge nixes key parts of Arizona law - Politico
• Judge blocks controversial parts of Ariz. law - Associated Press

    Opinions on Comprehensive Immigration Reform

• The Immigration Dilemma - Texas Observer
• Deflating the Myths About Immigration in the U.S. - New York Times
• Case for immigration reform remains strong - Miami Herald
• Why the Immigration Issue May Just Fade Away - Newsweek

Thursday, July 29: Was the Arizona immigration ruling fair?

• Arizona, rogue state - Economist
• Key Provisions of Arizona Immigration Law Blocked by Federal Judge - The Nation
• What Judge Bolton’s Injunction Doesn’t Say - National Review
• Helplessness and Anarchy - Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion
• Ruling Against Arizona Is a Warning for Other States - New York Times

Friday, July 30: Bad Journalism on Immigration

• Malkin defends immigration law - MSNBC
• Arizona law was already working - Glenn Beck
• What Arizona Ruling Means for Obama - Fox News
• Illegal Aliens Getting Away With Mayhem and Murder - Right Side News

More stories can be found on our Immigration topic page -- and in this full listing of all stories reviewed so far. We'll keep updating this blog post with new recommended stories every day through the end of the News Hunt on August 1st.

If you come across good stories we're missing about immigration, please post them on our site (be sure to tag them "Immigration" under Topics in the Edit form, so they will be listed in our News Hunt page).

Happy Hunting!

-- by Kaizar Campwala, Fabrice Florin, Jon Mitchell and the NewsTrust Team

Photo: Getty Images

Try our new review tools

We just launched a new version of the NewsTrust review tools, to make it easier and faster for you to check and review stories on our site.

Our new review form (see screenshot) features big buttons with two choices per question. For example, we ask if a story is 'fair' or 'unfair' (instead of asking you to rate the fairness of that story on a scale of 1 to 5). Our current rating form continues to work the same of for existing reviewers, and you can easily switch between versions (use the drop-down menu at the top right of any review form).

We also streamlined our toolbar to provide a better user experience for new visitors and experienced members alike. You can now quickly view story info, star stories you like, and share them on Facebook, Twitter or email, straight from the toolbar. Our improved popup window offers the same features for sites that don't support the toolbar.

What's New
Here are some of the new features in this release:

New Review Form

• simple review form for new members
• big buttons with positive/negative answers for simple form (instead of 1-5 ratings) 
• compact format shows short review form by default, with only three questions
• help balloons show quick review tips when you mouse over question marks 
• expanded review section lets you add notes, comments, quotes and links
• larger text box with a lot more room for writing notes or comments
• current rating form still available for experienced reviewers
• drop-down menu lets you switch quickly between review forms 
• saved settings show the same review form you used last time (expanded or not)
• no more "guest reviews" to reduce confusion and spam - only members can review now

New Toolbar & Popup

• new toolbar has been streamlined to a single line, to reduce visual clutter
• star icon lets you bookmark stories you like, and add them to your picks widget 
• story info tab lets you get more information about the story you are viewing
  
• edit info button lets trusted members (with a level of 3 or more) edit story information
  
• share buttons let you quickly share stories on Facebook, Twitter, Email and more
• login link makes it easy to login or logout from the toolbar (or popup window) 
• popup window offers the same features for sites that don't support our toolbar

New Review Form
Our new review form is shown by default to new members, to help them get started as reviewers. But many experienced reviewers may also find it helpful. 

This simplified review form features big buttons with two choices per question: for example, we ask if a story is fair or unfair (instead of asking you to rate the fairness of that story on a scale of 1 to 5). We also offer help balloons with quick review tips when you roll over question mark buttons.

The new review form is also more compact. To quickly add a note, quote or link -- or share your review with your friends -- just click on Expand your review (see expanded view). This lets you add notes, comments, quotes and links -- using a larger text box with a lot more room for writing your reviews.

You are welcome to keep using our original rating form, if you prefer (we now call it "rating form" to distinguish it from the new review form). To switch between review forms, simply click on the drop-down menu at the top right of any form (shown to the right). This lets you preview all of our review tools. When you see a review form that you like, simply click on the yellow 'Save' button to update your settings. You can change your review settings as often as you like.

Lastly, we have discontinued "guest reviews" by non-members, to reduce confusion and spam. Going forward, you must be a registered member to review stories on NewsTrust, and you need to login before you can use the review form.

 

New Toolbar & Popup Windows
We also streamlined our toolbar to provide a better user experience for new visitors and experienced members alike.

You can now quickly view story info, star stories you like, or share them via Facebook, Twitter, or email, straight from the toolbar. Our improved popup window offers the same features for sites that don't support the toolbar.

To learn more about these new features, check our Toolbar Visual Guide.

Try it out for yourself! Click here to review a sample story using our new review form.

Note that if you don't like this new form, you can you can easily switch back to our current rating form, which still works the same as before (use the drop-down menu at the top right of any review form). 

Go check out all these new features on our site and let us know what you think. Be sure to click on any yellow 'Review' button next to any story title to see our new review form, with all its bells and whistles.

Thanks to our Team
Many thanks to our wonderful web development team: David Fox, Subramanya Sastry and Caleb Waldorf created a much improved user experience in just a few weeks. This core team was supported by our editorial staff members Kaizar Campwala and Jon Mitchell, who worked beyond the call of duty to make this new review tool possible. Thank you all for a job well done!

Our new review tools were designed with the help of our community, through a variety of surveys, emails and conversations this year. We're very grateful to all our members, advisors, partners and friends who took the time to check our early designs, test our site and share their invaluable feedback.

Please share your comments, suggestions at the bottom of this page - or email us. What do you like most? what do you like least? did you experience any bugs? how can we improve these new review tools?

Thanks again to all our supporters for making this community effort possible. We hope that these new tools and enhanced user experience will make it easier for all of us to find and share good journalism together -- and make more informed decisions as citizens.

Enjoy!

Fabrice Florin
Executive Director, NewsTrust