Moldova’s media landscape is dynamic and fast-paced—where speed, accuracy, and trust are non-negotiable. Audiences demand more than just headlines; they want facts backed by evidence, stories that reveal deeper truths, and insights presented with clarity. Data journalism delivers exactly that. It uncovers hidden trends, debunks misinformation, and transforms complex issues into compelling, visual narratives.

For nearly 20 years, I’ve trained journalists across five continents to turn raw data into groundbreaking stories—from exposing disinformation campaigns in Southeast Asia to tracking opioid epidemics in Appalachia. So when Teleradio-Moldova invited me to lead a four-day masterclass for Moldovan media professionals, the mission was clear: Arm reporters with the analytical tools to fight rumors with rigor, not just rhetoric.

From June 1–4, 2021, I had the honor of guiding 100+ journalists, editors, and producers from across Moldova through an intensive, hands-on webinar—equipping them with the skills to back every story with hard evidence.

Who Joined the Training?

Hosted by Teleradio-Moldova at its Chișinău Training Center, the masterclass brought together a diverse cross-section of Moldova’s media ecosystem, including:

• National broadcasters: Moldova 1 & 2, PRO TV Chișinău, Jurnal TV, TV8, and 15+ others
• Regional & local stations: Orhei TV, Drochia TV, ATV Găgăuzia, GRT, and more
• Radio networks: Radio Moldova, Europa Liberă, Noroc FM, Kiss FM
• Digital outlets: UNIMEDIA, Ziarul de Gardă, AGORA, Publika.md, Sputnik Moldova, and independent platforms

The mix of public, private, and community media sparked dynamic discussions—local reporters analyzed village-level census data while national anchors explored social-listening dashboards for primetime investigations.rs explored social-listening dashboards for primetime broadcasts.

Why Data Journalism Matters Now More Than Ever

• Trust is the new currency. Audiences don’t just want quotes—they want proof.
• Speed + accuracy. Real-time data tools help newsrooms fact-check before stories go viral.
• Clarity in complexity. Budgets, elections, health stats—data visualization turns numbers into “aha!” moments.
• Accountability through evidence. Data transforms watchdog reporting from anecdotal to undeniable.

In short: When journalists master data, they don’t just report the news—they change it.

How learning was structured

To accommodate both Moldovan daylight hours and U.S. Eastern Time, we ran two “mirror” blocks each day (12:00–02:00 AM and 03:00–05:00 AM ET, which translated to morning and lunchtime in Chișinău). Each day paired a theory hour with a lab hour so that concepts immediately became practice.

Day	Focus	Key Take-aways	Tools & Labs
1	Intro to Data Journalism	What makes data a story asset; ethics & verification; excel basics	Cleaning messy spreadsheets; de-duping datasets
2	Finding the Data	Strategic search, open-data portals, and light web-scraping	Setting Google Alerts; harvesting social posts with Netlytic
3	Mining for Story Ideas	Pivot tables, frequency counts, and text mining for themes	Voyant-tools for keyword spikes; Excel for quick stats
4	Visual Analytics	Design principles, chart choice, storytelling flow	Building Tableau dashboards ready for on-air or online embedding

Moments that mattered

• Real-world data drills – Reporters brought their own leads (vaccine uptake, municipal budgets, disinformation trends) and left with at-least-half-written stories.
• Ethics spotlight – We debated where to draw the line when personal data collides with public interest, a particularly hot topic in Moldova’s evolving privacy landscape.
• Peer mentoring – TV graphics teams coached radio hosts on visual pacing, while regional reporters shared tips on scraping hard-to-reach local government PDFs.

The Big Takeaway
When journalists harness data, they strengthen accountability, deepen public understanding, and ultimately, defend democracy. And judging by the energy in every session—Moldova’s newsrooms are ready to lead the charge.

Want to collaborate on future trainings or have questions?
📩 Reach me at khanm1@ohio.edu
🔗 Let’s connect on LinkedIn.
Together, let’s keep turning numbers into narratives that matter.