Making the case for a different kind of 2020 census coverage
The KPCC engagement team is not shy about how we feel when it comes to the 2020 census and the opportunities for public service journalism.
We spent months researching Angelenos’ knowledge and information needs when it comes to the constitutionally mandated decennial count, as well as the work being done by foundations, community organizations, and government agencies—all striving to achieve a complete and accurate count.
Why? Because we know the stakes for California—and especially Los Angeles County—are high. An undercount would result in the loss of valuable federal funding toward programs like Section 8, Title 1 education grants for low-income students, and Medi-Cal.
The research has already changed the way we’re approaching reporting: We’re reframing the way we tell stories, offering more explanatory stories about the census and what’s at stake, and lifting up issues like how identity informs the way a person views the census. We’re in the early stages of a collaboration with L.A.-based community, ethnic, and in-language media outlets. And we’re on a mission to get fellow journalists excited about covering the census.
That’s why we happily accepted an invitation from Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement (PACE) to write about our census work for its digital publication, #Infogagement.
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