Learn how to use BLS wage and employment data for local economic stories at free webinar June 4
National Press Club members can join a free online webinar at 1 p.m. June 4 on how to use data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages to write local economic stories.
The hour-long webinar is sponsored by the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing and the American Statistical Association. Speakers will include Paul Overberg, data reporter for the Wall Street Journal, and David Hiles of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Board of Governors Vice Chair Kimberly Adams, a correspondent for Marketplace, will moderate.
The QCEW data covers more than 95% of U.S. jobs and drills down from the national and state level to the metro and county level by industry. This webinar will focus on county data that will allow you to track local industries in the communities you cover.
By the end of the webinar, you’ll be able to:
• Understand how the data is collected and organized.
• Find your county’s data in various QCEW reports.
• Place local industries in state and national context.
• Come up with several story ideas using the data.
About the panelists:
Paul Overberg, data reporter, Wall Street Journal
Paul Overberg is a data reporter at the Wall Street Journal and a member of its investigative team. He focuses on economic and demographic stories, but helps reporters working on many beats. He previously worked at USA Today as a member of its data team. He has taught at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism and served as a senior fellow for the Center for Health Journalism at the University of Southern California.
David Hiles, Bureau of Labor Statistics
David Hiles publishes the county employment and wages release for the BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages . He started at BLS in 1986, working on the national payroll survey. In 1997 he moved to the QCEW and led its switch from annual to quarterly publication. He has overseen several accelerations of the QCEW release. Mr. Hiles lives with his wife and two children in Hyattsville, where he served for four years as a city council member.
Kimberly Adams, host/correspondent at Marketplace
Kimberly Adams, a member of the Club's Board of Governors. is a host/ correspondent at Marketplace, America’s largest broadcast business program. She covers politics and general news for Marketplace from the Washington bureau. Before moving to Washington, Kimberly reported on the political, social and economic upheaval in Egypt following the Arab Spring as a freelance journalist based in Cairo. Prior to freelancing, Kimberly worked as a producer for NPR in Washington, covering politics, arts, culture, and breaking news as a producer for “Weekend Edition” and the political unit.