PART I. ID, Newspaper and Methodological Variables

In the phase of data entry, you will be using three documents simultaneously:

  1. The codebook
  2. The database grid
  3. The newspaper article
    If you download the article, you will be working with a word-file on your computer
    If you didn’t download the article you will be using the webpage of the search engine
  • If you download the article save it in the folder ‘Data’ and name it with a unique code (an ID). This unique code will allow you to identify the article quickly.

1. Navigate to the  database grid (excel-file) and enter the ID code in the first cell (Var1):

Year/month/day/newspaper abbreviation
(eg. 20120315TS = The Sun, 15th of March 2012)

Newspaper abbreviation/ year/month/day
eg. TS20120315 = The Sun, 15th of March 2012)

*If you select two or more articles of the same newspaper that were published on the same date, a letter can be added to indicate the order: a, b, c (e.g. 20090101JP1a).

2. Link the code in the first cell to Or the webpage or the saved word-file with the same code.

How do I link the file? Watch a video HERE
First select the cell and hit INSERT>Hyperlink. It allows you to search files on the computer/ or to insert the url to the webpage. In case of a download, search for the word-file in the folder ‘data’o to the folder ‘Data’.

  • !! If you now change the location of the folder ‘data’ the path generated by excel becomes invalid as the path changed by moving the folder.
  • !! If you link to the webpage in the search engine you will not have this problem, however to work on the analysis you should be connected to the internet.

Watch the video ‘How to Link the Article to Your Database‘

3. Analyse the rest of your newspaper article using your database and adapting the codebook.

Key Concepts:
There are two variable types you need to know: string and numeric variables.The goal is the transform as many as possible string variables in numeric variables.

  1. The concept of ‘string variable’ here is used to refer to a variable that contains text.
  2. The concept of ‘numeric variable’ is used here to refer to a variable that contains numbers. The goal is the design of numeric variables.

Key Codes:
    –  99: not applicable
    –  98: data missing

Helpful Common Computer Commands:
– Ctrl + c = Copy
– Ctrl + v = Paste
– Ctrl + z = Undo

Tutorials:

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