Data, Aging-in-Place, Housing: Reporting on graphic changes and migration in the U.S. | The Journalist’s Resource Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy Harvard Kennedy School

 

WEBINAR Reporting on demographic changes + migration in the U.S.

Reporting on demographic changes and migration in the U.S. Webinar Thursday Sept. 10, 2026 2 - 3 p.m. ET

Demographic changes in the U.S. are reshaping state budgets, housing policy and how we care for older Americans. Reporters: Learn the data that can take your stories to the next level during our one hour webinar on Sept. 10 at 2 p.m. ET, co-presented with The Pew Charitable Trusts. The webinar will feature three panelists:  Alexandre Fall, principal associate with Pew’s Fiscal 50 project. He conducts research to help policymakers understand fiscal, economic and demographic trends affecting their states by tracking tax revenue, reserves, employment rates, Medicaid spending and other issues important to long-term fiscal health. Sol Baik, senior researcher and project lead on aging and rehabilitative services research for the Demographics Research Group at the University of Virginia. She is responsible for building demographic data delivery for the Virginia Department of Aging and Rehabilitative Services.   Riordan Frost, senior research analyst at the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, who works on projects related to demographics, residential mobility, utilities, wealth inequality and homelessness.   Clark Merrefield, senior editor at The Journalist’s Resource, will moderate. Tune in to learn: Why it’s important for journalists to pair topline trends with nuanced analyses and storytelling. Data can be a starting point or a tool to understand realities in communities across the country.  How longstanding domestic migration trends accelerated during the pandemic, and how state finances have been affected through economic activity, tax revenue, service demands and other factors. The ways states address domestic migration trends: Some offer financial or tax incentives to attract new residents while many others integrate trends in financial reports and long-term outlooks. How other factors, including declining fertility, aging, housing affordability and international immigration also affect state populations. The hour will feature a hands-on demo of how journalists and policy makers can use demographic data that Pew has analyzed and made public.  Plus, your questions! Submit them in advance when you register.

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