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Monday, July 22, 2013

See how your state ranks in NPR coverage, according to the network’s ombudsman

NPR reports more stories relating to California than any other state, but Washington, D.C., where decisions are made for the entire nation, has the most coverage when ranked by stories per population size. Delaware gets the least coverage, but New Jersey is at the bottom of the list when rankings are weighted by population, according to NPR ombudsman Edward Schumacher-Matos. His study used data from 2006-2011.

Schumacher-Matos used a simple methodology: "I slice and dice by ranking the number of stories on a per capita basis and against the location of NPR's 20 national bureaus and offices. I drill further by taking one month's stories and pulling apart the Washington ones to see if the headquarters staff was overly obsessed with its own surroundings. I also weigh the proportion of foreign stories."

The national average was 1.33 stories per 100,000 people, but in 2006-11 NPR reported 1,253 stories, or 34.57 per 100,000 people, about Washington, D.C. It reported 2,546, or 1.14 per 100,000, relating to California. New York had the second highest total of stories at 1,981, for an average of 1.71. Delaware had 51 stories, or 1 for every 100,000 people, and New Jersey had 242, or 0.47 for every 100,000 people. Texas was near the top of the list with 888 stories, but ended up near the bottom in stories per population, with only 0.59 for every 100,000 people. To read about the study and see how your state ranked, click here.

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