Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects
Department
Political Science
Document Type
Thesis
Abstract
This Capstone Experience project details my efforts to become a political data journalist. I took the first major step in August 2018, starting First Past the Poll, my politics blog. For three semesters, this website was frequently updated with nonpartisan reports on the latest elections, deep dives on long-term polling trends, and commentary on political numbers more broadly. Hoping to buck the trend of the stodgy prose prevalent throughout politics, my stories combined academic rigor with accessible writing.
As I began to find my footing in the field, First Past the Poll put me in the position to become a part-time Contributing Analyst for Inside Elections, the nonpartisan newsletter based in Washington, D.C. During my final months of undergraduate study at Western Kentucky University, I’ve professionally published new articles on the company website and developed my skills even further.
The following thesis reflects upon and summarizes these experiences, providing original insight on the discipline and interspersed nuggets of advice for future electoral numberphiles.
Advisor(s) or Committee Chair
Joel Turner, Ph.D.
Disciplines
Journalism Studies | Political Science | Statistics and Probability
Recommended Citation
Wascher, Bradley, "First Past the Poll: A Blog About Political Statistics" (2020). Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects. Paper 880.
https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/stu_hon_theses/880
Included in
Journalism Studies Commons, Political Science Commons, Statistics and Probability Commons