Star-Tribune Library

SYLVIA FRISCH,
Researcher at the Minneapolis, MN
Star Tribune Library

Bob Jansen's memorial tribute to Sylvia Frisch

The examples below are my best recollections of what went into these two major research efforts for our paper:
Our projects office worked for months on an investigation related to arson in St. Paul. This story won the Pulitzer. During this time I:

The final big push to get the series finished brought a request for information comparing the quality of various fire departments' arson investigations. My first step was to run a quick search through the most likely data bases to see if I could find a fast answer to their question. I chose to start with the insurance data bases, PAIS and various government document data bases in Dialog. This search turned up a few possibilities and I started locating and retrieving them.

In order to actually get these documents and articles, I used several services.

In addition, I spent time on the telephone. Starting with the Encyclopedia of Associations and my own files on fire and arson research organizations, I placed about twenty phone calls, finally locating a woman who had just completed the type of study we wanted. Her findings had not been published yet and she wanted to know, "How did you find me???" I passed her name and phone number on to the projects people.

How useful was all this in the final analysis? I'm not certain. I did receive credit at the end of the series for my research contribution so I assume that the reporters found my work useful. I may never know what part was most useful to them. They probably couldn't tell me now even if I asked. They're on to the next investigation and so am I. But the arson series won a Pulitzer and I was proud to have worked on it with them.

This second example is certainly more typical of the work I do. A reporter asked for information related to the IRS requirement that defense attorneys disclose cash payments they receive in excess of $10,000. (Part of the purpose of this requirement is to help track drug money.) I started with the Nexis group file which covers legal sources like the National Law Journal. Then I searched the Legal Resource Index and Tax Notes Today files on Dialog. I showed the reporter the information I had found -- highlighting the sources that looked best to me. Some of the articles we wanted were available full text on line and I printed these. For the other materials, I had the Hennepin County Law Library photocopy the articles. The reporter said that the material was very useful and gave me a tag line on the story.

Sylvia Frisch
Star Tribune Library
425 Portland Avenue
Minneapolis, MN 55488

August 16, 1990

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