Municipal

Communities around the country grapple with what to do with their vacant and abandoned buildings, which, over time, can become eyesores. Not only are dilapidated buildings ugly, they can hurt the value of surrounding property and become hangouts for drug dealers, prostitutes and the homeless. Elected leaders know they are also major barriers to revitalizing urban areas such as downtown shopping districts and low-income neighborhoods.

Journalists rely on three types of research papers most often in their work: White papers, working papers and peer-reviewed journal articles.

How are they different? And which is best?

Below, we explain each, pointing out its strengths and weaknesses. As always, we urge journalists to use care in selecting any research to ground their coverage and fact-check claims.

Peer-reviewed article

One of journalists’ most important jobs is to scrutinize decisions made by governing bodies such as a state legislature, county council or school board. One facet of local government that journalists should pay particular attention to is how government leaders use and respond to economic impact studies — analyses that attempt to measure the impact a project such as a new tourist attraction or highway would have on economic activity in a given area.

Police officers rarely use force to apprehend and detain criminal suspects and, when they do, the majority of suspects are not injured, according to a new, first-of-its-kind analysis conducted by a research team comprised mostly of medical doctors.

A new study suggests marathons interfere with ambulance service. Transportation delays may help explain why elderly patients with cardiac problems are more likely to die if they live near race routes.

State lawmakers who cannot seek reelection sponsor fewer bills, serve on fewer legislative committees and skip more roll-call votes, according to a new study on term limits from the University of Chicago and Stanford University.

Nearly one-third of mayors believe that city policies won’t lessen health disparities, according to new research from Drexel University.

The cost of filing federal income tax returns has risen steadily since the 1980s, partly because Americans are filing more forms with their returns, a UCLA researcher has found.