As this challenging year draws to a close, we’re looking back at our 10 most popular pieces of 2025, which supported coverage of some of the biggest news stories of the year — including reductions in funding to public safety-net programs and other major policy shifts that demanded evidence-based reporting of stories about public health, immigration, education and economic policy.
Using Google Analytics, we looked at the number of unique page views each post has received so far this year to determine which is most popular. We limited the list to tip sheets, explainers, research articles and expert commentary articles that were published or significantly updated in 2025.
It’s been an honor to help inform the news in 2025, and our team is looking forward to doing the same in 2026.
1. Four-day school week: Research shows the impact of a condensed schedule varies by school location and student grade level
To help recruit teachers and save money, more than 2,000 public schools in the U.S. have switched to a four-day school week. In this frequently updated piece, Denise-Marie Ordway explored the research and spoke to researchers about how this change affects students and families.
2. Researchers rush to preserve federal health databases before they disappear from government websites
In January, the new Trump administration temporarily halted most communications from the Department of Health and Human Services and began rapidly taking down government websites and datasets full of vital public health information. Naseem Miller highlighted some of the important efforts to preserve that data.
3. Covering Trump’s proposed tariffs? 4 things you need to know
President Trump’s tariff agenda created a need for clear, evidence-based explanations for the history of tariffs and how they work. To give journalists a strong foundation for covering tariffs in 2025 and beyond, The Journalist’s Resource co-hosted an hourlong webinar with Econofact, drawing attendees from local, national and international news outlets. Clark Merrifield summed up the key takeaways in this popular tip sheet.
4. The future of the US Department of Education: 8 tips for journalists covering the agency under Trump’s second term
In this tip sheet and explainer, published in January, Denise-Marie Ordway offered advice to help news reporters interrogate President Trump’s proposal to close the Education Department, provide historical context and evaluate the agency’s effectiveness.
5. As Congress considers cuts to SNAP, we address 8 questions about this US federal nutrition program
Clark Merrefield’s thorough explainer offered important background info and research to bolster ongoing news coverage of potential reductions in federal spending on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
6. Childhood vaccines: What research shows about their safety and potential side effects
Naseem Miller created this comprehensive tip sheet and research-based primer on the heels of the confirmation of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime vaccine skeptic who now leads the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It’s a go-to source for anyone covering or following news about childhood vaccines.
7. 287(g): The program that lets state and local police perform the functions of federal immigration officers
In this expert commentary, adapted from his popular Substack, researcher Austin Kocher offered advice for covering the rapid expansion of a controversial program that delegates immigration enforcement powers to state and local law enforcement agencies across the U.S.
8. The National Debt: How and why the US government borrows money
The US government is paying $1 trillion a year in interest on its debt, which totaled about $38.4 trillion as of December. With interest costs outpacing national defense spending, Clark Merrefield created this explainer to help journalists understand the public debt and unpack it for their audiences.
9. The battle over Affordable Care Act insurance subsidies: What to know as open enrollment looms
In the fall of 2025, the longest-ever federal government shutdown prompted attention toward a political standoff over subsidies for health insurance plans sold on federal government-run exchanges. To help news reporters and their audiences make sense of the situation, Kerry Dooley Young walked us through how ACA health insurance marketplaces work, why enrollment has grown recently, and what’s at stake for consumers.
10. As the US government removes health websites and data, here’s a list of non-government data alternatives and archives
To help health journalists continue reporting in the wake of datasets disappearing from federal government websites, Naseem Miller curated a collection of non-government websites with reliable health data. This piece was part of our “Know Your Research” section, featuring tip sheets and explainers to help you understand academic research methods, find and recognize high-quality research, investigate scientific misconduct and research errors, and avoid missteps when reporting on new studies and public opinion polls.
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A project of Harvard Kennedy School’s Shorenstein Center, The Journalist’s Resource curates, summarizes and contextualizes high-quality research on newsy public policy topics. Supported by generous grants from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, The National Institute for Health Care Management (NIHCM) Foundation, Lumina Foundation, and individual contributors.
