U.S. Census

This posting summarizes a Fact Tank article about the Census Bureau's study of a possible new ethnic category for people of Middle Eastern and North African descent. The bureau has embarked on a broad look at how it asks about race and ethnicity, preparing for the 2020 Census.

This posting links to a Fact Tank article explaining the Census Bureau's research into new question wording about race and ethnicity. The bureau is testing a combined question in an attempt to improve response rates and reduce the number of people who check "some other race."

After centuries of using the postal service and in-person visits, U.S. will experiment with contacting people by email or text, pushing them to respond online.

This posting links to a FactTank article about how to obtain census data even though federal websites are closed because of the government shutdown.

We’ve found that there are still several ways to access government data.

When the results of the 2011 German census were announced recently, they included an embarrassing error – at least in the demographics world. It showed the German population was 1.5 million people short of what the government had expected. The news dealt a blow to Germany’s reputation for efficient record-keeping, and it’s also relevant to […]

Every decade, new information from the decennial census is used to update a wide range of government demographic estimates and survey benchmarks. In some cases, that results in revisions to previously published data, which researchers need to note.

The Census Bureau released 2011 American Community Survey data today, and this posting looks at news coverage about the newly released estimates. Most coverage focused on economic indicators, with some stories saying the economy was still declining but others concluding the decline may have bottomed out.

This posting includes links to newly released Census Bureau research on how Americans should be asked about their race and ethnicity. It links to a previous posting that explains the background behind this ground-breaking research.

The race and Hispanic origin categories on the 2010 Census form (and many other government forms) do not always match people's self-identification, and this is especially true for Hispanics. The Census Bureau will present results of research on alternative questionnaire designs and wording that attempts to address the issue.