Deep-Case Reporting Method
Explain a broad system through a few deeply reported human cases
- Difficulty
- Advanced
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 7
- Confidence
- 97%
The Deep-Case Reporting Method uses broad research to find a small number of cases capable of revealing how a larger system works. Begin with data, reports, expert interviews, and simple questions that identify the pattern and expose hidden assumptions. Instead of interviewing every possible organization, carefully select one or two cases where the mechanism is visible. Stay with those people and places long enough to build trust, verify details, understand incentives, and capture consequences. The background research supplies confidence and context, while a memorable character and strong sense of place carry the reader through the analysis. The finished work should function simultaneously as evidence, explanation, and narrative: a specific story that remains compelling even for readers who did not arrive interested in economics or finance.
Origin
Extracted from Masters in Business, where Peter Goodman reflected on reporting the financial crisis, learning local journalism, and developing long-form economic narratives.
Core principles
- 01Depth produces more insight than indiscriminate breadth
- 02A carefully chosen case can illuminate an entire system
- 03Data establishes the pattern while characters make it memorable
- 04Reporting should connect immediate events to historical significance
- 05Naive questions can expose assumptions experts overlook
How to run it
- 1
Frame the system-level question
State the broad mechanism or change you need to explain. Start with a simple question that connects observable behavior to wider consequences.
Pro tip A seemingly naive question can reveal assumptions that specialists have stopped examining.
Watch out Do not begin with a predetermined character whose experience may not represent the mechanism.
- 2
Build the evidence landscape
Review data, reports, history, and expert interviews to establish the pattern. Use this work to determine where the mechanism is most visible.
Pro tip Segment the data geographically or institutionally to identify unusually revealing cases.
Watch out Background research should guide fieldwork, not replace it.
- 3
Select one or two cases
Choose cases that make the causal process observable and contain people willing to share detailed experiences. Favor explanatory depth over a large interview count.
Pro tip Select contrasting cases when the difference clarifies why outcomes diverge.
Watch out A vivid but unrepresentative anecdote can distort the broader finding.
- 4
Report deeply in place
Spend sustained time with the subjects, observe their environment, meet relevant contacts, and verify details. Continue until incentives and consequences become concrete.
Pro tip Follow a central subject through daily decisions rather than relying only on formal interviews.
Watch out Do not confuse access or likability with accuracy.
- 5
Find the narrative carrier
Identify the character, scene, or location that can draw a general reader through the analysis. Capture specific details that reveal the broader system without lengthy abstraction.
Pro tip Look for a moment when the subject discovers or embodies the underlying mechanism.
Watch out Narrative detail should illuminate the evidence rather than decorate it.
- 6
Reconnect case and context
Use data and expert knowledge to show why the case matters beyond itself. Explain what the story signifies historically and institutionally.
Pro tip Ask what the account would communicate to a reader encountering it years later.
Watch out Do not generalize beyond what the supporting evidence can sustain.
- 7
Write for non-specialists
Let the investigation unfold through scenes and consequences while integrating technical context where needed. Preserve accuracy without requiring prior interest in the subject.
Pro tip Test whether the story remains interesting to someone who did not choose to read about economics.
Watch out Overloading the narrative with every collected fact can bury the central mechanism.
In the wild
Goodman used metropolitan data on home-equity credit and consumer spending to choose Reno, then entered a tile shop and met a salesman losing commissions and abandoning a third speculative house. He stayed with the man for three days, met his friends, and used their experience to recognize that the downturn would be more severe than a mild recession.
→ One deeply reported case turned an abstract credit contraction into an early warning about the financial crisis.
To investigate claims that truck drivers had simply stopped wanting to work, a reporter rides with one long-haul driver, documents unpaid waiting time and contractual restrictions, then compares that experience with industry churn and wage data.
→ The case reveals how job design and compensation create apparent worker scarcity.
Common mistakes
Covering the entire landscape
Talking briefly to many organizations can leave the mechanism underreported. Broad coverage should locate the strongest cases rather than substitute for depth.
Stopping when the facts are sufficient
Data and expert quotations may support publication but still produce an unmemorable story. A character and sense of place can make the mechanism tangible.
Letting the anecdote outrun the evidence
A powerful case must remain anchored to broader data and context. Narrative force does not make an isolated experience representative.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for journalists, researchers, and analysts explaining abstract economic or institutional systems to general audiences.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal when rapid comprehensive enumeration matters more than depth, causality, or narrative engagement.
From the transcript
“The power of one or two deeply reported cases is much greater than the over reporting spreading too thin”
“would actually be better if you spent more time with two carefully selected companies”
“Now, I'm gonna go find a place where the sense of place is going to draw a reader through”
From the episode
How the World Ran on Empty with Peter Goodman
Peter Goodman