Economic release reporting checklist

What to take away

• Copy the series definition and source table before drafting.
• Label the reference period, release vintage, and every adjustment.
• Compare compatible measures and time spans.
• Show assumptions behind household examples.
• Schedule revision and benchmark checks.

Use this checklist for price, output, income, sales, employment, trade, housing, or other economic releases. Mark yes, no, unknown, or not applicable. It condenses the practice in the economic releases and household effects guide.

Measure and source

• The issuing agency and program are named.
• The exact measure and population are defined.
• The source table, series code, release, and technical note are saved.
• The release date is separate from the reference period.
• The unit and geographic scope are visible.

Release items destined for the day's morning news brief still need every field; brevity compresses wording, not verification.

Adjustment and rate

• Seasonal adjustment status is stated.
• Real and nominal values are not mixed.
• Annualized and nonannualized rates are distinguished.
• Percentage and percentage-point changes are correct.
• Index levels and rates of change are not confused.

Revision and uncertainty

• Advance, preliminary, revised, benchmarked, or final status is stated.
• Prior values are taken from the current release.
• Material revisions appear near the new result.
• Sampling and nonsampling limits are reviewed.
• Confidence intervals or significance statements are included when relevant.

The Census Bureau's methodology for the Advance Monthly Retail Trade Survey describes an early estimate based on a sample, a later revision from a larger survey, seasonal adjustment, benchmarking, and sampling and nonsampling error. These details apply to that survey, not all indicators, but they show the fields a reporter should seek in each program's own method. In live coverage, a revised figure is an update, not a correction; the breaking update types comparison draws that line.

Comparison

• The comparison answers a stated question.
• Periods, populations, units, and adjustment status match.
• Forecasts are labeled and sourced.
• One volatile observation is not called a trend without support.
• Category contributions are not inferred from percentage changes alone.

Household context

• A national average is not presented as every family's experience.
• Examples identify income, spending, debt, location, and period assumptions.
• Direct effects are separated from modeled or behavioral effects.
• Maximum or minimum scenarios are labeled.
• The practical calculation can be reproduced.

The worked method for price releases is translating inflation to household context.

Output measures

• Real and current-dollar output are distinguished.
• Quarterly annual rates are explained.
• Contributions are taken from the appropriate table.
• The current data vintage is used.
• Missing components in an advance estimate are noted.

BEA's quick guide to GDP releases states that each quarter is estimated in three successive releases and flags annualization, seasonal adjustment, real versus current-dollar values, source assumptions, revisions, and contribution tables. The checklist uses those points only for GDP reporting.

Writing and maintenance

• The headline says what measure changed and over which period.
• The lead does not imply a cause the release cannot prove.
• Expert comments match the measure discussed.
• Charts preserve units, periods, sources, and revision dates.
• The next release, routine revision, and benchmark are recorded.

Common questions

Should every technical detail appear in the lead?

No. The lead needs the fields that prevent a wrong reading. Other method details can follow in a compact note.

Can a forecast provide the comparison?

Yes, when the source, consensus method, time, and exact measure are clear. Also compare with prior values and uncertainty.

Are small changes meaningful?

Check the program's uncertainty and significance information before claiming a change.

Why save the series code?

Names can be similar. A code helps the desk retrieve the same adjusted series and track revisions.