What the data says about the States of the State

I used a computer algorithm to analyze 147,000 words in all Minnesota State of the State addresses since 1969. Using a technique called “fuzzy c-means analysis,” I sorted governors into groups programmatically based on their word choices. Interviews with current and former gubernatorial advisors shaped out the story, which functioned both as analysis and as a preview to the 2016 address.

• “Mark Dayton’s State of the State: Big picture, plenty of data”: Speech preview written for a lay audience with some findings from the analysis

• “What the data says about the State of the State”: More technical look at the process, and fuller presentation of results

(Pioneer Press 3/9/2016)