LOCALIZE IT: Ideas for covering soaring US inflation
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Your support makes all the difference.Consumer prices shot up 9.1% last month from a year earlier — the biggest year-over-year jump since November 1981.
Resurgent inflation is running ahead of wage increases, eating into household purchasing power, hurting consumer confidence and posing big problems for President Joe Biden and the Democrats as they try to fend off a Republican onslaught in November’s congressional election.
Inflation, which hasn’t been a problem in the United States since the early 1980s, began to show up in spring 2021 as the economy bounced back with unexpected speed from the coronavirus recession of a year earlier. Biden has received blame for pushing a $1.9 trillion stimulus package in March 2021 that critics say overheated an economy that was already running hot.
Here are some potential questions and resources you can use in reporting on inflation in your area:
LOCALIZATION TIPS
Americans are worried and angry about rising prices. Some questions you might want to ask people in your community:
— Are prices hikes running ahead of increases in your pay?
— How are you coping? Are you saving less? Buying fewer things? Substituting cheaper items? Get specific examples — i.e. are people buying store-brand ketchup instead of Heinz? — and how they feel about it.
— Do they expect inflation to last? This is an important question for policymakers and economists because “inflation expectations’’ can be self-fulfilling. If consumers think prices will be higher tomorrow, they tend to buy today — and that demand adds to inflationary pressure. They are also more likely to demand higher pay, which can feed into inflation.
— Rent and home prices, a big part of the consumer price index, have risen sharply. Are they having an impact on you? Are you living in a smaller apartment than you'd like? Or not in your preferred neighborhood? Have you put off a home purchase or dropped plans to buy because of high prices?
— Who do you blame, if anyone, for higher inflation? What should be done?
— Do you feel that businesses are taking advantage of the situation to gouge consumers? If so, are the biggest offenders big companies, or are local businesses taking advantage, too?
— Do you remember the last time inflation was running hot — back in the 1970s and early 1980s? How does this experience compare?
— State universities often have research centers or individual economists who analyze the state or local economy. It’s worth looking for experts to interview about the local impact of higher prices.
REPORTING RESOURCES
Inflation is a nationwide and global issue. But you can get localized data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics if you want to check whether your community is somehow an outlier:
— At this site you can get a table showing year-over-year inflation in a limited number of metro areas going back 20 years: https://www.bls.gov/charts/consumer-price-index/consumer-price-index-by-metro-area.htm. You will get a chart. Click “Show table’’ to get the raw numbers.
— For more detailed information, go here: https://www.bls.gov/data/home.htm.
Under “Inflation & Prices,’’ hit the green “One Screen’’ link for “All Urban Consumers (Current Series).’’
Up will come the “One Screen Data Search Page.’’
The first option, window No. 1, allows you to select “U.S. city average″ to get nationwide data or choose a specific region or metro area.
Next, in window/option No. 2, you can choose “all items’’ to get the Consumer Price Index for whatever region/metro you choose. You can also run down the menu to look for specific items such as fruits and vegetables and used cars and trucks. Click “Get Data.’’
A seemingly incomprehensible table will pop up, showing you 10 years of the Consumer Price Index for the geographic area and/or specific items you chose going back 10 years.
Don’t despair. Toward the top of the page you’ll see a “More Formatting Options’’ link. Hit that.
Next you will get options to finetune your search. You will probably want to unclick “Original Data Value’’ (to get rid off the meaningless index figures) and click “12-month percent change’’ to see how much prices have risen over the past year and how annual inflation has been changing over time. Hit “Retrieve Data.″
The “More Formatting Options’’ link also allows you to go back farther in time to compare today’s inflation to past inflation.
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Localize It is an occasional feature produced by The Associated Press for its customers’ use. Questions can be directed to Katie Oyan at koyan@ap.org.