For example, one investigative reporter complained to me of difficulty getting parties to business disputes to let her sit in on their case, so she could write about the anatomy of a business mediation. I mulled this over and tried the problem on John Wilkinson, a New York mediator of commercial disputes. He had an immediate answer. I don't think she'll go to more than about four before she hits one where both parties end up being comfortable allowing her to write what she wants. Even in the most confidential of settings, in other words, there's usually a way to enlighten the public.
Several groups are well placed to help.
The Society of Professionals in Dispute Resolution, the Dispute Resolution Section of the American Bar Association, the Academy of Family Mediators, the National Association for Community Mediation and several other membership groups have constituents whose caseloads cover large spheres of activity. RAND's Institute for Civil Justice and the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School are examples of scholarly groups able to codify the complex material they produce and make it more accessible to journalists. A little investigation would uncover examples in almost any circulation area of scholars who have studied one aspect or another of this burgeoning field, and of the proliferating specialty groups which serve a dizzying variety of interests. Madison, WI 53711 Comments are welcome.