Wednesday 31 March 2010

Moscow blasts: UK breaking news maps







Moscow blasts: UK breaking news maps

Maps in Tuesday's news sections, yes Foreign news that has made it to the Home news section

Almost beggars belief, here we start with the Times on page 3, and then we have the Independent, the Guardian, the FT and finally the Daily Telegraph with a map/graphic on their Foreign pages

Interesting that the Independent, the Guardian and the FT all have included the Metro lines of geographical importance

The Times chose not to, and like wise we at the Telegraph. Maybe we at the Telegraph should of, but I guess we were too busy explaining other things, that it was another level of information to much

As well as showing a likeness of the Black Widows, we preferred to show where Chechnya is in location to Moscow, keeping with the flow of the story

For other footage and reporting, please click here for BBC News, and an interactive by the NYT here

Monday 29 March 2010

Guardian mountain of debt




Guardian mountain of debt

More genius from the Guardian

Something which most colleagues pointed out

And they are right, it is great

Look at how the graphic compares the 2009-10 forecast with Alistair Darling's report

The ghost of that past, haunting our future

Click here for the fab journalism

NYT – the art of total journalism






NYT – the art of total journalism

This online report by the New York Times, is possibly, one of the finest of any modern journalism, shows us that the efficiency of footwork is the key to Federer's success

Introduced as a winner in Pamplona, its got the lot

You don't need to be a tennis fan to love this

For me – the best

Voice over from a tennis coach, animation, diagrammatics, video footage and clickable navigation, this project surely points the forward for any media organisation wanting to discover the next level of journalism

It should also be noted, that this reporting could never work on TV as the viewer can control what he/she wants to view, it is visual and so would not work on radio, and because it is animated it leaves print journalism in its slipstream

Although accepted, I recognise that we could extrapolate what we need and produce in illustrator for the print news edition

But this is not the point

This is the power of online journalism, about recognisable forms and people

Visual reporting that transcends infographics

For general society, for the future

Who needs TV when you can watch an iPhone app, or what is new on your iPad?

And a future shaped by infographic editors

Malofiej18 [Rubio display]



Malofiej18 – Rubio display at the opening ceremony and summit hall

A few weeks have passed since the wonderful Malofiej18 world summit at the HQ of infographics in Pamplona, northern Spain

It now feels OK to show this 'rough' video, taken with my iPhone, of a display of Rubio Fernando's work from Diario 16 and mainly ABC

Although the video is not of great quality, and maybe to small, but we can clearly see the raw talent, energy and love that Rubio had for his craft, and his profession

Friday 26 March 2010

Robin Hood tax







Robin Hood tax for the rich

What do Gordon Brown, Alistair Darling and Robin Hood have in common?

Quite a lot according to the latest number crunchers at the Institute for Fiscal Studies

As we can see from the charts above from the Independent, Financial Times, Guardian, Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail, all sourced from the IFS, that the three consecutive Labour governments have redistributed our wealth, from the very rich, to the very poor

At the Telegraph, the hardest part of the chart was choosing the right terminology

Transforming data into information, hard wonk speak into words that you and I can understand

He fares best from the above chartery?

Only you can judge... please do

Wednesday 24 March 2010

FT 'the new Google experience'



FT 'the new Google experience'

There you go

A rather jolly, clean and crisp infographic from the FT

Utterly simple

It works

Monday 22 March 2010

Malofiej18: Report from the JJ



Malofiej18: John Grimwade reports from the Jumping Jester

Grimwade comments today on the SND website, that you get a very good idea of what is going on in infographic departments around the world, from one bar in Spain - the unofficial HQ of infographics

So, in a somewhat scary atmosphere of smoke and blasts of infographic hot air, you can get a very good idea of what is happening in graphics departments around the world. Not the carefully considered comments you hear in the conference auditorium, but the full-on, uncensored, inside stuff. Of course, drink is a powerful component in this process, but it often just amplifies the underlying truth

So what about the big debate: "Data Visualisation is killing infographics"

No question. This was the hot topic... There is a significant group of graphics people who feel that data-viz graphics do not belong in their newspaper or magazine. “Sterile.” “Impossible to understand.” “Clinical.” “Cold.” These and many more compliments were being banded about. Not opinions shared by all the attendees by any means, but by a large enough group for it to be certainly worth noting

and "are we making graphics for other graphics directors to admire"

Several people felt that perhaps we are. No question, there were tons of lavishly produced mega-graphics in the competition... Some of the attendees had been at the Zeist conference (in the Netherlands), and had heard Charles Blow’s succinct argument that we need to re-evaluate the approach we are taking: Make sure that we have a strong story, worth telling, and tell it in a clear and concise way

Boys Toys infographics



Boys toys infographics

My son and his friend have worked on this 'theatre of war'

They like traditional illustration styles, as it is all they have in their visual toolbox

Tanks, helicopters, landing pads, HQ and 'barrak'

And the drivers of the tanks have blue heads, but near the first helicopter there is a random head

Buildings have perspective, and the paras have chutes attached to their heads

Soldiers aim their guns to the marina

I love it!

Sunday 21 March 2010

Visualising content



Visualising content – the debate continues

Further to my comments on 'illustrative historical and scientific infographics', there is currently an interesting debate on Max Gadney's blog under the 'Popular Science' posting

Max and Ciaran Hughes have exchanged views on these works, the styles of the late Peter Sullivan and where we can redevelop our techniques and communication devices

Max has put together a wonderful collection of illustration and infographic which he has found in the Popular Science archives. He notes;

There is no doubt that one of the best things about National Geographic at the moment is their broad and deftly used palette of graphic treatments. I'll probably do another post as to why they are so good but this one is about another magazine that caught my eye with its broad palette of visual devices.

Many publications are dominated by graphic design style-guides – or the voguish mores of their designers, both forces conspiring to ignore some very useful visual communications devices

Powerful rhetoric and I like it

It is indeed interesting times, the sterility, albeit very interesting ways of visualising numbers and data, but there is a strong and a very clear yearning by various media groups and creative chaps not to forget the very illustrative techniques that encourage our readers and viewers to 'feel' as well as 'learn' and 'understand'

Malofiej18: Best of Show nerd




Malofiej18: 'Best of Show' nerd

This is Thomas Molén the author of the 'best of show' award at Malofiej 18 in Pamplona

His title for his presentation was 'The Infographics Nerd' or in Spanish 'El Idiota de los Infographicos'

And to be honest, it was probably the finest ever delivered, well apart from anything by Geoff McGhee

Please take a look at the trailer on Gert Nielson's site 'visualjournalism'

Also read Gert's comments on the 'best of show' award

Man U back on top




Man Utd back to the top of the Premiership

Fans favorite Ji-Sung Park scores the winner with a cracking diving header against Liverpool

Read match reports from Telegraph, Guardian and The Times

But look at the first clip - where are the Liverpool defenders?

There are three Man Utd players in the 6 yard box, and only one of Liverpool

Surely Alan Hansen has something to say about this in his column in tomorrow's Daily Telegraph

Infographic caviar





Infographic Caviar from Pete Guest at the recently redesign The Observer

Illustrative historical and scientific infographics really do please readers

Just pick up a copy of National Geographic magazine and look at their quality visual journalism

Their 22 awards at the latest Malofiej awards is justified

I don't know whether The Observer plans to do this every week in the Discovery

But I think it is great!

Apologies for the picture quality in the 'augmented reality' examples, but you get the message

Friday 19 March 2010

Jaro: visualising Malofiej18



Jaro visualises Malofiej18

Fantastic illustrator from Berlin Jaroslaw Kaschtalinski, has captured his memories of the Show Don't Tell with John Grimwade and Juan Velasco, and the Malofiej Infographics World Summit in Pamplona from earlier this month

Check out his website http://dub99.com/

Jaro is a world class illustrator, who also produces animation, character design, story boarding and game development. He now works for the awarding winning über communication design group Kircher-Burkhardt

My Creative Director at the Telegraph, Himesh Patel and I met Jaro in the Jumping Jester, and then at the conference. He's a great guy who can't stand still. So many ideas and always wanting to create and draw

Yes draw

He's a great guy, and was a real pleasure to meet him in Spain

Check him out!

Illustration Caviar

Wednesday 17 March 2010

Edward Tufte: Beautiful Evidence



Edward Tufte: Beautiful Evidence

In this rare appearance in England for Intelligence Squared, Edward Tufte will discuss his theories of visual thinking and analytical design at the Royal Geographical Society

Tufte has been described by the New York Times as the “da Vinci of data” and by Business Week (thanks for the pic) as the “Galileo of graphics.”

May 19, and tickets are £20

Chart and Infographic caviar

Tuesday 16 March 2010

Animation



Today is the first day of the Cheltenham festival

Like most large racing meets, betting fever takes hold

This is Andy Blenkinsop of the infographics department at the Telegraph

Look how passionately he watches my screen, a screen which is now devoted to horse racing alone

The energy of the horse, and the power of a cash return

On the nose!

Tuesday 9 March 2010

Malofiej 18




Various people will bow be attending the show and tell with great
hero's of mine like geoff, john, juan and alberto. Yes they sound like
a Latino jazz quartet but they superheros of visual journalism

But I leave tomorrow morning, and eventually get to Pamplona at some
point late afternoon

Sent from my iPhone

Tuesday 2 March 2010

Future of the NHS





Future of our NHS

In a series of the future of health care this week, the Daily Telegraph has and will look at major parts of how our national health service works, how it compares to other mass employers around the globe and where will the future lie for our state run operation

Coordinated by the mighty Richard Preston, under his editing authors, writers and professors alike have commented and questioned the finance and performance of our primary care trusts

Within the broadsheet format spread, we have included these infographics with should, explain and show our readers how the NHS works, where our cash flows, and what and how much our illnesses cost the Government and us the tax payer