{"id":20352,"date":"2024-10-07T10:57:40","date_gmt":"2024-10-07T08:57:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/49.13.112.60\/blog\/?p=20352"},"modified":"2024-10-07T10:57:41","modified_gmt":"2024-10-07T08:57:41","slug":"data-journalism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/blog\/data-journalism.html","title":{"rendered":"Data journalism tells the reader about a complicated matter in simple words"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n

Some people think of data as a collection of numbers, most commonly collected in spreadsheets. Twenty years ago, spreadsheets were often the only form of data journalists had to deal with. But we have been living in the world of technology and the digital world for a long time, so new concepts such as data and digitization are appearing before us. Therefore the world is gradually moving away from paperwork. Evolution and technology allow us room for wider information and search applications to reach a wider range of users. Data journalism<\/strong> has taken over the world, although in some countries the development is still crawling, not running. What new school of journalism is considered the future of this profession? Let\u2019s find out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 What is Data Journalism?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Data journalism is the newest modern way of describing today’s news and has its foundations in traditional journalism. This type of journalism is based on the combination of traditional journalism with other fields such as data visualization, computer science, and statistics. It combines several different concepts or stages that help journalism use modern technology from simpler basics to more complex basics. Data journalism is the hope for improving the quality of media coverage and has a process that helps convey the value of this information to the reader. First, we find or read the data, then we have to think about and filter what we read, keeping what is important and removing what is superfluous. Then it comes to visualization, and then it turns into a story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reading any data, we form conclusions. The main feature of journalism is that we can pour our opinions into the text and tell the reader a story based on data. Visualization is often used for this purpose, which will help in understanding the complexity of the entire story and situation. The interesting point here is that we can use narrative elements to show the circumstance from the point of view of the person significantly affected by the circumstance. This point combines a situation that is difficult to remember with a story that is easier for the reader to understand. People are often interested in other people’s stories, so this is no exception.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data journalism deals with long-term issues and tells complex stories through visualizations \u2013 tables, charts, diagrams, complex programs, etc. Data journalism meets the expectations of today’s audiences who want to easily and quickly learn the truth about complex topics. It can be said that journalism simplifies this way for us to think about what the author wanted to convey to the reader, which is why data journalism is so popular – because it is available to the average Internet user.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data journalism solves many questions, such as how to deal with information overload, how to tell readers the stories hidden in huge databases, or where to get news that other newsrooms have not yet published. This new type of journalism is considered the journalism of the future, and also provides us with an answer to the main question – How to improve the quality of the media world, which is becoming more and more tabloid?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Need<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Key Differences from Traditional Journalism<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Traditional journalism<\/em><\/strong> includes newspapers and magazines, and articles on websites, television programs, and podcasts. This type of journalism is more familiar to us, because it has existed since Ancient Rome, and the first newspaper was published in 1605. The tradition of drinking coffee with the morning newspaper, watching the news of what happened overnight in the world, or listening to the radio on the way to work is in our DNA of habits. Its principles are elementary, because when something happens, even a small one, it can immediately get into the news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data journalism<\/em><\/strong> helps tell a complex story through infographics, i.e. data visualization. A graphically told story is not only easy to understand and quickly absorbed, but it can also be beautiful. Data can be a source for data journalism or a tool to tell a story. They can also be both at the same time. As with any source, it should be treated with caution and skepticism; as with any tool, you need to know how it can shape but also limit the story told with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So how is data journalism different from traditional journalism? Traditional journalism<\/em><\/strong> is easier and simpler, perhaps even more understandable to humanity. We have data from various sources, we pass it to journalists, and then a new article is created. So, we see the principle of data – journalist – article<\/strong>. Data journalism<\/em><\/strong>, in turn, combines open and hard-to-find information into the commons and then filters. When this information reaches journalists, two processes take place: visualization and analysis. Only at the end of this long scheme does the creation of a new article begin. So data journalism works like this: information \u2013 filtering \u2013 visualization \u2013 analysis \u2013 article<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since traditional journalism works immediately from breaking news, it can be considered critical. Data journalism requires more in-depth analysis and is often parallel to investigative journalism. It can also be used in the breaking news cycle, but then the processes have to be accelerated. Traditional journalism involves using data as a single source, bypassing other data and resources. Data journalism works more comprehensively and covers several resources and human stories or opinions simultaneously. Data journalism gives us a deeper look into the news world, while traditional journalism focuses on breaking the news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data journalism seems to gather more information and is more applicable to our society. This is true, albeit partially. Traditional journalism is also important, but it can be safely combined with data journalism, leaving only the best properties. New opportunities emerge when we combine a traditional “nose for news” with the ability to tell compelling stories using the full range of information available today. The above-mentioned new opportunities can appear at any stage of creating journalistic material. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It seems easy to confuse journalism with scientific research, but this is not the case.  The reader\u2019s involvement in the story is the basis because the article should target the reader and thus explain the story to him. You can use the so-called traditional method and simply illustrate the news as it is initially, too. It is worth remembering that for high-quality performance of work, a good journalist must reveal several points of view, although there are no clear frameworks and rules here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ethics<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The basis for data journalism should be accuracy and meet the public interests of readers. The ethical standards of data journalism differ little from other ethical standards, but since it is working with data, it must be reliable information. So, we can distinguish 7 main ethical norms of data journalism:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. Accuracy<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    The information must be accurate and reliable because falsehood spread affects the journalist’s reputation and increases the risk of being classified as a yellow press. Using numbers, graphs, and maps gives your words more authority, which is often lacking in other forms of journalism. The core of a journalist’s job to do the right thing with information is to ensure the credibility of graphical and numerical resources because they are the basis of a story based on data. Getting the numbers wrong can cost us our reputation and paint us as unreliable journalists. The language of the data must be specific and as important as the testimony of witnesses in a homicide investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    1. Transparency<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      For the reader to believe in the reliability of the information, we must describe all information collection processes, available resources, data updates, and information collection methods. Why? Because each whistleblower has his interests, it is vital to trace this connection between the testimony of interested parties and their intentions. A good journalist should question all information, and seek a primary or a second independent source to verify transparency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      1. Context<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

        Numbers cannot live without context. If someone just gives us the number 5, we will not understand the importance. For example, if we receive the news “a school burned down. 5 out of 300 managed to survive”, then the numbers will play with new colors because we will understand the context of these numbers. When providing readers with historical, geographical, and social contexts, we must be sure that readers have a broad perspective, because only then will the result of providing information be achieved to a large extent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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        1. Privacy<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

          Journalists are notorious for significant interference in the personal lives of stars, victims, or politicians. In the pursuit of sensation, it is difficult to maintain humanity. But it must be remembered that a qualified journalist must provide information without harming others and at the same time satisfy the needs of the public. Privacy is at the core of data journalism and should act in the interests of the information provider.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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          1. Avoiding Misrepresentation<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

            Diagrams, charts, and maps can be affected by various manipulations. The ethics of data journalism should prevent misunderstandings of visualizations, such as when the bars in a diagram differ significantly in height, but the actual difference is 1 percentage point, which can mislead the reader. Therefore, the task of journalists also includes making the correct visualization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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            1. Responsibility<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

              We are all human and can make mistakes or forget to check things. According to the ethics of data journalism, we should reserve the right for contributors, readers, and other colleagues to respond to corrections. Of course, the responsibility lies with us, so it is within our competence to fix everything. Readers should have easy access to the article\u2019s author, so the journalist should set up easy contact with him to discuss all the details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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              1. Source Protection<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

                Protecting sources is essential in a journalist’s job, especially when they publish a leak. Metadata is one of the ways to identify the source, which protects the date and place of access, computers, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

                Data Journalism Examples<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

                Data journalism is of interest to many and has long captured the world of journalism. We’ll tell you about the best data-driven stories and convince you of the need for data journalism for your media outlet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

                Texty.org.ua<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                Ukrainian data journalism agency Texty.org.ua publishes various articles on social, economic, world, and military topics. Their motto is to understand the essence of things, pay attention to the main thing, and explain to readers what is happening. Today they talk about the crimes of the Russian army in Ukraine, reveal the techniques of Russian propaganda, and write about how Ukraine fights. They appreciate quality texts, know how to work with data, and pay a lot of attention to design. They also publish data-driven articles in English that we highly recommend reading.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

                Global Investigate Journalism Network gathered the Top 10 Data Journalism Projects from 2023 and Texty.org.ua\u2019s<\/strong> visualization of Ukrainian Artifacts in Russia is among them. For centuries, Ukraine has faced the theft of its artifacts by Russia and their removal to the Russian Hermitage. The editors identified about 110,000 Ukrainian artifacts in two Russian museums based on open Russian resources. Artifacts are the most diverse, ceramic and precious, and date back to the Before Christ era.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

                The Guardian<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                The Guardian, a British daily newspaper, publishes data-driven journalism and has been publishing data journalism for over a decade. The editorial office produces a lot of material, visualizations, and forecasts on various planet\u2019s topic. Their articles are not published so often, but they are all very meaningful and high-quality, complying with all the ethical norms of data journalism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

                For example, one interesting visualization, Abortion deserts, is a map of abortion availability in the US after the US Supreme Court struck down federal abortion rights in June. The purpose of this visualization is to visually contextualize how far women would have to travel, i.e. to indicate how inconvenient a path women would have to travel to get to the nearest clinic where abortions are performed. Using confidential clinic location data, the editors mapped the distance from each US county to the nearest available clinic and plotted the average increase in distance for each state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

                The Financial Times<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                The Financial Times is one of the world’s leading business news organizations, recognized internationally for its authority, integrity and accuracy. The FT’s team of reporters, statisticians, illustrators, cartographers, designers and developers collaborate with colleagues in our newsrooms, using graphics and data to find, research and explain stories. They categorize their articles into: Visual investigations, Visual stories, Explore the latest data, Evidence-based opinion, Datawatch, Science explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

                Since the recent global problems, we have faced inflation. The Financial Times has developed an Inflation and interest rates tracker to show the average reader how inflation affects his country and him. The FT’s Global Inflation and Interest Rate Tracker provides regularly updated visual information on consumer price inflation and central bank rates around the world. In the chart, you can select your country and see the factors influencing policymakers’ borrowing cost decisions, showing how central banks have responded to rising prices with synchronized interest rate hikes.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

                The team also created an animation of how inflation has swept the world with the annual % change in consumer price indices. Although inflation has eased from its peak in most countries, many policymakers warn that the last leg of the path to the central banks’ target \u2014 which is 2 percent in most advanced economies \u2014 will be the hardest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

                Explore More With PRNEWS.IO<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

                Creating quality data-driven content and joining the data journalism community is only half the battle. Making the whole world know about you is a complete set. PRNEWS.IO is a platform that aims to support your content with posts and articles about you from other influencers and well-known sources. We ensure that your well-researched, data-driven articles get proper visibility across platforms, thus increasing your exposure. To plunge into the world of media with us – contact us!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                Read more:<\/p>\n\n\n\n