storytelling with data podcast

Why don’t we use triangles in charts more often? Can design considerations come before we have the data? Do we take data visualization too seriously? Author, speaker, and data literacy advocate Neil Richards raises (and occasionally answers) these and other questions in his new book, Questions in Dataviz: a Data-Driven Process for Data Visualization. In this episode, Neil stops by the podcast to talk about the value of creativity, personal passion projects, experimentation in data visualization, and whether dataviz can change the world.  related links: Follow Neil: Twitter | Website | Tableau Public (portfolio) Book: Questions in Dataviz Podcast: Alli Torban’s Dataviz Today  Project: Makeover Monday SWD challenge: https://community.storytellingwithdata.com/challenges Project: Viz for Social Good Project: Andy Kirk’s The Seinfeld Chronicles  Viz: US county hexmap Viz: Pet ownership in the UK Project: Data Visualization Society Project: Information is Beautiful Awards Get sample content & order storytelling with you: storytellingwithyou.com University instructor resources: storytelling with data.com/university SWD YouTube channel: storytellingwithdata.com/youtube

Cole shares a number of data visualization and communication questions that could be answered simply with the word, “Don’t!” From breaking axes and presenting boxplots to unfamiliar audiences, to providing unsolicited feedback to a colleague, and more—you’ll learn why generally not to take these actions, plus hear ideas on what you might do instead. related links: Video: the ins & outs of boxplots Video: transform the teleprompter slide Blog post: how many words should I put on my slide? Blog post: unsolicited feedback Get sample content & order storytelling with you: storytellingwithyou.com Nov 17 virtual workshop: storytellingwithdata.com/workshops (use discount code: PODCAST10) University instructor resources: storytelling with data.com/university SWD YouTube channel: storytellingwithdata.com/youtube

Cole sits down with husband, Randy Knaflic, for a fun chat about her new book, storytelling with you: plan, create, and deliver a stellar presentation. They discuss why building capability and confidence presenting is especially important for those in technical roles, overcoming challenges communicating to mixed audiences, navigating the writing process, and more. Tune in to learn what jazz improvisation has in common with presenting and gain appreciation for the art of the introduction—including specific steps you can take to craft the story of you. related links: Attend an upcoming storytelling with data workshop in London or virtually Order storytelling with you Get sample content from Cole’s new book

As anyone who has ever participated in a fantasy league can tell you, the most fun part of the whole experience is drafting your team. We took that idea to heart, and imagined, “What if, instead of drafting professional athletes, we did a fantasy draft of chart and graph types?” The data storytellers at SWD and premium members of our online community recently did just that, taking part in a (mostly!) friendly competition to build themselves the strongest possible roster of methods for visualizing information. What chart type was chosen first overall? Did anybody pick pie charts? And, who do YOU think wound up with the best team? Listen to find out! related links: Book: Preview and pre-order the new book, storytelling with you  Workshop: Register for an upcoming SWD workshop  Interactive: The Gyllenhaal Experiment at pudding.cool Chart Guides and additional info: area graph | bar chart | bullet graph | bump chart | choropleth map | dot plot | heatmap | histogram | isotype chart | line graph | lollipop chart | pie chart | Sankey diagram | scatterplot | slopegraph | stacked bar chart | waffle (or square area) chart | waterfall  

How can we use beauty to convey meaning, and form to guide function, in our communications? In this episode of the SWD podcast, Dr. Vidya Setlur and Bridget Cogley explore these questions with data storyteller Mike Cisneros. In their upcoming book Functional Aesthetics for Data Visualization, Vidya (the “academic”) and Bridget (the “practitioner”) explore the relationships among what we see, how we encode information, and what we mean. You’ll hear about the “bento box” model of organizing our information; how text, tone, register, and language affects our visualizations; how our relationship to food can inform what makes a communication effective; and how to go beyond “it depends” when considering the answers to challenging questions.  related links: Follow Vidya: Twitter (@vsetlur) | LinkedIn  | Tableau Research Follow Bridget: Twitter (@WindsCogley) | LinkedIn | TableauFit blog Book: Functional Aesthetics for Data Visualization Article: Honoring Kelly Martin, including the “Birdstrike Redoux” visualization Article: The Ishango bone, an early mathematical tool Paper: “The medium is the message” by Marshall McLuhan Article: “Light vision” by Margaret Livingstone (regarding isoluminance in Monet) Book: Mind in Motion by Barbara Tversky

Data storyteller Mike Cisneros sat down with Iron Viz champion, Tableau Visionary, and self-described “data jackalope” Joshua Smith to talk about how folklore—the study of how information is communicated, primarily through informal means—provides us a fascinating lens through which to examine how data visualization has evolved and continues to develop, both as a discipline and as a community of practitioners. You’ll learn how “best practices” emerge, transform and persist (or are discarded) over time, how informal communication and culture can have unexpected effects on how our work is received, the inextricable links between belief and “objective” data, and how a storyteller can position themselves to be most effective. Several folklorists were mentioned in the course of this discussion. Dan Ben-Amos defined folklore as “Artistic communication in small groups.”  Lynne S. McNeil defined it as “Informally transmitted traditional culture.”  Alan Dundes identified many forms of folklore   William Bascom specified the four functions of folklore: it lets people escape from repressions imposed upon them by society e.g.: tall tales; it validates culture, justifying its rituals and institutions to those who perform and observe them; it is a pedagogic device which reinforces morals and values and builds wit; and it is a means of applying social pressure and exercising social control Richard Bauman explored performance theory and audience evaluation  Andrea Kitta explored the strength of personal narrative  Book |  Info We Trust by RJ Andrews Project | Makeover Monday  Article | Nancy Duarte - “Like Yoda You Must Be”  Article | Lilach Manheim & Mike Cisneros - “Beyond the hook: Building information experiences for attention and engagement”  Visualization | Robert Janezic - “Music Memories” 

Recently, Cole chatted with senior data analyst Shashank Kalanithi for his YouTube channel, where he helps people break into the world of analytics. Listen to this repost of their conversation—you’ll hear Cole reflect on a wide range of topics, from why technical experts should double down on communication skills, to the ideal tech stack, to advice for undergrads, graduate students, and those transitioning into a career in data. Tune in also to be among the first to hear details about Cole’s new book! Follow Shashank’s YouTube channel Watch the original conversation Practice & exchange feedback: SWD community Article: data doesn't speak for itself Article: audience matters Article: audience, audience, audience Article: what tool should I use? Podcast: goals like Google Podcast: data viz research with Steven Franconeri

Through our workshops, we get the rare opportunity to meet thousands of people every year, across a huge variety of industries, companies, and roles. We never know what kinds of questions we’re going to be asked. In this episode, SWD storyteller Mike Cisneros highlights a few recent notable questions, ranging from chart choices, to design, to presentation. The range of topics may be broad, but the commonality among everything discussed here is that they’re answers to questions you asked. Attend an upcoming workshop: storytellingwithdata.com/workshops  (use promo code PODCAST10 for 10% off the registration fee) Hans Rosling: 200 Countries, 200 Years, 4 Minutes (BBC) Hans Rosling: The best stats you’ve ever seen (TED talk) Video: Animating data Blog: Left-aligning chart titles Blog: The right amount of detail SWD community exercise: optimize your output SWD community exercise: storyboard YOUR project ------------------- Additional voice content: Jennifer Schumi Additional music: “Destiny” by ASHUTOSH  https://www.ashutoshmusic.com/music Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en_US

How can you position yourself—and your team—to be a valued analytics consultant by your stakeholders and clients? Cole talks with Simon Rowe, the newest data storyteller on the SWD team, about his experience and tips for building productive partnerships. Tune in to hear about the journey from reactive to proactive data analytics, including practical strategies you can employ to avoid missteps, build relationships, and have greater impact in your work. Related links: Follow Simon: Twitter | LinkedIn

“I want to be able to show it and say, doesn’t that feel good? And you know what? We actually know it works well, it’s not just your intuition.” In this episode, Cole talks with Northwestern University professor and director of the Visual Thinking Lab, Dr. Steven Franconeri. Hear about research that helps us understand and harness the limits of our visual system and how it can be translated into practical terms to help you design better graphs and dashboards. Cole and Steve discuss several recent studies, how to bridge the chasm between academia and practitioners, some of the unsolved problems of data visualization, and more. Related links: Follow Steve: Twitter | LinkedIn | Faculty page The Visual Thinking Lab Journal: Psychological Science in the Public Interest Paper: The Science of Visual Data Communication: What Works, single page summary Paper: Declutter and Focus: Empirically Evaluating Design Guidelines for Effective Data Communication  Paper: Visual Arrangements of Bar Charts Influence Comparisons in Viewer Takeaways  Paper: Measures of the Benefit of Direct Encoding of Data Deltas for Data Pair Relation Perception Uncertainty: FiveThirtyEight’s 2020 Election Forecast Book: The Thinking Eye, the Seeing Brain (James Enns) Book: Visual Thinking for Design (Colin Ware) People mentioned: Lace Padilla, Jessica Hullman, Jeff Zacks, Priti Shah, Christie Nothelfer, Cindy Xiong, Matt Kay