Friday, September 6, 2019

Infographics gallery by Chile's El Mercurio

El Mercurio, one of leading national newspapers in Chile, collects some of its infographics in this gallery. They seem to be mostly adapted from their print edition, so interaction is minimal. Interestingly, I think that this plays in their favor, not against them: the amount of information each project presents isn't overwhelming.

Some infographics are pieces about local fauna or culture, but the most appealing are the ones tied to news events, such as the creation of a new province in the country or those about subjects of local relevance, such as a ranking of universities or the expansion of the international airport. I think it's easy to find information about, say, a famous historical painter on Wikipedia, so what visual journalists could try to do instead is to figure out what worries their audiences, or matters the most to them, and cover it. Particularly nowadays, when newsroom resources are decreasing and readers' attention is scattered.

Regardless, there's good work here. And some of these projects look even better in their original print form. See some pages.