Before I jump into data storytelling for regular folks, let me introduce this newsletter to you!
I’ve been doing online courses here on LinkedIn Learning (previously Lynda.com) for about six years now. And I was thrilled when LinkedIn approached me to do a recurring series in addition to my one-off courses. I decided to title this course a “Lesson and Listen” series because I wanted it to be like a TV show with a lesson on a theme and an interview with an expert about that theme. It’s been going for about a year now and I absolutely love producing it.
Now LinkedIn has asked me to launch this newsletter highlighting the content, drawing attention to the themes I’ve been covering and the amazing interviewees I’ve had the honor of hosting. I really hope you enjoy this content as much as I’ve enjoyed creating it. And I look forward to your comments and questions!
And if you subscribe to this newsletter, you’ll be notified every two weeks when a new episode is released – so make sure you sign up!
OK, on to the lesson!
As the first theme for this series, I decided to dive right in and focus on something that affects a very large audience and that is sometimes neglected in data visualization training: creating content for a general audience. There are particular challenges with creating content for a broad and non-expert audience and yet it’s the type of content that is created more than anything else – whether by journalists or in business presentations or government reports.
This lesson focuses on that last category – communicating with government data in a way that is accessible to normal humans, not just expert bureaucrats! I focus here on how the use of language, the organization of arguments, and data visualization best practices can assure your content is accessible to a general audience.
There is no one more qualified to talk to on this subject than Neil Halloran, the creator of the amazingly popular and incredibly well-done The Fallen of WWII. Here’s our conversation:
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This article was originally published on LinkedIn.