8 tips to make better charts
Think of each chart as a single sentence. …
At Quartz, we use a lot of charts. And, unlike many newsrooms, we train all our journalists to create them rather than relying solely on a specialized team. We think anyone can make great charts with a little bit of guidance and practice—here is some of the advice we give to our journalists.
Know what are you trying to show
Before you get to chart-making be sure you know what your goal is. You’re using your charts to communicate information. What are you trying to convey? Try to be more specific than say “Healthcare jobs are rising in the US.” Think more like, “Healthcare jobs are rising faster than other major industries.”