Class Jornalismo Visual e de Dados

Visual and data journalism is experiencing an exponential growth in newsrooms of all types of media. The CU aims to provide students with the necessary tools to research, compile and analyse quantitative data, framing it in a journalistic narrative.

1 State of the Art

1.1 Evolution and specialization – from “Computer-assisted reporting” to “Journo-coders”

1.2 Interactivity and data - benchmark cases

1.3 “Precision journalism” and the importance of formulating a hypothesis in data journalism

2. Interviewing a database

2.1 Numbers as a way of telling journalistic narratives

2.2 Interactivity in dynamic media – the power of hyperpersonalization

2.3 News and statistics values ¿¿– a conflict or an ally?

2.4 Building an hypothesis and design a methodology

2.5 Statistical concepts

2.6 From data to formats – from inverted pyramid to funnel narrative

2.7 Types of data and search for sources; data checking

3. Data analysis

3.1 Data cleaning and analysis

3.2 Analysis in a spreadsheet, R programming language, web scraping, extracting data from pdf

4. Visual storytelling

4.1. International and national benchmark

4.2. Visual strategies for data stories

4.3. Data visualization: literacy, production tools, web development and machine learning

Teaching methodologies will include a demonstration component of some of the best work in visual and data journalism. Each case will be deconstructed to understand the collection methodologies, treatment and graphic display of the respective data.

The continuos assessment will consist of:

1. One assignment of a practical nature, whose global assessment will represent 25% of the final grade
2. Two other assignments:
   1. A group critical reflection: students will choose a visual and data journalism narrative and look at the sources used, statistical indicators, methodological options and narrative structure (20% of the final grade)
   2. An individual assignment that includes the process of producing a data-driven narrative: methodology development, data collection, analysis, production of visualizations and/or other interactive narrative elements (55% of the final grade
3. The three components mentioned above represent 95% of the final grade; the remaining 5% will avaluate participation in classes

• Bounegru, L., & Gray, J. (2021). The Data Journalism Handbook: Towards a Critical Data Practice Amsterdam University Press.
• Cairo, A. (2013). The Functional Art - An Introduction To Information Graphics And Visualization. New Riders.
• Felle, T., Mair, J., Radcliffe, D., eds. (2015). Data Journalism: Inside the global future. Abramis Publishing.
• Garcia, R, Rosa, M. J., Barbosa, L. (2016). Que Número É Este? Um Guia Sobre Estatísticas Para Jornalistas. Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos.
• Gray, J., Chambers, L., & Bounegru, L. (2012). The data journalism handbook: How journalists can use data to improve the news. O'Reilly Media.
• Huff, D. (2013). Como Mentir com a Estatística. Gradiva.
• Miller, C. (2016). Getting Started with Data Journalism. Writing data stories in any size newsroom.
• Rogers, S. (2013). Facts Are Sacred. Faber & Faber.
• Usher, N. (2016). Interactive Journalism - Hackers, Data and Code. University of Illinois Press