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Part II. Storytelling in the Information Age | 73
provided and the territorial representations of partner organizations. The
right-hand column provides further details. Such data narratives usually
summarize the reports of organizations and companies on what they have
achieved over a period of time and the resources they have mobilized
to achieve their aims. The United Nations Office for Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs communicates the results of humanitarian action in
the form of dashboards”. As there is a lot of information and context in one
interface, they avoid tautology (ie., mentioning the same thing twice but in
different forms) at the visual and linguistic level and aim for a clear, concise
visual and linguistic presentation.
The most common types of dashboard-type DDS are reports, peer reviews,
and internal organizational analysis through which companies evaluate their
revenues and expenses, the functioning of their departments, and marketing
visualizations. When developing a narrative framework, organizations take
into account the prior knowledge and value preferences of the target group
(Sejal, 2019).
The visualization of DDS can be compared to the visualization of a comic
book, as it consists of sequences. The number of internal fields on a page
is four or nine, but often there is only one visual element on the virtual
canvas. Text information is arranged in text bubbles or columns, as in a
comic strip. In contrast to the continuity of film narrative, comic books are
sequential. The information in the fields appears in separate units, which
are logically, spatially, or temporally separated. Each segment visualizes the
most significant connections. Similarly, the DDS analyses visualize the most
relevant data contexts. Maps and diagrams represent spatial-structural data
(such as epidemiological data, crime statistics, or housing prices) while flow
charts are adequate visual representations for illustrating temporal-causal
data (such as population trends or changes in averages) (Tversky, 2018).
The visual elements on a dashboard or infographic are complemented by
verbal elements similarly to the forms of communication used in comic books.
Storytelling is achieved through texts and visual forms of communication.
Visualizations that directly or indirectly represent the author's explanations
and interpretations often make use of selection and visual highlighting to focus
the reader’s attention on the relevant aspects. These types of visualizations
present the interpretation in a header or footer, highlighting the gist and
indicating sequencing (Thudt et al, 2018).
Graphical representations of data —- whether in the form ofa chart, cluster,
map or timeline — are based on the basic concepts of proximity, centrality, and
direction. Proximity allows for visual grouping, centrality for highlighting,
and upward or downward directions show positive or negative trends. By
varying the size and using bright colors, the importance of certain elements
can be highlighted. Lines are conventional tools to express a relationships
» https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/en/infographics