Economic Outlook

This graphic ran on the USA Today web site. While it doesn’t have a date that it was created or posted, it does list the source of the information as HIS Global Insight. Barbara Hansen and Juan Thomassie are credited with creating the graphic.

One of the strengths of this graphic is the way it moves. I found myself clicking through the different indicators to see it. Without the movement, I’m not sure I would have been interested enough in the information to go through each indicator. Another strength of the graphic is that it does a good job comparing the HIS Global Insight Economic Outlook Index to the separate indicators. The bar graph is an easy visual tool to help viewers quickly grasp the general concept.

The information graphic is trying to show the economic outlook by comparing the GDP to its 11 component indicators. The interactive bar graph provides data from 2002 to the present in each. While I understand what this information graphic is trying to convey, I don’t know enough about the GDP to truly understand all this graphic. If the creators intended for this graphic to inform the average viewer, they should have included more explanations of the GDP and indicators.

For example, each indicator has something similar to a definition to explain it, and the creators did a great job of explaining “what it means” to the economy. However, I’m not entirely sure if the bottom bar graph that shows these indicators is a completely separate thing from the top GDP graph, or if the GDP graph is a composite of all 11 indicators, or if the GDP represents the “economic forecast” and the bottom graph shows the reality. Again, if the creators wanted this graphic to appeal to and explain information to the average viewer, they should have made it a little clearer to those of us who don’t have much of an economic background.

The design of the graphic is effective and helps viewers visually understand the overall concept. The bar graph was a smart decision to use when discussing amounts. It’s very easy to see the yellow bars above 0 show growth and the red bars below 0 show a drop in percentage. It’s also very easy to visualize how much or how little growth occurred from one year to the next with the bar graph.

The graphic is interactive in that viewers can click on each of the 11 indicators to see the definition and 8-year trend of each. The interactivity is simple to use and easy to understand.