Top 100 Countries

This information graphic appeared on Newsweek.com. Nowhere on the graphic or the page does it say when this graphic was created or posted (I saw it on Monday, September 20), but it does specify that it is a “Newsweek study” and that Thomas Klepl created the interactive design and programming, and Adam Clarkson wrote the creative lead. This shows that there was not one informational architect in charge of the graphic. Instead, the parts of the graphic were divided into a reporter and a designer.

One of the big strengths of this graphic is the column on the far right titled, “How to use this interactive.” This how-to list, gives five bulleted tips on how to use and understand the information in this graphic. Without these tips, the graphic would have confused me and I wouldn’t have known all the different types of information the graphic included. The weakness of the graphic is that the creators didn’t explain how they scored each of the countries. For instance, the Overall Education score for the United States is 89.44. The graphic also specifies that the Literacy Rate is 99.0% and the average years of schooling is 15.8. However, the graphic does not say how the score of 89.44 was figured. This failure to explain how Newsweek decided on the overall scores lessens the credibility of the information found in the graphic.

The information graphic is trying to convey the 100 best countries in the world based on education, health, quality of life, economic dynamism and political environment. The graphic also makes it easy to compare the scores of one country to another. It’s easy to compare low-income countries to high-income countries and small populations to large populations. The graphic even makes it easy to compare countries based on their geographic locations.

The graphic really needs to include the scoring system Newsweek used to create this graphic so viewers can truly understand how these scores came about rather than looking at what seem to be random numbers. Another thing that would enhance this informational graphic is a better way to see all of the scores and ratings for one country at the same time. Right now, if you click on a country in the interactive graphic, it highlights each overall score on the graphic, but it does not bring up the overall scores and information.

This graphic is interesting for people to compare places they have lived or want to live. There are people from all over the world who have commented on this graphic either praising the high ranking of their country or complaining the low ranking of their country. I think it’s also important to note that some people who commented also recognized that it’s very difficult to rate many items that depend on personal preference.

The design of this graphic is pretty effective with a lot of information in one place. A few additions (separate graphic for each country and explanation of the scoring system) would make this design even better. The explanation on the right of how to use this graphic is essential to viewer understanding. It makes the graphic easy to use and understand.