USA Today Snapshots

USA Today runs an ongoing graphic called “Snapshots.” These are “easy-to-read statistical graphics that present information on various issues and trends in a visually appealing way.” There are four different categories for the snapshots: news, sports, money, and life. Each category has 20 different snapshot graphics at any given time. Each snapshot gives credit to the USA Today reporters who created it; each snapshot also lists the source for where the particular statistic for that snapshot originated. A new snapshot is posted to the website each weekday.

One thing I love about this information graphic is that there are so many different snapshots and they’re divided into categories based. Each graphic is simple to understand and visually appealing. The snapshots don’t provide a lot of information, but focuses on one key statistic and what it means.

Each snapshot conveys the statistic in a visually appealing way, although most of the artwork could be considered chart junk. This particular chart junk does not detract from the understanding of the graphic; it provides a visual incentive for viewers to spend a minute with the statistic. Another thing I like about these snapshots is that they also have a secondary statistic listed off to the side of the graphic. The secondary stat has a similar topic to the main statistic, but gives additional information. These stats are written out rather than represented visually, but it’s a nice contrast to the main statistic.

Each snapshot conveys something different. There’s a Life snapshot on losing weight to fit into jeans, a Money snapshot on how the economy affects Halloween spending, a Sports snapshot on how the Chicago Marathon has grown, a News snapshot on flu vaccinations, and many more. The wide variety of topics means these snapshots will appeal to a wide variety of people. Everyone who finds this graphic will take a few minutes looking over the information; the appeal for the snapshots is widespread.

I don’t think any context should be added to these snapshots. The strength of these graphics lies in their simplicity; adding more information would take away from that.