Thread by @nytimes

New Delhi has some of the world’s most polluted air. But how harmful it is can depend on how wealthy you are.

@dwtkns explains how The New York Times documented how much polluted air two children from different backgrounds were exposed to in one day.
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The resulting story aimed to strike a balance between science and journalism. It used hard measurements to back up more traditional, on-the-ground reporting to take a visual look at how an often invisible threat affects two children’s lives.
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The team included @dwtkns, a Times graphics editor, and involved more than a dozen journalists working closely with @gettleman, The Times’s South Asia bureau chief. nyti.ms/3nNT5d1

With two videography teams and portable air monitors, we measured the pollution that Monu, 13, and Aamya, 11, were exposed to moment-by-moment, showing them in parallel as they went about a normal day. nyti.ms/3nNT5d1

From the start of their day, Dec. 3 of last year, the contrasts in exposure were striking. Aamya was driven to school in an air conditioned car. Monu, from a less wealthy family, rode his bike through the smog. nyti.ms/3nNT5d1

The children’s schools offered more contrast: Monu’s was outdoors under a busy and polluted highway; Aamya’s was indoors at a school with air filters. nyti.ms/3nNT5d1

At home, Monu’s mother cooked meals outdoors over an open flame. Aamya’s family employed a cook. All the while, we measured the pollution in the air to document differences in the kids’ exposure. nyti.ms/3nNT5d1

The results were telling: Monu was exposed to about four times as much pollution as Aamya on the day we were with them, a disparity that could have dire consequences for his health if it continued throughout his life.
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