Thread by @nytimes

Visual stories can often express what words alone can't. When information is complex or scarce, reported graphics illuminate.

In 2020, they offered what was essential: scale. How big? How bad? How many? Here’s some of what @nytgraphics published. nyti.ms/3na7tva

In January, we published our first global virus tracker.

“At the early stage, we combed through Chinese government websites and social media accounts every day, and did our own calculations to get a fuller picture of what was happening," @jwf825 said. nyti.ms/3ey6pxs

Later, we published our U.S. virus tracker.

“At first, we entered each case into a spreadsheet, which grew too large when we reached about 40,000 cases. So we built a database fed by hundreds of scrapers as well as manual reporting," said @SarahAlmukhtar. nyti.ms/2UEfMUy

“Toward the end of March, unemployment claims were so historically staggering that they called out for an unprecedented design solution. It was Chief Creative Officer Tom Bodkin’s idea to play this so strikingly on A1.” — Guilbert Gates nyti.ms/3aYtWZG

We showed the scale of wildfires.

“To animate the fires, we used a data source that took measurements every 10 minutes. That allowed us to capture the intensity of these enormous and fast-moving fires in a way that I hadn’t seen before.” — @scottreinhard nyti.ms/2X1RwfD

We examined Trump’s swamp.

“Never underestimate a hand-curated, deeply reported database. There is a lot of data to scrape off the internet, but there is value in painstakingly piecing together information; it can lead to gold.” — @karenyourish nyti.ms/3n1eJJG

We paid tribute to the Space Station.

“This was one of the few happy, hopeful datasets I worked with. I used design to highlight the lighthearted tone of the article: bright colors and a glittering, starry background in the web version.” — @eleanor_lutz nyti.ms/3o5UxYa

And we analyzed a shifting U.S. electorate.

“We spent a great deal of time refining the arrow style to not imply motion in physical space and better show a movement of ideology.” — @TroyEricG nyti.ms/35ZvUEQ

And we examined an explosion in Beirut.

“It was heartbreaking to watch videos captured by first responders moments before the warehouse exploded — a tragedy that could have been avoided.” — @singhvianjali nyti.ms/3pHfKrM

See more some of the best visual storytelling from The New York Times that helped readers understand an unprecedented year, from @nytgraphics.

https://twitter.com/nytgraphics/status/1344703594029854720