“Journalism In the Age of Data” is a very informative documentary on using graphic design elements to visualize data and how it relates to journalism.
The researches from IBM explain that it is important to add visuals to data so that it is easier for people to understand. They explain that this is because half of our brain is hardwired for visualization. By using visual data in journalism, it allows for people to view the data in context and comparing the data to other data sets or the annotations that accompany it. This allows the reader to make their own interpretations or to form their own opinion to what they are viewing and how they process it. However, through usability testing, users prefer a story to accompany the visual data. If there isn’t a story then users may become frustrated or too lazy to interpret the data.
A good practice in using visual data in journalism is to use the “martini glass” method. Imagine a martini glass is on its side. The martini glass method explains that the user is guided in a standard linear fashion through a story as if being guided through the glass stem. The bulb of the glass then widens out and this is the part in which the information graphic is utilized. The bulb represents a wealth of information that didn’t need to be explained in full detail within the story. To have a good information graphic, interactivity is key. The info graphic should be easy enough for the user to start at any place of the graphic without reading the story and interpret the information in the manner in which they decide.
This documentary also explains the new era of visual data, or infographics, and how more graphic design elements are being used and how creativity is key. It was pointed out that strange, unconventional infographics are the ones that are the most visually appealing and award winning. It was also essentially explained how media convergence is being utilized to animate infographics. Sound, motion graphics, text, and video are being used to bring infographics to life to give an alternative way to consume the data. This can be seen in “The Crisis of Credit“. This story explains credit in it’s simplest form. Or if you want to view something that is a little more entertainining and provides a great example of animating an infographic through media convergence, you should check out “Vampire Energy“. Vampire Energy takes this infographic and animates it. 
It is important to learn more about infographics in journalism because it is an easy way to give a lot of data in an easy to use format. Infographics is a great way to supplement journalism.