A picture tells a thousand words, so it is fitting that visuals are useful in journalism to help tell the story. With big data, predictive analytics, and data science growing rapidly these days, the ability to use data effectively in journalism will only become more important. Papers like the New York Times already have been extensively including interactive content to help readers understand stories. Take a look at this detailed map of what happened in Ferguson. Or this county-level breakdown of civilian purchases of military equipment. This has caught the attention of investors. CartoDB, a startup that allows people to make interactive maps with uploaded data, has raised $7 million from various sources. With the competition between publications for readers, those that can effectively use tools like CartoDB will have an edge in producing better content.

Even big name websites like FiveThirtyEight use tools to improve their reader experience. FiveThirtyEight uses Chartbuilder by Quartz to create beautiful graphs. There is even a simple outline version to create graphs in seconds. D3.js is another popular option for visualization. Whatever tool is used, this trend is sure to continue and play a key role in informing the public.