Idea Lab

Visualizing 10 Years of Violence Against Journalists in Afghanistan

by Paul Goodman
2010 Knight News Challenge Winner

Internews and Nai, an Afghan media advocacy organization, have collected hundreds of reports of threats, intimidation, and violence faced by journalists in Afghanistan. We recently announced a new site, data.nai.org.af, which features 10 years of these reports. While Nai's data previously resided in spreadsheets, the new site allows the public to access hundreds of reports through visualizations and to download it directly. With this site we're raising the profile of media freedom in a country often characterized as among the most dangerous in the world for journalists. A screenshot of data.nai.org.af. The site is packed with functionality that allows visitors...

• July 28, 2011
• comments

How TileMill Improved Ushahidi Maps to Protect Children in Africa

by Paul Goodman
2010 Knight News Challenge Winner

In May I worked with Plan Benin to improve its Violence Against Children (VAC) reporting system. The system uses FrontlineSMS and Ushahidi to collect and visualize reports of violence against children. Ushahidi develops open-source software for information collection, visualization and interactive mapping. While in Benin, I was frustrated by the lack of local data available through Google Maps, Yahoo, and even OpenStreetMap -- the three mapping applications Ushahidi allows administrators to use without customization. While these mapping services are great for places rich in geographic data, many places -- like Benin and other countries in the developing world -- are...

• July 11, 2011
• comments