The Network of a Lifetime is a longform, data-driven feature story on the coming regulation changes to net neutrality in the United States. I completed the project as part of my final dissertation at the MA Digital Journalism program at Goldsmiths, University of London. Examples of visual elements and data visualizations are below. View the full website to read the piece here. For in depth explanation of my thought process behind the project (and what I learned through it), read this blog post.
Visual Highlights
I started my research process by compiling a moodboard to set the design tone of the piece.
Static charts were created using the same color template. Charts made in Tableau and annotated using Adobe Illustrator.
Interactive charts were made using D3.js.
I also tried to add visual elements throughout the story that would help guide the user through the piece. For example, this vertical timeline plots events as the user scrolls through. It's also fully mobile responsive.
I created a series of maps showing internet coverage in major cities using QGIS (and annotated in Illustrator). The data comes from shapefiles downloaded from the National Broadband Map.
Throughout the piece, I introduced custom pullout boxes that explained complex topics. I called these "context boxes" as they offered the reader more context and information if they were unsure what a certain phrase or concept meant. This was also an effort to reduce hyperlinking off the page -- more context could be given (with optional additional reading) while reducing the user bounce rate.
