“Comment is free,” wrote Guardian editor CP Scott in 1921, “but facts are sacred”.  This truism kicks off the Guardian’s new e-book on data journalism.  The short book, written by Simon Rogers and available for $3.99 at Amazon and iBooks, is a resource we’ve found extremely helpful in understanding data journalism; why it works and why it doesn’t.  To a non-profit, data journalists are key to the process of getting your results out to the people who both want and need them. The more I understand how data journalism works and how data journalists think, the more effectively I can communicate the results of our work with non-profits.

For non-profits, two of the most important “10 things you will learn in this book” are: “looks can be everything” and “It’s (still) all about stories”.  As I work with non-profit organizations to understand their data and to disseminate their results, these two ideas continue to play centre stage.  Standing in the way of effectiveness and impact is the divide between the people who understand how to analyze complex data and those who want to understand what that data says. The more I distill from experience, the clearer I see the two things that can close that gap:

1. Good design.  Use types of plots and charts that are charismatic and intuitive, not necessarily the most complex or technically correct.  Pay more attention to colours.  The psychology of learning shows us that this really matters. And don’t make stuff up.

2. Carefully considered communication style.  If it’s a complex analysis, tell it as a story.  A multilevel regression output is mind-numbing to most people.  The same results illustrated through a scenario can draw people’s attention and understanding and actually change policy.  A new piece of preliminary data, however, might work best as a simple percentage or number in a sentence.  Form needs to follow function.  After all, a good piece of statistical communication is often an affectional ordering of results.