Story Review

I find it very very hard to remain calm when I come across something as polished and well-presented as this interactive package of the Los Angeles Times‘ coverage of drug wars in Mexico.

The “project” (as is the LA Times jargon for such things) has four impressive sections. The It’s A War bit serves as the homepage for the whole package. On the face of things it’s just an intro serving to highlight the various features. Notice however that most of the numbers are bigger than the rest of the text — they update in real-time as new information is fed into the database. Not that this is so cool in itself, but it is a sign of the tremendous attention to detail that makes the final product shine so bright.

The interactive map not only shows the number of drug-related deaths by state (and you can use the sliders to narrow or widen the time frame you want to be looking at), but also features a list of the thugs who control each region, complete with pictures and bios. Mouse over a hoodlum: and the state they terrorise gets highlighted.

The multimedia gallery contains a large, but not overwhelming, number of videos, individual photographs and slideshows. The navigation is very smooth.

Users are of course invited to comment, and Spanish-language comments are explicitly welcomed. While other newspapers are still pondering whether they should answer to comments, the LA Times has devoted a special section (Video Q&A) where the editor of the project and some of the journalists involved answer questions raised by users.

If this was all, it would still have been a worthy addition to the inventory of extraordinary projects of the LA Times‘ data desk. But it is not. Scroll down a bit or click on the Complete Series button and you will be brought to a list detailing every story, video, photograph or interactive graphic published as part of the Mexico under siege project since June 2008. You’ve got various options to order the list and, thanks to the great job done by the LA Times‘ team of “librarians”, you can filter the material by topic or location.

A slew of open-source software applications (Django, PostgreSQL, MochiKit and PyAMF) has been used in the project.

The LA Times is one of the leading newspapers in computer-assisted reporting and this brilliant piece of “data-journalism meets old-school reporting” is yet another proof.

VERDICT

Originality: 4 (out of 5)

The only reason this does not get a 5 is that the LA Times has set the bar so high with some of its previous projects that we’ve come to expect jaw-dropping things from them.

Presentation: 5 (out of 5)

As polished as could be. The photographs are great and the videos, especially those in the Video Q&A section, have the production values of a TV broadcast.

Journalistic value: 5 (out of 5)

This is the kind of journalism people want to see from names like the LA Times. It is so good I can’t believe they are giving it free.

Overall: 4.95 (out of 5)

Outstanding.

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Screenshot by revecca.

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I’ve stumbled upon another great interactive feature by the New York Times — about the birds of Belize.

I love birds as much as the next guy… meaning I would only very rarely read a two-page article on them. But I love beautiful pictures and hearing the sounds those birds make almost made me feel like I was in the jungle with them. (Seriously, I went to the zoo yesterday and heard fewer birdsongs there; the birds from the NYT’s pictures felt more real.)

This is not the first time the NYT has done something good and it is interesting to note that great storytelling alone seems to not be able to rid struggling newspaper companies of their problems. Whatever the outcome of the current crisis in newspaper publishing, as a reader I hope this kind of journalism survives.

VERDICT

Originality: 2 (out of 5)

Nothing new here really.

Presentation: 5 (out of 5)

What this piece lacks in originality, it more than makes up in presentation. A very well wrapped package includes magnificent pictures, sounds that make you feel like the animals are in your room, a map and a lengthy text piece for those with an unquenchable thirst for bird knowledge.

Journalistic value: 4 (out of 5)

Rather than have pictures and sounds simply support the text, the NYT has created a package of equally impressive features, each of which could stand alone.

Overall: 4.3 (out of 5)

Impressive.

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Photo by Chris Diewlad

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I could use your help. Contact me if you’d like to suggest a story worth reviewing, become a reviewer or get involved in any other way.