The Politics of Data Visualisations

We are witnessing a proliferation of data visualisations. However, we have little understanding of this trend and its impacts. What are data visualisers responding to? Are they driven by a need to make complex data more digestible for policymakers or the general public? Is there a drive to visualise all types of data or is there only a drive to visualise certain types of data that are deemed relevant? In which case, what forces shape what data is made visible in the first place? Taking a critical stance on the use of data visualisations, we want to provoke a reflection and consideration of what forms of knowledge, and epistemologies more broadly, are privileged in a world that is increasingly preoccupied with datafication and data visualisations. With these thoughts in mind we ask, what impact does data visualisation have on policy? Is this a particularly effective way to convey data or are we being swept up in a trend that may not be conveying our data in the ways we understand?