Seven things I learned about data visualisation (Guardian Masterclass)

The Guardian datablog is an international reference when it comes to data journalism, so I jumped at the chance to spend a day with the former head of data visualisation (Adam Frost) and head of creative (Tobias Sturt) from the Guardian’s Digital Agency at a workshop on 22 November. Adam and Tobias now both work for Graphic, a digital agency that specialises in data visualisation and infographics.

Mapping the EU digital public sphere(s)

As I have tried to argue in previous posts on this blog, digital media are enabling the emergence of an online public sphere (or spheres) where issues related to the EU are debated across national and linguistic borders.

But how can we make sense of the tangled mass of conversations that are taking place on different platforms?  I think that social network analysis is one technique that can offer some potentially interesting insights.

Lessons in storytelling from Jung Chang

Bestselling international author, Jung Chang, was the closing keynote speaker at a conference I helped to organize in Brussels on 9-10 December 2013.  Entitled “Telling the Story”, the event was a gathering of around 800 European communication professionals.

Sharing stories about “Europe in My Region”

Winners of the 2013 “Europe in My Region” photo competition with Commissioner Johannes Hahn

It was a pleasure to meet Ourania from Greece, Joseph from Malta, György and Tünde from Hungary during the European Week of Regions and Cities in Brussels.  They are the four lucky winners of the 2013 “Europe in My Region” photo competition.  Ourania, Joseph, György and Tünde came to Brussels on 9 October to collect their prizes from Commissioner Johannes Hahn and to share the stories behind their winning photos.

How can we tell better stories about the EU?

Microsoft’s Chief Storyteller

I met this week with Steve Clayton, “chief storyteller” at Microsoft.

A few years ago, Steve was working at the company’s offices in Reading.  His job involved talking with startups and small tech companies based in London.  Many of the people he met viewed Microsoft as dull and conservative.  This clashed with Steve’s sense from within the company that a lot of his colleagues were actually doing some pretty cool and innovative things.

Time flies …!

The second half of my fellowship at the University of Washington has been racing by!  Here are a few of the things that have been keeping me busy during the last week.

Washington State social media network

I travelled down to Olympia to speak with a group of government officials who are working on digital media at the state, local and city level.  Just like the European Commission, Washington State has a social media network that allows people from different government departments to exchange experiences.

Ten ways to build digital engagement

I had the opportunity this week to rub shoulders with some of the key figures in the digital media scene from Seattle and further afield at the in-nw 2013 conference (“Current and future landscape of social engagement”).  I’m grateful to the team who run the University of Washington’s Master of Communication in Digital Media for allowing me to come along with them to the conference.

We heard some pretty impressive success stories from companies (Starbucks, Coca Cola, Toyota, EA Sports …) that have amassed millions of social media followers and developed new ways of engaging with their customers using digital tools.  But, beyond the different examples of good practice, what struck me the most was the similarity in the dynamics that seem to be at play today across a wide range of sectors: