Digging Deeper🕵️‍♀️🗺️: How visual evidence, data and design shape accountability

Hello Storybenchers!

From reconstructing disputed timelines with public video to turning raw CSV files into spinning globes, this week’s newsletter highlights how modern journalism blends reporting, verification and design. 

These stories show what happens when evidence is made visible, and why clarity, context and transparency matter more than ever. 

Let’s dive in.

Here is our featured content this week:

🕵️‍♂️📂 How an Open-Source Investigation by The Wall Street Journal Unmasked the Official Narrative of the Killing of Alex Pretti

This feature looks at how open-source investigation techniques and publicly available video evidence challenged early official accounts of Alex Pretti’s death at the hands of law enforcement. Reporters verified multiple videos and sources to reconstruct key moments, revealing discrepancies in initial statements and timelines. 

The piece illustrates how meticulous open-source work can push back against incomplete or misleading official narratives in high-profile cases. Definitely worth a read, we highly recommend it.

🌍🔄 From CSV to Spinning Sphere: How to Build a Scrollytelling Globe with D3.js

Jignxuan Nie, also whom we dearly call Chole created this tutorial that shows journalists and developers how to build a custom, scroll-driven 3D globe visualization using D3.js and CSV data. The guide walks through turning raw tabular data into an interactive globe that “spins” with narrative context as users scroll, offering a more immersive way to display geographic information. It’s aimed at storytellers looking to go beyond static maps with flexible, reusable code.

Cool Stuff Corner: What are we reading?

🔥🍳 Gas stoves and NO₂: What the Lookup Shows

This interactive form The Washington Post breaks down nitrogen dioxide pollution linked to gas stove use and offers searchable tools to let users see estimated levels in their area. It’s interesting because the story highlights how gas appliances can contribute to harmful indoor air quality and frames the issue in the context of health and environmental concerns.

🔥📸 How the fire in Hong Kong became so deadly

This New York Times interactive reconstructs a deadly high-rise fire in Hong Kong using maps, photos and video to show how the blaze spread and how emergency crews responded. The visual report walks readers through the timeline of the fire, from the initial outbreak to rescue efforts and the aftermath for displaced residents. Together, the elements offer a clear, ground-level view of how the tragedy unfolded and why it proved so devastating.

From the Vault🏛️

🗺️📍 Try This Tool to Map Protests for Local News

This tutorial introduces Protest Mapper, a simple tool that helps journalists find recent protests in a specified area and create embeddable maps for reporting. Designed with local newsrooms in mind, the tool pulls from aggregated data so reporters can visualize protest locations and trends without building mapping systems from scratch. It’s intended to give context to local demonstrations and connect them to broader movements.

🧠📖 Finding Humanity: How Josh Neufeld Uses Comics Journalism to Form Empathic Connections

In this interview with comics journalist Josh Neufeld, we’re learning about using illustration and sequential art to tell true stories that deepen readers’ empathy for real people. Neufeld explains how he chooses subjects, researches material, scripts narratives and uses the comics form to make complex social issues more relatable and engaging. The piece highlights the unique power of comics journalism to blend factual reporting with visual storytelling.

PHOTO OF THE WEEK📷

After an Arctic blast buried Boston under about 23.2 inches of snow at Logan Airport, according to WCVB, a snowman popped up along Forsyth Way just off Northeastern’s campus. The photo was taken around 9 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 27, after the university moved classes online the day before because of hazardous conditions. It’s a small reminder that even during one of winter’s heaviest snowfalls, Bostonians still brave through the storm and create fun memories..

Send us your favorite snow activity pic and you may just see it in next week’s newsletter! 

[ 📷: @Vivica Dsouza]

That's all we've got for this week! Thanks for reading, and let us know if there's anything you'd like to see in these newsletters or in our coverage at [email protected].

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