Data Vis Dispatch, April 28: White House Correspondents’ Dinner, Chernobyl, and jazz

Welcome back to the 242nd edition of Data Vis Dispatch! Every week, we’ll be publishing a collection of the best small and large data visualizations we find, especially from news organizations — to celebrate data journalism, data visualization, simple charts, elaborate maps, and their creators.

Recurring topics this week include the White House Correspondents' Dinner, the 40th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, and jazz-playing subway trains.

The past Sunday marked the 40th anniversary of the tragic accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Various visualizations revisit the event and its impact as one of the worst nuclear disasters in history.

La Razón: <a href="https://www.larazon.es/internacional/chernobil-tiro-gracia-urss_2026042669ed64e120f315569059d529.html"><strong>Chernóbil, el tiro de gracia de la URSS</strong></a> [<em>Chernobyl: The Final Blow to the USSR</em>], April 26 — La Razón: **Chernóbil, el tiro de gracia de la URSS** [*Chernobyl: The Final Blow to the USSR*], April 26

Cabinet of Infographic Curiosities: <a href="https://attilabatorfy.substack.com/p/the-atlas-of-the-chernobyl-disaster?r=1tll22&utm_medium=ios&triedRedirect=true"><strong>The atlas of the Chernobyl disaster</strong></a>, April 24 — Cabinet of Infographic Curiosities: **The atlas of the Chernobyl disaster**, April 24

The shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner has sparked numerous analyses examining the incident and the security flaws that led to it.

The Wall Street Journal: <a href="https://www.wsj.com/us-news/trump-shooting-correspondents-dinner-security-e1483305?mod=e2twg"><strong>The Simple Security Flaws That Exposed Trump to Another Gunman</strong></a>, April 26 — The Wall Street Journal: **The Simple Security Flaws That Exposed Trump to Another Gunman**, April 26

CNN: <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2026/04/26/politics/map-white-house-correspondents-dinner-trump-vis"><strong>Visualizing the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting incident in maps</strong></a>, April 26 — CNN: **Visualizing the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting incident in maps**, April 26

The New York Times: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/04/26/us/white-house-correspondents-hilton-shots.html"><strong>A Timeline of the Shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinne</strong></a>r, April 26 — The New York Times: **A Timeline of the Shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinne**r, April 26

The Washington Post: Suspect sprinted 60 feet, reached staircase to correspondents’ dinner ballroom, April 27

U.S politics is currently experiencing some changes, as Virginia voters narrowly approved a measure to redraw district lines, resulting in a new House map favourable to Democrats.

The New York Times: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/04/21/us/politics/congress-redistricting-virginia-missouri-texas.html?unlocked_article_code=1.clA.GkRH.BdidWqky2cc6&smid=url-share"><strong>How Both Parties Are Slicing Urban Areas to Tilt the House</strong></a>, April 21 — The New York Times: **How Both Parties Are Slicing Urban Areas to Tilt the House**, April 21

The Wall Street Journal: <a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/elections/virginia-voters-approve-resolution-to-boost-democrats-in-midterms-fa77284b?mod=e2twg"><strong>Virginia Voters Narrowly Approve Measure to Boost Democrats in Midterms</strong></a>, April 22 — The Wall Street Journal: **Virginia Voters Narrowly Approve Measure to Boost Democrats in Midterms**, April 22

The New York Times: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2026/04/21/us/virginia-redistricting-election"><strong>Virginia Passes Gerrymandered House Map, Lifting Democrats’ Midterm Chances</strong></a>, April 21 — The New York Times: **Virginia Passes Gerrymandered House Map, Lifting Democrats’ Midterm Chances**, April 21

AI chatbots are becoming increasingly popular, with different models being used by both private individuals and businesses. However, the rapid growth of AI is also reshaping industries, including layoffs in the tech industry, plummeting stock prices of popular design companies, and a surge in electricity usage.

Franco Guiragossian: "Since ChatGPT's peak search interest back in October 2025, other AI chatbots have become more popular," April 22 (Bluesky)

Visual Capitalist: <a href="https://www.voronoiapp.com/technology/Which-AI-Models-Are-US-Businesses-Paying-For-8118"><strong>Which AI Models Are U.S. Businesses Paying For?</strong></a>, April 26 — Visual Capitalist: **Which AI Models Are U.S. Businesses Paying For?**, April 26

The Wall Street Journal: <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/tracking-corporate-layoffs-in-2026-784ea69f?mod=e2twg"><strong>Tracking Corporate Layoffs in 2026</strong></a>, April 27 — The Wall Street Journal: **Tracking Corporate Layoffs in 2026**, April 27

Mabu News: <a href="https://mabunews.stibee.com/p/332"><strong>🎩 개발자에 이어 디자이너까지 사냥하려는 AI</strong></a> [<em>Chart title: Changes in Figma's Stock Price Since Its IPO</em>], April 24 — Mabu News: **🎩 개발자에 이어 디자이너까지 사냥하려는 AI** [*Chart title: Changes in Figma's Stock Price Since Its IPO*], April 24

The New York Times: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/04/27/opinion/electricity-power-grid-infrastructure.html"><strong>It’s the Age of Electricity and America Isn’t Ready</strong></a>, April 27 — The New York Times: **It’s the Age of Electricity and America Isn’t Ready**, April 27

Climate change is getting even more noticeable. The famous warming stripes have been updated to reflect this. The world's largest iceberg, A23a, has almost melted away. And while high-range, affordable electric vehicles are a step in the right direction, fossil fuel companies using greenwashing tactics are not.

Ed Hawkins: "Looking for the latest warming stripes for over 1000 countries, regions and cities? #ShowYourStripes Fully updated to 2025: www.ShowYourStripes.info," April 22 (Bluesky)

The European Correspondent: <a href="https://europeancorrespondent.com/en/r/the-worlds-biggest-iceberg-is-almost-gone"><strong>The world’s biggest iceberg is almost gone</strong></a>, April 22 — The European Correspondent: **The world’s biggest iceberg is almost gone**, April 22

The New York Times: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/27/upshot/cheap-electric-cars-gas-prices.html"><strong>The Rise of the High-Range, Less Expensive E.V.</strong></a>, April 27 — The New York Times: **The Rise of the High-Range, Less Expensive E.V.**, April 27

Not-Ship: <a href="https://www.not-ship.com/doublespeak-futurewashing/"><strong>In annual reports, fossil fuel companies have a new playbook for greenwashing</strong></a>, April 22 — Not-Ship: **In annual reports, fossil fuel companies have a new playbook for greenwashing**, April 22

The war in the Middle East has resulted in a high number of recorded damages and fatalities. Additionally, satellite imagery has revealed oil spills in the region, despite imagery restrictions on much of the Middle East. Satellite images are also providing information on China's planned outpost at sea.

Bloomberg: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2026-iran-tehran-strike-damage-satellite-images/"><strong>Satellite Data Reveal Scope and Scale of US-Israeli Strikes on Iran</strong></a>, April 22 — Bloomberg: **Satellite Data Reveal Scope and Scale of US-Israeli Strikes on Iran**, April 22

EL PAÍS: <a href="https://elpais.com/internacional/2026-04-25/mapas-puentes-destruidos-y-ciudades-arrasadas-lo-que-revelan-los-datos-de-la-ofensiva-de-israel-en-libano.html?event_log=oklogin"><strong>Mapas | Puentes destruidos y ciudades arrasadas: lo que revelan los datos de la ofensiva de Israel en Líbano</strong> </a>[<em>Chart title: Fatalities since the start of Operation Epic Fury</em>], April 25 — EL PAÍS: **Mapas | Puentes destruidos y ciudades arrasadas: lo que revelan los datos de la ofensiva de Israel en Líbano** [*Chart title: Fatalities since the start of Operation Epic Fury*], April 25

CNN: <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2026/04/21/climate/iran-war-oil-spills-persian-gulf-satellite-images"><strong>Oil spills from the Iran war are visible from space</strong></a>, April 21 — CNN: **Oil spills from the Iran war are visible from space**, April 21

Bloomberg: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2026-satellite-imagery-restrictions-iran/"><strong>Where Did the Middle East Go? Satellite Imaging in the Fog of War</strong></a>, April 23 — Bloomberg: **Where Did the Middle East Go? Satellite Imaging in the Fog of War**, April 23

The New York Times: How China Is Building Its Next Outpost at Sea, April 22

We conclude this Dispatch with music: from jazz-playing subway trains to an interactive report on the most significant developments in the industry in 2025, on to a list of the 30 greatest living American songwriters according to New York Times Magazine.

The Guardian: The Crunch: Children’s TV, Cuba’s dwindling fuel supply, and dating in Singapore, April 24 (project website) Turn up the volume to enjoy some jazz tunes!

Beyond Words Studio: "An interactive report on the past 12 months in music. The biggest insights on the hottest stars, track, genres, brands and beyond. That’s a lot of data to design. So to create this digital experience for Chartmetric – who track 12 million artists around the world each year – we kept two words in mind: boldness and simplicity [...]," April 21 (LinkedIn, project website)

The New York Times Magazine: The 30 Greatest Living American Songwriters, April 27

What else we found interesting

EPIC World Foundation: "India built the world's best payments system. Every Entrepreneurial Household we spoke with has a bank account. 97% own a smartphone. So why did only 39% borrow from a bank in the past year? Why do only 2% use a digital lending app? A rational response to a system that was not designed for how these families live and work. Because these are not marginal families. They run multiple income streams. They save actively. They are strategic, resilient, and a major engine of India's growth. EH360 shows what comes next: ground-level evidence from 5,220 households across 18 states on how to design financial products that actually work for how these families earn, spend, and plan [...]," April 23 (LinkedIn, project website)

Maps Mania: <a href="https://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2026/04/data-as-art.html"><strong>Data as Art</strong></a>, April 23 (<a href="https://www.aaronkoblin.com/project/flight-patterns/"><strong>project website</strong></a>) — Maps Mania: **Data as Art**, April 23 (**project website**)

Die Zeit: <a href="https://www.zeit.de/wissen/2026-04/nazi-party-search-engine-membership-records-ancestors-english?freebie=da673bc7"><strong>Use Our Tool to Learn about Your Family’s Nazi Party History</strong></a>, April 23 — Die Zeit: **Use Our Tool to Learn about Your Family’s Nazi Party History**, April 23

Applications are open for…

A US data journalist at Financial Times

A graphic artist at The Guardian

An assistant visual journalism editor at Daily Mail

A data analyst at Centre for British Progress

A graphics multimedia editor at The New York Times

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Data Vis Dispatch, April 28: White House Correspondents’ Dinner, Chernobyl, and jazz

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