A Picture Tells One Word

And that word is "Iraq". Edward Tufte has told this story before, but I always feel like it bears repeating when I see a website utilize a clever and compelling graphic device to communicate a concept more effectively than a thousand words ever could. In a quick follow-on to the State of the Union address tonight, the New York Times website propped a terribly insightful interactive graphic (yea javascript - the floating cursor hand of insight) displaying keyword density in President Bush's addresses since taking office. Keyword volumes - and placement! - are displayed on a simple chart for such hot terms in American foreign policy as "Iraq", "Afghanistan", "Medicare", "Oil", and the like. Check it out - Tufte must be cracking a smirk somewhere that all that news that's fit to print now also includes all the interactive graphics that are fit to post...