Informational Videos and Infographics: Definitions, Costs, and Benefits

## Introduction

With the introduction of the Internet and the ever so increasing user audience, accessible information is able to be presented in new, innovative ways. This allows a wider reach of users to gain a better understanding of the work that exists in research communities, and has inspired many individuals to create media based on scholarly information.

There are two common types of participatory media creations that are used on the Internet to express academic information/statistics and strategies:

1. Informational Videos
2. Infographics

### Informational Videos

Informational videos are films that highlight, describe, and analyze research in ways that are created in an accessible, easy to understand manner. This is a common form participatory media that has been used in a variety of settings, pre-dating the Internet.

### Infographics

Infographics are a newer, engaging form of expressing academic information through participatory media. "*An infographic (short for information graphic) is a type of picture that blends data with design, helping individuals and organizations concisely communicate messages to their audience"* . Infographics take complex information and transform it into a visual model that can be "quickly consumed and easily understood" . Simply put, this new method of data visualization helps with organization of information and communication to broader audiences, making them innovative and popular.

## Benefits

Since there has been a rise of technology-savvy individuals and an increase in tools for creating and presenting information, any Internet user is able to take scholarly information and create visual representations of scholarly material.

One of the best uses of allowing any Internet user to partake in the creation of data visualization is that academic content can be spread to wider audiences. Rather than keeping information within a small circle of scholars, anyone can access the information and have a greater understanding of research discoveries that are occurring during their lifetime. This spread of visual media is able "*to generate active commitment from the audience, to empower [the audience] and make them an integral part of [the] success, to benefit from online word-of-mouth, to reach niche, highly interconnected audiences*" and "t*o communicate with audiences where they already are, and in a way that they value*" .

Another prime example of the benefits of allowing anyone to help create data visualization is that when the information is presented properly, it helps spread the information in a helpful and meaningful way. One of the strongest examples of this is the group, Kurz Gesagt .

This team creates well researched and unbiased informational videos that are regularly posted to YouTube.com .

These films are put together in a aesthetically pleasing manner, and they are easily accessible and are understandable to a wide range of audiences. These videos are very successful: some of their work has been viewed over a million times, and the channel has over 700,000 subscribers.

## Costs

Despite the benefits presented above, there are several negatives associated with non-scholars participating in the creation of data visualization.

Even though visual representations of data are innovative and easy to digest, the rise in informational videos and infographics are playing into "*an era of information overload and shortened attention spans*" . Rather than portraying information in an engaging way that would help increase attention spans, the creators of visual media are perpetuating this very issue. More analysis of this issue can be found on Informational Videos and Infographics: Internet User Reactions.

One of the other issues associate with this participatory media practice is misinformation being spread across the Internet. Even though it is positive that academic information is reaching broader audiences, when the information is wrong, this causes problems. People will begin to support and spread the incorrect information, and because spreading content is easy and fast, this can happen at an uncontrollable pace. One such example is the following infographic :

This piece is eye-catching, easy to read, and seems to be well researched. However, when looking closely at how this information is presented and where the information is coming from, many problems begin to surface. According to McArdle, "the data is handled a little ... weirdly...They only show you data for Germany and Holland--with good reason.  Australia, which has similar cycling rates to Germany, has a much higher obesity rate, as does the fairly bike-friendly UK" . The information presented above is inherently biased. The creators of this infographic warped the research that they were using to back their initial statement. This visualization omits statistics that would have negated the premise, and when looking at the sources, some can not be found, alluding to potentially non-existent research to support the aforementioned findings.

## References

1. ↑ Smiciklas, Mark. The Power of Infographics: Using Pictures to Communicate and Connect with Your Audience. Indianapolis, IN: Que Pub., 2012. Web. 25 June 2015. <https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=-rr84ltttj8C&oi=fnd&pg=PR4&dq=infographics&ots =cNYGfl3kH3&sig=kbmHbtGp\_SoScPganROmxY9BmUc#v=onepage&q=infographics&f=false>. Page 3.
2. ↑ Smiciklas, Mark. The Power of Infographics: Using Pictures to Communicate and Connect with Your Audience. Indianapolis, IN: Que Pub., 2012. Web. 25 June 2015. <https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=-rr84ltttj8C&oi=fnd&pg=PR4&dq=infographics&ots =cNYGfl3kH3&sig=kbmHbtGp\_SoScPganROmxY9BmUc#v=onepage&q=infographics&f=false>. Page 3.
3. ↑ Jenkins, Henry. "If It Doesn’t Spread, It’s Dead (Part Eight): The Value of Spreadable Media." Confessions of an AcaFan. N.p., 27 Feb. 2009. Web. 25 June 2015. <http://henryjenkins.org/2009/02/if\_it\_doesnt \_spread\_its\_dead\_p\_7.html>.
4. ↑ "Kurz Gesagt - In a Nutshell." YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 01 July 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/user/Kurzgesagt>.
5. ↑ *Kurz Gesagt*. Digital image.*Https://www.youtube.com/user/Kurzgesagtoutube.com/user/Kurzgesagt*. Youtube.com, n.d. Web. 6 July 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/user/Kurzgesagt>.
6. ↑ Smiciklas, Mark. The Power of Infographics: Using Pictures to Communicate and Connect with Your Audience. Indianapolis, IN: Que Pub., 2012. Web. 25 June 2015. <https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=-rr84ltttj8C&oi=fnd&pg=PR4&dq=infographics&ots =cNYGfl3kH3&sig=kbmHbtGp\_SoScPganROmxY9BmUc#v=onepage&q=infographics&f=false>. Page 6.
7. ↑ *How Bikes Can Save Us*. Digital image. *Www.theatlantic.com*. N.p., 12 Dec. 2011. Web. 6 July 2015. <http://cdn.theatlantic.com/static/mt/assets/meganmcardle/6a00d83451c45669e201543857002d970c-550wi.gif>.
8. ↑ McArdle, Megan. "Ending the Infographic Plague." The Atlantic.
Atlantic Media Company, 23 Dec. 2011. Web. 01 July 2015. <http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/12/ending-the-infographic-plague/250474/>. Cited as McArdle.