Earlier this week, I asked readers to share what the COVID-19 Data Dispatch has meant to them over this past year. Thank you to everyone who responded—it was wonderful to hear how my work has helped you make sense of the pandemic.
Here are a couple of responses that I wanted to share out with everyone:
I made a career change to data analytics in November last year. Reading your newsletter has been very inspiring, i’m very interested in data journalism but I’m still very new to the field so everything is difficult still 😅 however I love reading your newsletter and seeing what’s possible! I also find it very comforting to read compared to the hyped nature of the general media. I think it’s the only corona news I read without feeling like someone is trying to wind me up 😅
Harriet
A whole year??!?!?!?! Damn. Is it weird that the steady pace of your updates has felt very much like having a friend who was out there keeping me updated on shit when I’ve been entirely out of cope? I feel informed, which sometimes is reassuring, and sometimes terrifying. I’ve definitely shared things I’ve gotten from you when I’ve been in discussions elsewhere, and I’m sure it’s incredibly stressful work for you but I’m so glad to be a recipient of it.
Elaine
Many of the resources you cited/brought to my attention were really helpful in assessing risk, especially over the summer and fall. Reading the CDD also made me more aware of how people (especially in the media) were talking about the COVID-19 numbers, and made me more likely to interrogate their sources/interpretation of data. And as a bonus, I sounded REALLY smart talking to other people about COVID-19 data.
Abby
The CDD has meant a lot to me: I’ve seen someone I love find meaning in their work; I’ve been more informed, more alert, and less fearful about the pandemic; I haven’t spiraled emotionally over heated Twitter debates about the pandemic.
Laura (my girlfriend 💖)