chartjunk

n.

Chart elements that serve no purpose or hinder understanding of the chart's data. Also: chart junk.

Example Citations:

The classic example is the use of dot-headed figures to convey quantities; this clutters up the chart without adding any information, and is often used to convey an impression that turns out to be false when you look behind the data. So my immediate reaction whenever I see a publication with a lot of chartjunk is to assume that the author is trying to put something over on us.

—Paul Krugman, " Chartjunk: http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/05/12/chartjunk/," The New York Times, May 12, 2011

Graphs and charts embellished with "chartjunk" may help rather than hurt people's understanding of data, a study at two U.S. universities indicates.

—" 'Chartjunk' may actually aid understanding: http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2009/11/05/Chartjunk-may-actually-aid-understanding/UPI-31601257451218/," UPI, November 5, 2009

Earliest Citation:

The interior decoration of graphics generates a lot of ink that does not tell the viewer anything new. The purpose of decoration varies — to make the graphic appear more scientific and precise, to enliven the display, to give the designer an opportunity to exercise artistic skills. Regardless of its cause, it is all non-data-ink or redundant data-ink, and it is often chartjunk.

—Edward R. Tufte, The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, Graphics Press, April 1, 1983

Notes: Related Words:

banalysis

charticle

PowerPointlessness

triple delivery

Categories:

Art and Design

Media and Journalism

Glad you identified Edward Tufte as the originator of the term chartjunk. Nearly 30 years ago, he sst the standard for clear, informative graphics.Glad you identified Edward Tufte as the originator of the term chartjunk. Nearly 30 years ago, he sst the standard for clear, informative graphics.