Frequently asked questions
I have been getting hundreds of messages with questions about the charts and it’s impossible for me to answer them all. Many ask the same things, so I thought I’d cover the most frequent questions here. Don't expect a reply if your question is answered here.
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You should make the charts show numbers per capita/million.
They already do. It says that at least twice on every chart page.
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What are the sources of your data?
All the sources are listed on each chart page, with links.
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I have an idea for another COVID chart you should do.
One of the most common messages I get are suggestions for more charts to build. Creating a chart takes a while, keeping it and all the other charts I've already built up-to-date takes even more time. For a chart to be built I need the data used to be accessible in a computer format (like a CSV) online somewhere. Most of the chart suggestions from people don't offer that data. The data I have access to is from the New York Times, which puts out state and county
cases and death stats. I appreciate new ideas, but I also have a bunch of my own ideas that I plan to get to next and it will probably be months before I get to any community-suggested ideas. If you really believe in your idea, you can do the same thing I did and learn how to build the charts yourself :) Learning is fun!
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Why don’t you show all 50 states / I can't find a particular state?
There are two tabs at the top, Most Cases/Deaths and Fewest Cases/Deaths. You can find all the states that way. Puerto Rico and DC are not listed on the partisan charts because they are not listed on the
Wikipedia CPVI chart.
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Why don’t you show all 50 states at once?
The way I originally designed it showed every state and it was a mess. It didn't fit in any presentable way on people's screens. The state names were super tiny, and with 50+ bars moving around, it felt more like static than anything usable. Splitting it into two looks WAY better. So that's how I'll continue to present the charts.
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Your math is wrong.
Are you sure it's not your math that's wrong? Errors in the chart are definitely possible, I'm only human. It's a big concern of mine. But they've been seen by millions of people, and a dozen or so people have messaged me saying they found errors, but in the end after some double-checking it was the messenger who had their math wrong. Not saying I'm infallible, but please... double-check your work before making me do it for you. Thanks!
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Is there a video version of the chart?
The chart is interactive, as users can click back and forth between "Most" and "Fewest". Also, I spend a lot of time keeping the charts up-to-date. And the charts have descriptions, FAQs, and linked sources... all of which get filtered out when shared as videos. So no... it's best just to link directly to the charts themselves.
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Why aren't all the charts color-coded for partisanship?
None of them were supposed to be color-coded by partisanship, but I just noticed a pattern of partisanship in new cases starting in June and made a chart to represent that. Partisanship really didn't play a role in the cases before June, so it would be misleading to color charts going back that far by the CVPI.
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Where will you post updates on the charts?
Besides my personal Facebook, and Reddit, where I've historically posted and it's gone viral just from that. I will also start sharing on
Twitter as I came out of a long hiatus just to participate in conversations about the charts there. And also I first send out emails to people who have donated, because they may as well get something for their generosity!
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Why does the chart start on that date?
For the reasons listed in the description below the chart.
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I would like to hire you / offer you a job.
I am currently working full-time at a job I like, so I'm probably not available. It would have to be a really enticing offer or a small project that doesn't interfere with my other work.