Communication Design

The New York Times Graphics Department

The Communication Design Award, which honors work in graphic or multimedia design, is presented to The New York Times Graphics Department. The New York Times has a long history of groundbreaking information graphics. From Sept. 11, 2001, when the department produced scores of maps and diagrams explaining the attacks and their aftermath, to the 2008 presidential election when the desk built the interactive maps on nytimes.com, the Times Graphics Department provides readers with a visual way to understand the news. A staff of cartographers, illustrators, researchers and developers work as a team to shape and deliver information by reporting, writing, designing, drawing and programming information graphics for both the printed newspaper and nytimes.com. Over time, the graphics have evolved from simple maps and charts to more complex visualizations, but the goal of authoritative, accurate journalism has remained the same.