Informing the Nation: Official Statistics and Communication

Dr Siu-Ming TamAustralian Bureau of Statistics17 September, 2010

ABS Canberra

Learning from musicians

“ABS Presents …….”

“If Australia were only …”

•

Florence Nightingale

• Pioneered the use of charts to tell stories

We do not want impressions.

We want facts.

You complain that your report would be dry. The drier the better.

Statistics should be the driest of all reading - William Farr, RG of Births and Deaths, Great Britian, 1861

Farr’s doctrine

Nightingale’s doctrine

Pyramidisation

A tale of two cities

Visploration

Key points

• Statistics need to be communicated• New tools to be used to tell stories

include:– “ABS presents”– “If Australia were only ….”– “Pyramidisation”– “Visploration”

– Further information– www.abs.gov.au/betaworks– Siu-Ming.Tam@abs.gov.au

Thank you!

Visploration

AustralianTrade Data revised