ABSTRACT
In visualization, it may seem that exploration and explanation are opposite ends of a spectrum: that increasing the focus on explanation and communication necessarily reduces the ability for exploration. However, data-driven stories challenge this notion by combining exploration and explanation in creative new ways. The chapter argues that making a visualization more exploratory does not necessarily take away from its explanatory value and vice versa. It considers the explanatory and exploratory aspects of the data-driven stories they have seen. The chapter shows interesting examples that show how exploration and explanation interact and complement one another in the evolving landscape of data-driven storytelling. It describes the exploration-explanation space in light of recent visualization research and experience in exploratory visualizations. The chapter identifies three dimensions—view, focus, and sequence—along which exploration and explanation can vary.
