Bringing numbers closer to home

The page "If it was my home" is a nice representation of how to bring numbers closer to your audience, making them more meaningful.

In 1989 the Exxon Valdez struck Prince William Sound's Bligh Reef and spilled 40.9 million liters of crude oil. Even though reporting back then consisted of the morning, noon and evening new, coverage of the news dominated the press and the names "Exxon" and the "Valdez" were immediately etched into people's minds, forming negative connotations.

Fast forward to earlier this year when the.......let's see......oh yeah, the Deepwater Horizon suffered a deadly explosion, ripping open a deep sea gusher that has now surpassed the Valdez as the largest spill in US history.

However, for all that has been said, written and blogged, the spill has only recently been labeled a 'disaster' and the media has reported it as being the Gulf Coast Oil Spill, instead of the BP Disaster or the Deep Horizon Catastrophe, both of which I believe are sexier and stick better.

Thus, if rhetoric cannot be used to frame people's impressions, numbers and facts will have to do and the page linked below demonstrates a manner that could be used for audiences throughout the world.

If it was my home.