[Note: each of these examples are created using free software, with real data, and only minimal consultation with a web developer. This shows two map treatments of riot data.]
When downtown Vancouver burned in the Stanley Cup Riots last summer, there was a lot of talk about who was responsible. Did the city go too far with fan zones? Were police understaffed? Did the media fan the flames in weeks of anticipation?
And: who are these people?
Some commentators were adamant, this was not their Vancouver. Well, now that more than 70 people have been charged, we have a growing picture of who the accused rioters are.
CBC's Data Desk compiled all the charges announced by the Integrated Riot Investigation Team, as of February 2012. We've mapped where the accused rioters come from, how old they are—and where some of the most talked-about alleged crimes took place.
Mapping the charges
This map is a work in progress, showing some of the more infamous events from that night. We've mapped 10 charges where it's clear what the person is accused of doing, and where.
We could imagine a map like this taking on many layers. (The CBC site already has the start of a mapped video layer, created the day after the riot).
Users could select which layers they wanted to see—or make them appear by sliding along a timeline of the night:
Charges/Convictions: where crimes took place
Heros: where citizens, shopkeepers and a priest confronted the rioters
Your Photos: upload your most powerful images and where you took it
Your Stories: bite-sized narratives of the memories of what you saw and felt
Click on a pin to show who is accused of what in each location.
It would be a powerful storytelling tool to show just what a small physical footprint the 2011 Stanley Cup Riot had, for the large impact it's had on the city.
