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Chapitre 9. Table ronde sur la cartographie journalistique: transcription des débats / Panel on Journalistic Cartography: Transcript of the Discussions
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TABLE RONDE SUR LA CARTOGRAPHIE JOURNALISTIQUE : TRANSCRIPTION DES DÉBATS/ PANEL ON JOURNALISTIC CARTOGRAPHY : TRANSCRIPT OF THE DISCUSSIONS On trouvera ici la transcription des débats qui eurent lieu à l’occasion d’une table ronde mettant en contact des gens du milieu de l’enseignement et de l’entreprise. Les membres de la table ronde étaient : Serge Bonin, directeur du Laboratoire de graphique à Paris ; Roger Black, directeurd’artsgraphiquesàNewsweekMagazine (co-président) ; Majella-J. Gauthier, professeur de géographie à l’Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (copr ésident) ; Patricia Gilmartin, professeur de géographie à l’University of South Carolina ; Jean-Daniel Gronoff du Centre d’analyse et de mathématiques sociales à Marseille ; Stephen Hume, rédacteur au Edmonton Journal ; et Paul- J. Pugliese, chef-cartographe à Time Magazine . La liste des participants provenant de la salle paraît à la suite de la transcription. Nous tenons à remercier vivement Violette Gameau, qui a bien voulu donner un coup de main à la fois dans la transcription des débats et à leur rédaction. This part of the publication consists of the transcript of discussions that took place in a panel which brought academic and business people into contact. More than a dozen speakers expressed themselves with spontaneity and exchanged views, opinions and experiences on cartography in the media. Panel members were : Serge Bonin, director of the Laboratoire de graphique in Paris ; Roger Black, art director at Newsweek Magazine (co-chairman) ; Majella-J. Gauthier, professor of geography at the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (co-chairman) ; Patricia Gilmartin, professor of geography at the University of South Carolina ; Jean-Daniel Gronoff of the Centre d’analyse et de mathématiques sociales in Marseille ; Stephen Hume, Editor of The Edmonton Journal ; and Paul J. Pugliese, chief-cartographer at Time Magazine. Names and addresses of the participants from the audience are listed at the end of the transcript. would like to thank Violette Garneau, for her much appreciated assistance in transcribing the tapes and putting the texts into literary form. ALLOCUTION D’OUVERTURE/ OPENING ADDRESS Majella-J. GAUTHIER : A panel on journalistic cartography : why ? When I was thinking about introducing this panel, I recalled the moment I began to take an interest in cartography in the media following my election as chairman of the map design interest group at the University of Western Ontario (1984). At that time, we decided to plan some activities for the next two years. The project started at the same time as cartographers were discovering a new field of application for their science : the mass media. In fact, literature showed us that research and publications were rare before the ’80s. Cartographers started to watch with more interest graphic productions in the newspapers, magazines and on television. They were happily surprised to find both good quality and pertinence in the many diagrams and maps ; yet many cartographers frowned on the frequency of deficiencies in graphic design : diagrams, maps and networks. At this time, cartographers, who are also graphic communicators, asked a double question : 1° Judging by the small number of people engaged in the process, why are there so many incorrect graphics, especially maps ? 24 How could cartographers explain why they were missing the opportunity to occupy this new field of application ? 91 Tonight’s meeting gathers half a dozen panelists to start discussions on graphic design and on journalistic cartography in a milieu, not only academic and scientific, but also open to practitioners, that is to say, those who, every day, every week, have to transmit information (news) to their readers and viewers. It would be interesting and useful to know how cartographers and practitioners can discuss, learn from each other, and find the best formula. A sign of the expected successful result of this panel can be related to the fact that cartographer- members did some research on journalistic cartography, and that practitionermembers although coming from different industries occupying various posts in the production process, are obviously very professional in their expertise. In this context, we ask academic people to talk about the improvement of maps in the media, and industry people to talk about their experience, success, failures, constraints and hopes, about their conceptual requirements, and about the present and future role of the cartographer in the media. Before starting the discussions, may I repeat to you some questions that I asked from four viewpoints : graphic design, designer’s role, computer’s role and training. Graphic Design : Is there a graphic design specifically for journalistic maps ? What are the recipes used by...