A public dashboard truncates the y-axis so a one-percent change in recycling diversion looks like a steep cliff. What visualization practice should the team follow instead?
Select an answer to reveal the explanation.
Short Explanation
Chopping the y-axis is like zooming a photo until a curb looks like a mountain. Civic audiences deserve honest scales that keep small changes looking small. Drama in the chart is not the same as insight.
Full Explanation
Ethical visualization avoids encodings that systematically overstate magnitude, including truncated axes that inflate relative slopes for small absolute changes. Public dashboards especially require scales and labels that support fair interpretation by non-specialist audiences. Removing labels or animating for exaggeration further reduces trust. Prefer baseline and scale choices that preserve proportional truth.