Behind the Dialect Map Interactive: How an Intern Created The New York Times’ Most Popular Piece of Content in 2013

By: Ryan Graff | Knight Lab

How do you create the most popular piece of content of the year at one of the nation’s most prestigious news outlet?

Well, for starters, study or consider careers in politics, law, and philosophy before eventually deciding that statistics is for you. Then apply to grad school and while you’re there dig in to some intriguing data that Harvard researchers had published 10 years prior, apply some stats and smart algorithms, post your work online, then wait for the The New York Times to call.