Joe Murphy

@joemurph

Data editor @ NBC News, @NBCguild.bsky.social strong, Oregonian born & raised, lives in NYC (Gowanus, Brooklyn). Formerly: NY Daily News, Denver Post, Medill. Into dataviz, data pipelines, accessibility, a good story. joemurph.76 @ signal joemurph.com

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Joe Murphy@joemurph· 7d

Data from the Government Accountability Office puts the tally of DOGE's federal job cuts at close to 400,000, and @amowreader.com's analysis for @nbcnews.com shows that it wasn’t just D.C. that was affected. [paywall] www.nbcnews.com/data-graphic...

This is a square map chart of the U.S. showing reductions in federal staff across the nation. Hawaii, Maine and Virginia had the largest declines. Atop the chart is the text "The DOGE job cuts didn’t just hit D.C."

Joe Murphy@joemurph· 11d

This story was also the Staff Pick in this morning's @nbcnews.com email newsletter: [no paywall] www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...

It’s no secret that the job market stinks right now. But for soon-to-be college graduates, like myself, breaking into the workforce is harder now than it used to be.

I analyzed data and spoke with experts from job platforms LinkedIn, Indeed and Handshake and found that fewer entry-level jobs are available to this year’s graduates than to their peers in previous years. And when they enter the job market, students are receiving fewer offers despite submitting more applications.

Most people hold the belief that earning a college degree is a guaranteed way to advance your career, and that’s still true for some folks. But for the class of 2026, that guarantee may take more time.

Explore more of the data and some of the factors putting a damper on entry-level hiring. — Ashley Mowreader, data graphics intern

Joe Murphy@joemurph· 13d

Hi, not exactly – job postings are down 24% from 2019 levels.

This is a column chart showing the rate of hiring among entry-level talent on LinkedIn compared to June 2019. There was a drastic drop in the first year of the pandemic, followed by an increase of 29% in 2021. Since then, each year has seen a lower percentage of entry-level hiring rates, which have descended each year and is down 24% so far this year. Atop the chart is the text "The job market for new grads keeps getting worse: Full-time job postings for graduating college seniors are on the decline."

Joe Murphy@joemurph· 20d

Update: it's not just javascript (h/t @aprotim.com)

python code and results:

>>> import math
>>> a = 4.06
>>> print(math.floor(a*100))
405
>>> print(a*100)
405.99999999999994

Joe Murphy@joemurph· 20d

javascript..... why

code:

let b = 4.06

Math.floor(b*100) returns 405

b*100 returns 405.99999999994

Joe Murphy@joemurph· 24d

We’ve been tracking the Messi vs. Mbappé career World Cup goals back-and-forth, and one of the little details we accounted for was whether Messi or Mbappé looked happy in their photos. Today, for the first time, we see a happy Mbappé. #dataViz #worldCup [no paywall] www.nbcnews.com/data-graphic...

A graphic tracking the World Cup goals scored by Messi and Mbappé. Messi had 13 goals going into this year’s tournament and has scored eight this year so far, totalling 21 goals. Mbappé had 12 goals heading into this year, and has scored ten so far. His total is 22 goals, which means he holds the current record of the most career World Cup goals.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· 25d

New from @nbcnews.com's Data / Graphics team: A visual #dataViz dive into the wildfire smoke smothering the Midwest and northern U.S., with two maps and two diagrams. Words by @amowreader.com and also, we're taking down the paywall on this one. www.nbcnews.com/data-graphic...

This diagram compares the size of a typical grain of sand with smaller objects: the width of a strand of hair (about half the size), a speck of dust (about one-tenth the size), and wildfire smoke PM2.5 particles (about one-thirtieth the size of sand). Next to the diagram is the text "Small but dangerous: Tinier than a grain of sand, smaller than a speck of dust, the PM2.5 particles found in wildfire smoke can travel deep into the lungs."

Joe Murphy@joemurph· 26d

The @nbcnews.com Data / Graphics team continues its run of #WorldCup coverage, today with a #dataViz [paywall] piece on the World Cup histories of the teams still left, where we are now on goals per game, and World Cup fatigue. Here's @amowreader.com with the story: www.nbcnews.com/data-graphic...

This is a chart showing the average number of goals scored per game at World Cup tournaments since 1950. The 1954 World Cup had an average of 5.4 goals per game; the 2026 tournament had a rate of 2.9 goals per game, which is the most since the 1970 tournament.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jul 10

Never seen data visualizations like these before. #dataViz #worldCup wc26.bogachev.fr

A visualization of the state of the pitch in the France / Morocco World Cup 2026 game at the point when Kylian Mbappe took a penalty kick. France's forces are collected in the center near the Moroccan gaol, Moroccos forces are around the side.

An explanation of the visualization of the state of the pitch in the France / Morocco World Cup 2026 game. The annotations read "Sharp spikes are sohts. The taller spike the better the chance," and "the seam is...which team is pushing right now."

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jul 1

Here's @amowreader.com for @nbcnews.com: World Cup goals are way up. Is the ball to blame? [paywall] www.nbcnews.com/data-graphic...

This diagram examines the 2026 World Cup soccer ball, called the Trionda, and its features. It has a four-panel design, the fewest amount of panels of any World Cup ball. The 2022 ball had 20 panels, the 2014 ball had six, the 2010 had 10, and the 2002 ball had 32 panels. The Trionda also has a side-mounted microchip, which is balanced by multiple counter-weights inside the ball.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jun 28

I deleted this post because, after a deeper look, I couldn't verify that theeditorial dot news was an actual publication or that any of its authors were indeed journalists. cc @dwillis.bsky.social @jamellebouie.net @ndiakopoulos.bsky.social @1gregtodd.bsky.social @damon.kiesow.net

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jun 27

Tracking my commutes in frequency and duration now:

Joe's commutes: Last 8 weeks

Of those 8 weeks, Joe commuted in 8 of those.

Of the commute weeks, an average of 3.12 commutes per week were made. Across all 8 weeks, that's 3.12 commutes per week.

In all, Joe commuted 25 days. On average, a day's commute took 104.9 minutes, and at most it took 152 and at the least it took 61.

Last 26 weeks: Of those 26 weeks, Joe commuted in 23 of those.

Of the commute weeks, an average of 2.96 commutes per week were made. Across all 26 weeks, that's 2.62 commutes per week.

In all, Joe commuted 68 days. On average, a day's commute took 108.6 minutes, and at most it took 211 and at the least it took 61.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jun 26

June 26, 3:26 p.m. ET. Messi has 18 career World Cup goals, Mbappé 16. France is up 2-1 over Norway.

A graphic tracking the World Cup goals scored by Messi and Mbappé. Messi had 13 goals going into this year’s tournament and has scored five this year so far. He holds the current record of the most World Cup goals at 18. Mbappé had 12 goals heading into this year, and has scored four so far. His total is 16 goals.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jun 24

Today the Denver Post signs came down from 101 W. Colfax. It was 17 years ago the Rocky Mountain News signs were removed from the same building, it was a Saturday and I saw it happening, ran to the building, took an elevator up and landed this photo.

A sign of the "Rocky" in "Rocky Mountain News" dangling from a rope heading down with part of Denver's skyline in the background.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jun 21

Trump keeps bringing up the number 22 [paywall] www.nbcnews.com/politics/don...

22 fountains.

22 ships.

22 bombers.

And 22 Nobel Prize winners.

Donald Trump may be the 80-year-old who is both the 45th and 47th president of the United States, but lately, his favorite number seems to be 22.

“We had 22 fountains, every one of them didn’t work,” Trump said recently in the Oval Office, referring to ongoing renovations of public spaces in Washington, D.C. “All 22 have now been opened.”

The president’s penchant for the palindromic number stretches back months. Complaining about a theoretical trip to Asia, he’s bemoaned that the flight alone would take 22 hours. A story on prescription drug costs that he thought deserved more attention appeared, in his telling, on Page 22 of The New York Times. He met with 22 medical specialists during a recent checkup at Walter Reed Medical Center. And “22 Nobel Prize winners in economics said we would, right now, be in a recession,” he said in February. “All 22 were wrong.”

A senior White House official couldn’t explain why Trump has seized on the number but noted that because the president speaks before cameras so often, he has some identifiable speech patterns and verbal tics, such as his use of “two weeks” for various deadlines.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jun 20

INTERACTIVE: New from @amowreader.com for @nbcnews.com, a gas price cost calculator that lets you figure out how much more you've paid for gas since the start of the Iran war. #dataViz www.nbcnews.com/data-graphic...

This screenshot of an interactive calculator shows the added cost of gas since the start of the Iran war for someone who lives in Colorado, drives a car with a 15-gallon tank and fills up 4 times per month. It's $330, of the approximately $960 they paid for gas – about $17 more per fill-up.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jun 16

Here's @jzarracina.bsky.social’s #dataViz work for @nbcnews.com: NASA’s new space telescope is expected to survey the cosmos, capturing panoramas of hundreds of millions of stars and billions of galaxies. [no paywall] www.nbcnews.com/science/spac...

This diagram shows NASA's new space telescope, the Nancy Grace Roman Telescope, and its various features: a Deployable Aperture Cover, a solar sunshield, a High gain Antenna, and other elements.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jun 14

Smith Street Brooklyn last night at the moment the Knicks won game 5 and the 2026 NBA Championship.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jun 12

New #dataViz dive from @nbcnews.com into how to look at what a trillion is, in words and visuals. We have a chart, a ticker, an interactive, multiple three-dimensional renderings, it was a team effort (five bylines!) and it shows. [no paywall] www.nbcnews.com/data-graphic...

A three-dimensional rendering of the Statue of Liberty, $1.77 trillion in stacked hundred dollar bills, a SpaceX rocket and other comparable items. The stacked money takes up quite a bit more space than the Statue of Liberty – and, when you look at the $1 billion in stacked bills next to it, the billion looks miniscule. Atop this rendering is the text "A trillion, visualized: The SpaceX IPO valuation is orders of magnitude larger than Tesla’s 2010 IPO valuation."

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jun 10

"A wave of firings and resignations at the highest levels of the CDC and FDA suggests the Trump administration may be pivoting away from facets of the MAHA movement." — Aria Bendix and this graphic by Jiachuan Wu for @NBCNews.com [paywall] www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

This chart shows the number of vacancies and temporary hires among leadership positions in the Dept. of Health and Human Services (4 vacancies, 4 temporary hires out of 31 positions), the National Institutes of Health (15 temporary hires out of 33), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (1 vacancy, 13 temporary hires out of 27) and the Food and Drug Administration (2 vacancies, 8 temporary hires out of 22 leadership positions). Atop the chart is the text "After recent turnover, many divisions lack permanent leaders."

Joe Murphy@joemurph· Jun 8

Lots of #dataViz amidst this @sahilkapur.bsky.social analysis of the powers / lack thereof of this Congress. [paywall] www.nbcnews.com/politics/con...

The current Congress (the 119th) is responsible for 122 days of full or partial federal government shutdowns, the most since 1975. Since 1975, no other Congress has been responsible for more days of full or partial federal government shutdowns. The next-most in any term of Congress is the 95th Congress, with 45 days. Most Congresses have zero days of shutdowns.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· May 31

I put together this visualization of my playlists by song release years, across all the summer and winter playlists I've made over the last 10-15 years, you can see it at joemurph.com/playlists/ (and, if you haven't, please do listen to my latest summer playlist at joemurph.com/summer )

Joe Murphy@joemurph· May 30

Lots of great #dataViz in this piece from Jiachuan and the newest member of the @NBCNews.com Data / Graphics team, Javier Zarracina: www.nbcnews.com/data-graphic...

A chart titled "How does Ebola spread to humans?" with an illustration showing:
1. Bats are the reservoir hosts for Ebola viruses. Infected bats can spread the virus to other animals or humans.
2. Humans can come into contact with the virus through hunting, preparing or eating the animal's meat.
3. Among humans, Ebola spreads through contact with blood, bodily fluids or the bodies of infected people who died.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· May 26

Someone's selling their (originally $5,875) World Cup finals ticket for $11,499,998.85. It's in the rafters. Beside the obvious, there's a question why FIFA built / contracted out a resale site that allows for such ridiculous ticket prices. fwc26-resale-usd.tickets.fifa.com/secure/selec...

A screenshot of the $11 million seat for sale on FIFA's website.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· May 17

That's cheap for Cook County — average there is $5.31 / gallon, per www.nbcnews.com/data-graphic...

A screenshot of a county gas price map, focused on Cook County Illinois, where the average price of a gallon is $5.31, similar to the price in the rest of the area EXCEPT in Indiana, where gas prices are significantly cheaper (Indiana suspended its gas taxes, which is why).

Joe Murphy@joemurph· May 15

Tried not to give the kid one of these but well you never know

A how-to guide that shows you how to draw an owl, with a finished drawing of an owl drawn out in its glory. Step 1: Draw some circles. Step 2: Draw the rest of the fucking owl.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· May 15

This is how I explained it, in case you were curious.

Good to hear from you. Funny, you’re asking about one of the most technically complicated maps we’ve published. Let me break it down.
Data sourcing. Every day I scrape AAA’s website for its average county gas prices. It’s not all on one page, and it’s not simple. The data exists on https://gasprices.aaa.com/?state=TX , but how do you find it? That’s your first test.
Data cleaning and munging. The AAA data comes with county names – some which align with the U.S. Census Bureau’s county names, but some that don’t. Not only that, to make a county map you need the county FIPS code, that’s a five character string (“01220” or “56299” or the like) that represents that county, it’s what most mapping software uses to know which county you’re talking about. Fortunately, I had already written a python code library that helped me attach FIPS codes to counties (i.e. “Hockley, Texas” becomes 48000). This has to be done programmatically, there are more than 3,000 county-level jurisdictions in the U.S. and there’s just no way you’d want to do that by hand. For the AAA county names that don’t match the Census Bureau’s spelling, I wrote a middleman python script to normalize those names.
So now you have the data. It’s in CSV format. I’ve got another script that uploads that CSV to a public-facing web server.
So now the data’s available on the web. We’ve got something. But we need a map. We built this map with d3, a popular javascript-based library for manipulating SVGs, which are the backbone of web-based data visualizations. We didn’t build this map from scratch – we’d built that map before, for this project, last year. https://www.nbcnews.com/specials/vaccine-divide/ .

Anyway, that’s how it happened. Four incredibly complex steps. I’m sure you have more questions, I’ll do my best to answer them.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· May 8

I got a blurb with a little data story I loved finding in this morning’s @nbcnews.com email newsletter (web version here, no paywall www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news... )

Names fascinate me. Data is my job. So when the U.S. Census Bureau announced it would be publishing first and last-name count data for everyone in the U.S., it felt like the Bureau was speaking directly to me. I created a searchable database where anyone can see how their first and last names rank.

While auditing I found an interesting last name, Kaur, which traces back to Sikhs from India, in the Punjabi region. According to my own quick analysis, there weren’t many Kaurs living in the U.S. in 1990. But that changed: the Bureau counted 21,000 Kaurs in 2000, 48,000 in 2010, and more than 75,000 in 2020 — making Kaur one of the 500 most-common last names here. No other last name has rocketed through the country like Kaur has.

Search for your name in the database, and see if it’s among the most-common names in the nation.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· May 7

The federal Department of Justice has filed lawsuits against dozens of states in an effort to obtain state voter registration data. @garygrumbach.bsky.social for @nbcnews.com [no paywall] www.nbcnews.com/politics/jus...

This map of U.S. Department of Justice shows the results of its efforts to obtain state voter rolls, with states categorized by status. Most states are in ongoing litigation, including Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin. Fourteen states willingly provided voter rolls: Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and Wyoming. Appeals are ongoing in California, Michigan and Oregon. Litigation was dismissed in Arizona, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

Joe Murphy@joemurph· May 5

It's always exciting when one of our graphics makes it up on NBC Nightly News.