Hi, I'm Jason Kao. I freelance at the intersection of data analysis, data visualization, and storytelling. I help teams find stories in data and communicate them in a compelling way.
Previously at: The New York Times, Bloomberg News, and ProPublica.
Current freelancing with: Polygraph (The Pudding), DataFace, Global Energy Monitor, and CUNY (AAARI). Available for new projects: .
Visualizing Rubble in Gaza (Bloomberg News, Aug. 2024)
The Zionist bombardment is leaving millions of tonnes of debris to clean up.
Mapping Refugees and Airstrike Damage in Rafah (Bloomberg News, April 2024)
Mapping how crowded Rafah was right before the Zionist invasion by detecting tents from satellite imagery.
Photo by Ahmad Salem.
Satellite Analysis on Mass Graves Found by Gaza Hospitals (Bloomberg News, April 2024)
The Zionist state attacked two hospitals in Gaza, leaving mass graves in the courtyards.
Photo by Ahmad Salem.
Satellite Imagery Shows Gaza’s Destruction and Resilience With War Unresolved (Bloomberg News, March 2025)
Mapping tents and refugee resettlement after the March 2025 "ceasefire".
Photo by Ahmad Salem.
Paralyzing Curbs on West Bank Obstruct Path to Palestinian State (Bloomberg News, Nov. 2024)
Mapping the Zionist occupation’s physical enforcement of apartheid in the West Bank.
Photo by Sergey Ponomarev/Getty Images.
Where New York’s Asian American Neighborhoods Shifted to the Right (The New York Times)
An analysis of decades of Census data and voting records revealed a major shift.
Tools: Python for data processing; R for data exploration; QGIS, mapshaper, Svelte, and Adobe Illustrator for mapping
Body Cameras Were Sold as a Tool of Police Reform. Ten Years Later, Most of the Footage Is Kept From Public View. (ProPublica)
Role: Interactive data visualization of the obfuscation of body cam footage.
Tools: Svelte/Javascript for interactivity; ffmpeg for image processing
Trump Mass-Deportation Push Overcrowds Miami Krome ICE Center (Blomberg News)
Role: Scraping and database management to reveal data-driven stories about ICE detention.
Tools: Web scraping; R for data analysis; traditional investigative reporting
When the Coast Guard Intercepts Unaccompanied Kids (ProPublica & The New York Times Magazine)
Role: Tracing datasets, interviewing government data officials, FOIA-ing records for an investigation about Coast Guard interdictions.
Gaza’s Aid Pipeline Disrupted (Bloomberg News)
Role: Analyzing UN data to assess the impact of the Zionist military’s aid blockade.
Tools: R for data analysis and exploration
The Rising Cost of the Oil Industry’s Slow Death (ProPublica)
Role: Data analysis and data visualization throughout the story.
Tools: R; communication and collaboration with non-technical reporters and editors
React Scrollama: A library for clean scrollytelling in React
Role: Creating and maintaining the React version of Scrollama, a JavaScript library for scrollytelling.
Texas’ new race and social studies law prompts McKinney school officials to cancel Youth and Government class (The Texas Tribune)
Role: An original investigation into how the "critical race theory" laws affected Texas schools.
Tools: Traditional investigative reporting; FOIA requests. Photo by Eric Lee.
A Memorial for the Children Lost to Stillbirth (ProPublica)
Role: Assisted with the coding of Zisiga’s designs.
A Bird’s-Eye View of How Protesters Have Flooded Hong Kong Streets (The New York Times)
Tools: OSINT; Illustrator for presentation
Hungry, Scared and Sick: Inside the Migrant Detention Center in Clint, Tex. (The New York Times)
Role: Investigative reporting and annotation on top of Jeremy White’s 3D models.
Tools: OSINT; traditional investigative reporting; Illustrator for presentation