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The Lansing Journal ceases daily publication of COVID-19 data

Following the move to Phase 5, and Monday’s release from IDPH, numbers to be posted weekly

by Melanie Jongsma

LANSING, Ill. (June 16, 2021) – The Lansing Journal began sharing COVID-related data and statistics on March 17, 2020, when the Illinois Department of Public Health announced the first death of an Illinois resident who had tested positive for Coronavirus Disease. We continued sharing IDPH releases as new cases and new deaths were reported. Day after day throughout the past 15 months we experimented with different ways of presenting whatever relevant information we could gather from reliable sources.

Last May we began partnering with a company called HiGeorge to add interactive charts that were coded to update automatically. Those charts helped put the daily numbers and weekly trends in perspective. Later we added Lansing-specific information gleaned from the COVID dashboard created by South Suburban Mayors and Managers Association, which helped give local context. We are grateful for the efforts and tech savvy of those two organizations.

A sample of the interactive data visuals created by Hi-George:

Monday’s news release from the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) included, along with the standard COVID numbers, an announcement that they would no longer send daily news releases with COVID data updates. They plan to continue to update the data daily on their website, but news releases will now be distributed weekly. The Lansing Journal will follow suit.

For readers who expressed appreciation for the daily data we published, the COVID quick-links we publish in our sidebar will continue to provide direct access to:

  • Local COVID info from Lansing and surrounding towns
  • Vaccination information provided by IDPH
  • Statewide COVID info (Illinois)
Melanie Jongsma
Melanie Jongsma
Melanie Jongsma grew up in Lansing, Illinois, and believes The Lansing Journal has an important role to play in building community through trustworthy information.