This piece, by my hometown weekly newspaper, used data analysis to better understand the languages taught at the Defense Language Institute, and how they might reflect shifts in foreign policy.
The graph showing the shift from Eastern European langauges (during the Cold War) to Middle Eastern languages (post-9/11) displays a clear shift in US defense priorities. Data visualization makes this comparison readily apparent.
Wow, this is a great resource and use of both the animated timeline/scrolling by dates and regions AND the simple graph show and tell. Love this one, thx much for posting. My dad was a NavyIntell officer in Russian Language School/War College etc. and even during my childhood I could see the shift in his assignments go from the Cold War tenor to the focus on languages in middle east and counter-terrorism training...so by the time he retired it had almost flip-flopped in hiring skills...Now, circling back it's clearly a 'yes and' lens on BOTH... Great find on the graphic hunt!