Symbolia

A lot has changed since we launched Symbolia. It’s been an amazing two years, and we couldn’t be prouder. We’ve helped to both legitimize an industry and change the way people think about what journalism can be. We never dreamed that we would work with organizations like American Public Media, Tumblr, and the Showtime documentary series Years of Living Dangerously to create amazing visual narratives.

That said, we don’t want Symbolia to be a one-note media organization. There are other opportunities out there to tell stories using games, virtual reality, and other emerging technologies. That's one of the reasons Joyce is pursuing game design and journalism leadership as part of her fellowship at American University.

With a little bit of sadness and a lot of excitement for new beginnings, we’re writing today to tell you that THE FUTURE, Symbolia’s latest issue, will be our last. Symbolia has published hundreds of pages of illustrated journalism in the past two years and launched the careers of some incredible artists. Our community has been amazingly supportive from day one and we’re incredibly grateful.

If you are a subscriber, you may have some questions. All PDF subscriptions will end with this issue and you will not be charged to renew. If your iTunes subscription has already renewed, we will work on getting you a refund. Email admin AT symboliamag DOT com with any other questions you might have. We'll do everything possible to make sure you have access to Symbolia's archive.

We also want to take a moment to thank the International Women's Media Foundation, J-Lab, and the McCormick Foundation for their support. These organizations are doing so much to support women in media and we are eternally grateful.

All the best,

What does the Future look like? In this issue of Symbolia, we’re doing something a little different. Yes, you’ll get great journalism on tomorrow’s medical devices, how a man-made island in Amsterdam is bracing for climate change, and breakthroughs in 3D printing. But around halfway through this issue, things are going to shift a little bit. We’re branching out into speculative fiction to explore the terraformation of Mars, tomorrow’s privatized highways, and what work will look like in the future. 

Get Symbolia today on your iPad or via PDF. 

All three parts of our collaboration with Pacific Standard are live. Meet Maria Qadri, a doctoral student researching health quantifications and preventative care. Maria is also a Type 1 diabetic who depends on health quantification every day. 

Part One

Part Two

The recent attack on Charlie Hebdo, a weekly satirical French newspaper featuring acerbic cartoons and comics, is shocking. Twelve people are dead, 11 injured. These attacks threaten the freedom of the press. But the media’s response has been troubling. Coverage lionizes Charlie Hebdo as an institution, while also taking advantage of the cartooning community.

We have some exciting news to share! Creative Director Joyce Rice has been selected as a Journalism Leadership Transformation (JoLT) Fellow at American University. 

This fellowship will help Symbolia continue to grow. We wouldn’t be here without the support of our community. Thank you! You’ve helped us launch incredible experiments in non-fiction, visual storytelling.

JoLT will give us access to new tools to expand our work. As a JoLT fellow, Joyce will be designing journalism summits, attending leadership workshops, and creating immersive media projects with two other fellows in Washington D.C. She’ll also work towards an MA in Game Design. Joyce is especially excited about applying “gamification” principles to comics journalism. 

Learn more about the program and the other fellows.

Many low-income Maine residents were hoping for healthcare coverage under the Medicaid expansion. The reelection of Republican governor Paul LePage means they almost certainly won't get it.

We covered the pending Medicaid crisis in Maine a few months ago. Now that Paul LePage has been reelected, this comic by Roxanne Palmer is a good primer on why access to basic health care in Maine is about to become a big problem.

Meet Pedro Serrano, a conquistador who spent many years shipwrecked in the Caribbean. All part of our latest issue: DEEP TROUBLE.