Other infoviz art doubles as punditry by harnessing corporate or political data. In a classic 2004 piece, They Rule, artist Josh On asks viewers to explore the overlapping boards of U.S. companies—and perhaps question whether concentration of power is a good thing. On's work fits into an art tradition that includes Hans Haacke, who famously traced the Manhattan real-estate holdings of a slumlord and his family, and Mark Lombardi, whose hand-drawn diagram of links between global finance and international terrorism was shown at the Whitney—and studied by the FBI shortly after Sept. 11.

On's work also dovetails with media graphics that synthesize and comment on complex news for readers. Recent interactive pieces on the New York Times Web site and Slate, for instance, may not have been presented as art. But in truth, they would not be so out of place at the Whitney.