Beyond Borders: Visa Policies Reshaping the Future of Data Journalism
Last week, the Trump administration announced one of its most aggressive immigration policies yet: a $100,000 fee for filing new H-1B petitions, the visa program that allows U.S. employers to hire skilled foreign workers in specialized fields.
Much of the reaction has focused on how the move could affect the tech industry, which has long relied on international talent to fill critical gaps. But the proclamation also carries significant implications for journalism, particularly within data visualization — an area where the technical expertise and global perspectives of immigrant and international graphics reporters have been essential.
Some of the field’s most innovative work has come from journalists on skilled visas, often beginning their journeys as students on F-1 visas before moving on to H-1Bs or O-1s, the latter reserved for individuals with extraordinary ability. Journalists like The Washington Post’s Chiqui Esteban.
Esteban is currently the creative director of Opinions at The Washington Post. An immigrant from Spain, he came to the U.S. in 2012 on an O-1 visa to work as a graphics reporter at The Boston Globe, where he helped lead the graphics team’s coverage of the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombing. Esteban is now a naturalized American citizen.
In 2023, he led graphics editing on The Post’s Pulitzer Prize-winning series on the AR-15 gun, “American Icon.” “The Blast Effect” installment of the series used animated illustrations to reveal the catastrophic damage the weapon inflicts on the human body. The team chose to depict the shocking devastation of the mortal wounds unsanitized, using carefully rendered animations.
Esteban’s background affects his approach to storytelling. “In Spain, I think we tend to be more direct and crude about guns because they are not part of our daily life,” said Esteban. “I think I was able to see more clearly, like, ‘No, we need to show this and we need to show it this way’ because I didn’t have maybe a mental block of ‘maybe we are not being sensitive enough.’”
Szu Yu Chen, a graphics reporter at The Washington Post and an O-1 visa holder, believes her background has helped her become a better journalist. She first came to the U.S. from Taiwan in 2019 on an F-1 student visa to pursue graduate studies in journalism at Northeastern University.
“Being a journalist is all about being curious,” Chen said. “Being an international or a foreigner in this country helps with that. It makes me more curious about a lot of the things that probably people wouldn’t think of.”
To illustrate, she pointed to a story she worked on at The Post that explained how Democrats could choose a new candidate after Biden withdrew from the election last year. Trying to make sense of the process herself, she recalled, “I remember drawing, like, a very simple and ugly flowchart on my paper.”
That graphic became the main visual of the story, simplifying a complicated process to diverse audiences during an uncertain period in American politics.
Chen also reflected on one of her accomplishments: a piece called “What AI thinks a beautiful woman looks like.” The story drew a strong reader response and served as a way for Chen to interact with her audience; one reader shared that they cried because it resonated so deeply. “That also makes me feel very proud,” Chen said.
American media holds significant power in shaping conversations around global issues; Chen believes that having her voice in a U.S. newsroom also benefits her home country and community, since when coverage turns to Asian politics, she can bring in perspectives from Taiwan.
“Being able to work in U.S. media has always been my dream. We have a lot of very talented journalists here. I’ve always wanted to learn from them, but I also wanted to report more on my communities back in Taiwan,” Chen said.
Immigration, undoubtedly, is another area that benefits from immigrant and international journalists.
“For those on the immigration topic and especially on the deportation issue this year…my background can help our reporters a little bit,” said Yuqing Liu, a graphics reporter at The Minnesota Star Tribune. “Having people with different backgrounds, like reporters who can speak Spanish — that can be easier when they report on certain immigration stories.”
Originally from China, Liu came to the U.S to pursue her graduate studies in data visualization at Northeastern University in 2017. She is currently on the O-1 visa.
When the Trump administration began its crackdown on international students this year — with over 6000 student visas revoked so far — Liu noted that the F-1 visa status of these students was common knowledge to her, something that American reporters might not be as familiar with.
Trump’s latest executive order, imposing a $100,000 fee on new H-1B petitions, continues to intensify the rhetoric surrounding immigration, and the visa-dependent workforce faces palpable pressure while navigating an uncertain political landscape.
“That’s definitely not helpful for the industry if we want to hire more people with different perspectives,” said Liu.
The process of obtaining a skilled visa is long and often tedious. After graduation, the F-1 student visa allows for one year of professional work through Optional Practical Training in a student’s field of study, with the option of a two-year extension for STEM degrees. Following the F-1, many apply for the H-1B temporary work visa that allows an initial stay of three years, renewable once, though approval depends on a lottery system.
Neither Chen nor Liu, whose F-1 status was about to expire, was successful in obtaining the H-1B. After a stressful period of consulting lawyers, co-workers and friends, uncertain about their futures and jobs, both ultimately secured the O-1 visa, granted to individuals with extraordinary ability in their fields.
There are many reasons to pursue not just a career, but a life, in the U.S., driven by passion and tenacity. As evidenced by Esteban’s, Chen’s and Liu’s work, the resilience of international journalists fuels impactful reporting that resonates far beyond the newsroom.
“One of the reasons why I came to the U.S. is because here is where the best journalism is practiced… the level of rigor, professionality, resources dedicated to something and the level of the journalists working here is very, very high,” Esteban said.
“That’s one of the things that America has done really well: bringing to the U.S. the best of everywhere.”
