Coronavirus in rural America (Part XXXXIX): mapping the virus in rural America

Note that the map here from the New York Times on May 16 treats "low population density" and "no cases reported" the same way.  Both appear in white.  That's unhelpful from the standpoint of trying to inform readers about rural spread.  It goes without saying that some places of low population density are going to have cases reported, and for those counties, the reader won't know which reason places them in the "white" category on the map. 

I'll note that my home county, Newton County, Arkansas, is in the "white" category.  I know they have had at least one case reported among 8,000 residents, so they must be in the "low population density category" rather than the "no cases reported" category.