We measure how the world's news covered people being harmed — and the help and hope within it.
319 of its 1,068 stories (30%) were about people being harmed, usually 22%. 88 of Rio de Janeiro's 121 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of people affected ran at about 7 times the usual rate (109 stories). Tsunami was named in 184 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual, with oil spill, flooding and tornadoes. Its coverage was about twice as grief-stricken as the world's.
49 of its 72 stories (68%) were about people being harmed, usually 22%. Abidjan accounted for 38 of Côte d’Ivoire's 49 stories about harm, carried by 25 outlets. Reports of arrests ran at about 9 times the usual rate (7 stories). Volcanic eruption was named in 10 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual.
379 of its 2,102 stories (18%) were about people being harmed, usually 9%. Reports of people injured ran at more than ten times the usual rate (199 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as warm as the world's.
189 of its 904 stories (21%) were about people being harmed, usually 15%. Reports of arrests ran at about twice the usual rate (14 stories). Its coverage was about twice as grief-stricken as the world's.
364 of its 677 stories (54%) were about people being harmed, usually 32%. Mecca accounted for 288 of Saudi Arabia's 364 stories about harm, carried by 260 outlets. Reports of people injured ran at about 4 times the usual rate (161 stories). Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's.
313 of its 579 stories (54%) were about people being harmed, usually 35%. Caracas accounted for 256 of Venezuela's 313 stories about harm, carried by 221 outlets. 227 of Caracas' 256 stories were about protests or strikes.
1,712 of its 2,049 stories (84%) were about people being harmed, usually 72%. Reports of abductions ran at about 6 times the usual rate (219 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as angry as the world's.
1,534 of its 1,825 stories (84%) were about people being harmed, usually 73%. Aleppo accounted for 1,161 of Syria's 1,534 stories about harm, carried by 612 outlets. Its coverage was about three times as angry as the world's.
1,665 of its 2,876 stories (58%) were about people being harmed, usually 49%. 535 of Islamabad's 809 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of arrests ran at about 4 times the usual rate (402 stories).
Reports of refugees ran at about 6 times the usual rate (7 stories). Cholera was named in 40 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual. Its coverage was about one and a half times as angry as the world's.
Also named far more than usual: ebola in Guinea (25 of its stories, about 4 times its usual); cholera in Yemen (40 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); power cuts in Tajikistan (14 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); measles in Romania (15 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); flooding in Egypt (43 of its stories, more than ten times its usual).
Stories about people being harmed, in every 100 stories, the 30 days to 28 Oct. The big dot is this day; the shaded band is a normal day (the 30 days before it). Click a day to open it. Based on 54,339 stories about harm among 272,813 counted on 28 Oct.
Brazil's news mentioned the tsunami more than ten times as often as usual. 20 in every 100 of the day's 272,813 news stories were about people being harmed, below the usual 21. In Brazil, 30% of the news was about people being harmed, where 22% is usual.
Written by code from the day's numbers.
Countries with at least 50 stories that day.
Stories, not people.
Each country shaded by how much of its news was about people being harmed, against the world's 20 in 100 that day. Stronger colour: further above. A country with few stories is drawn closer to the world's. Click a country.
Stories, not people. Countries with at least 50 stories.
Of the stories about people being harmed, what part of life each was about. The mark is usual.
Stories that report it, not people: we count what reporters wrote, not what happened.
The words in the day's stories were about as usual. Filled dot: today. Ring: usual.
From the words reporters used across the whole day, never one story. Fear is the weakest of the four measures. How?
Unlock a year of trends, free. Follow up to 5 countries, with a bell when their news changes, and 👍 vote for Pro — ten years of the archive, any period, daily alerts.
Create a free accountSign in · a username, an email and a password.