We measure how the world's news covered people being harmed — and the help and hope within it.
485 of its 688 stories (70%) were about people being harmed, usually 45%. Ramallah accounted for 288 of Palestine's 485 stories about harm, carried by 44 outlets. 220 of Ramallah's 288 stories were about protests or strikes. Fear in its coverage rose to about one and a half times its own usual.
76 of its 120 stories (63%) were about people being harmed, usually 42%. Reports of people injured ran at more than ten times the usual rate (48 stories). Road crashes were named in 41 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual. Its coverage was about three times as grief-stricken as the world's.
414 of its 916 stories (45%) were about people being harmed, usually 30%. Riyadh accounted for 359 of Saudi Arabia's 414 stories about harm, carried by 296 outlets. Reports of people displaced ran at about 4 times the usual rate (22 stories).
1,205 of its 2,755 stories (44%) were about people being harmed, usually 32%. Reports of people injured ran at about three times the usual rate (273 stories). Tsunami was named in 72 of its stories about harm, about 4 times usual, with volcanic eruption and drought.
115 of its 214 stories (54%) were about people being harmed, usually 34%. 57 of Addis Ababa's 58 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of people killed ran at about three times the usual rate (99 stories). Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's.
222 of its 343 stories (65%) were about people being harmed, usually 52%. Caracas accounted for 118 of Venezuela's 222 stories about harm, carried by 113 outlets. 112 of Caracas' 118 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of refugees ran at about 9 times the usual rate (5 stories).
125 of its 287 stories (44%) were about people being harmed, usually 37%. Colombo accounted for 97 of Sri Lanka's 125 stories about harm, carried by 76 outlets. Reports of people displaced ran at about 4 times the usual rate (28 stories). Heavy rain was named in 17 of its stories about harm, about three times usual.
99 of its 134 stories (74%) were about people being harmed, usually 20%. Quito accounted for 95 of Ecuador's 99 stories about harm, carried by 82 outlets. Reports of people killed ran at more than ten times the usual rate (98 stories).
39 of its 74 stories (53%) were about people being harmed, usually 26%. 32 of Ouagadougou's 32 stories were about protests or strikes. Its coverage was about twice as fearful as the world's.
642 of its 1,128 stories (57%) were about people being harmed, usually 42%. 221 of Jerusalem's 310 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of arrests ran at about three times the usual rate (314 stories).
Also named far more than usual: heavy rain in Sri Lanka (17 of its stories, about three times its usual); respiratory illness in Ghana (15 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); bird flu in South Korea (14 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); heavy rain in Iraq (30 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); measles in Australia (72 of its stories, about 8 times its usual).
Stories about people being harmed, in every 100 stories, the 30 days to 18 Apr. 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 49,257 stories about harm among 245,996 counted on 18 Apr.
Mentions of road crashes ran more than ten times their usual in Myanmar's news. of the day's 245,996 news stories, 20 in every 100 were about people being harmed, below the usual 22. Palestine stood out: 70% of its news was about people being harmed, usually 45%. A year earlier, on 18 April 2016, 22 in every 100 stories were about people being harmed, against 20 today.
Written by code from the day's numbers.
Countries with at least 50 stories that day.
Stories, not people.
The day's biggest events: attacks, accidents and disasters, people displaced, protests, outbreaks. Bigger dot: more stories. Ranked by the share of the day's outlets that reported it and how clearly it was about one thing, the same way for every place and year; the news data does not say who attacked whom, so both sides of a war appear where the news put them. Click a dot for its 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 softer than 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.