We measure how the world's news covered people being harmed — and the help and hope within it.
589 of its 1,024 stories (58%) were about people being harmed, usually 23%. Geneva accounted for 396 of Switzerland's 589 stories about harm, carried by 502 outlets. Reports of people killed ran at about 5 times the usual rate (497 stories). HIV was named in 43 of its stories about harm, about 4 times usual, with tsunami. Its coverage was about twice as warm as the world's.
80 of its 110 stories (73%) were about people being harmed, usually 11%. Krusevo accounted for 77 of North Macedonia's 80 stories about harm, carried by 76 outlets. Reports of people killed ran at about 9 times the usual rate (80 stories). Its coverage was about three times as grief-stricken as the world's.
370 of its 696 stories (53%) were about people being harmed, usually 36%. Mecca accounted for 260 of Saudi Arabia's 370 stories about harm, carried by 434 outlets. 141 of Mecca's 260 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of people injured ran at about 8 times the usual rate (182 stories).
44 of its 68 stories (65%) were about people being harmed, usually 40%. Reports of people killed ran at about twice the usual rate (31 stories). HIV was named in 23 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual. Its coverage was about one and a half times as warm as the world's.
196 of its 271 stories (72%) were about people being harmed, usually 27%. Santiago accounted for 185 of Chile's 196 stories about harm, carried by 210 outlets. Reports of people injured ran at about 10 times the usual rate (57 stories). Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's.
348 of its 419 stories (83%) were about people being harmed, usually 53%. Reports of people killed ran at about three times the usual rate (292 stories). Drownings were named in 45 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual. Its coverage was about one and a half times as warm as the world's.
80 of its 224 stories (36%) were about people being harmed, usually 17%. 74 of Bucharest's 74 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of people injured ran at about 6 times the usual rate (72 stories). Its coverage was about three times as angry as the world's. Warmth in its coverage rose to about one and a half times its own usual.
119 of its 328 stories (36%) were about people being harmed, usually 25%. 57 of Hanoi's 67 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of evacuations ran at about three times the usual rate (5 stories). Its coverage was about twice as fearful as the world's.
384 of its 996 stories (39%) were about people being harmed, usually 13%. Reports of people killed ran at about 8 times the usual rate (250 stories). Its coverage was about twice as warm as the world's.
674 of its 1,315 stories (51%) were about people being harmed, usually 33%. Reports of people displaced ran at about 7 times the usual rate (6 stories). Its coverage was about three times as grief-stricken as the world's.
Also named far more than usual: landslides in India (659 of its stories, about 5 times its usual); power cuts in Costa Rica (15 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); road crashes in Palestine (39 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); wildfires in Australia (90 of its stories, about 5 times its usual); drownings in Iraq (45 of its stories, more than ten times its usual).
Stories about people being harmed, in every 100 stories, the 30 days to 18 Aug. 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 25,588 stories about harm among 112,407 counted on 18 Aug.
On the side of help, reports of people freed or reunited ran at about twice the usual rate. Switzerland stood out: 58% of its news was about people being harmed, usually 23%. A year earlier, on 18 August 2017, 27 in every 100 stories were about people being harmed, against 23 today. of the day's 112,407 news stories, 23 in every 100 were about people being harmed, above the usual 20.
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 much 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?
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