We measure how the world's news covered people being harmed — and the help and hope within it.
976 of its 1,953 stories (50%) were about people being harmed, usually 32%. Paris accounted for 837 of France's 976 stories about harm, carried by 690 outlets. 797 of Paris' 837 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of arrests ran at about twice the usual rate (616 stories). Extreme cold was named in 70 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual, with hunger, flu and plague. Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's.
269 of its 387 stories (70%) were about people being harmed, usually 37%. Pulwama accounted for 176 of Kashmir's 269 stories about harm, carried by 67 outlets. Reports of people injured ran at about three times the usual rate (101 stories). Snowstorms were named in 13 of its stories about harm, about 4 times usual, with landslides. Its coverage was about three times as grief-stricken as the world's. Warmth in its coverage rose to about one and a half times its own usual.
332 of its 1,190 stories (28%) were about people being harmed, usually 16%. Reports of abductions ran at more than ten times the usual rate (11 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as fearful as the world's.
1,053 of its 4,935 stories (21%) were about people being harmed, usually 15%. Reports of people displaced ran at more than ten times the usual rate (20 stories). Snowstorms were named in 121 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual, with house fires.
101 of its 108 stories (94%) were about people being harmed, usually 66%. Bentiu accounted for 87 of South Sudan's 101 stories about harm, carried by 94 outlets. Reports of people displaced ran at about 10 times the usual rate (90 stories). Its coverage was about twice as warm as the world's.
229 of its 283 stories (81%) were about people being harmed, usually 65%. Baidoa accounted for 124 of Somalia's 229 stories about harm, carried by 110 outlets. 120 of Baidoa's 124 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of arrests ran at more than ten times the usual rate (130 stories).
1,017 of its 1,467 stories (69%) were about people being harmed, usually 51%. Ramallah accounted for 912 of Palestine's 1,017 stories about harm, carried by 173 outlets. Fear in its coverage rose to about one and a half times its own usual.
105 of its 147 stories (71%) were about people being harmed, usually 58%. Reports of abductions ran at more than ten times the usual rate (23 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as warm as the world's.
83 of its 179 stories (46%) were about people being harmed, usually 34%. Reports of people injured ran at more than ten times the usual rate (25 stories). Grief in its coverage rose to about twice its own usual.
40 of its 50 stories (80%) were about people being harmed, usually 62%. 24 of Managua's 31 stories were about protests or strikes. Its coverage was about one and a half times as fearful as the world's.
Also named far more than usual: cyclone in Australia (125 of its stories, about 5 times its usual); wildfires in Greece (20 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); outbreaks in Israel (67 of its stories, about 4 times its usual); poisoning in India (140 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); power cuts in Ireland (24 of its stories, about 8 times its usual).
Stories about people being harmed, in every 100 stories, the 30 days to 15 Dec. 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 22,015 stories about harm among 111,216 counted on 15 Dec.
It was the second day running that the news turned to France. of the day's 111,216 news stories, 20 in every 100 were about people being harmed, as usual. France stood out: 50% of its news was about people being harmed, usually 32%. A year earlier, on 15 December 2017, 19 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 much harsher 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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