We measure how the world's news covered people being harmed — and the help and hope within it.
314 of its 436 stories (72%) were about people being harmed, usually 18%. Giewont accounted for 247 of Poland's 314 stories about harm, carried by 249 outlets. Reports of people affected ran at more than ten times the usual rate (210 stories). Its coverage was about twice as grief-stricken as the world's.
64 of its 116 stories (55%) were about people being harmed, usually 31%. Algiers accounted for 58 of Algeria's 64 stories about harm, carried by 53 outlets. Reports of people injured ran at more than ten times the usual rate (25 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as grief-stricken as the world's.
178 of its 254 stories (70%) were about people being harmed, usually 51%. Baghdad accounted for 139 of Iraq's 178 stories about harm, carried by 200 outlets. Reports of people injured ran at about three times the usual rate (97 stories). Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's.
185 of its 418 stories (44%) were about people being harmed, usually 33%. 41 of Jakarta's 62 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of evacuations ran at more than ten times the usual rate (14 stories). Drownings were named in 18 of its stories about harm, about 5 times usual.
440 of its 863 stories (51%) were about people being harmed, usually 38%. Ramallah accounted for 288 of Palestine's 440 stories about harm, carried by 44 outlets. Reports of evacuations ran at more than ten times the usual rate (10 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as angry as the world's. Fear in its coverage rose to about twice its own usual.
192 of its 504 stories (38%) were about people being harmed, usually 31%. 93 of Harare's 110 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of arrests ran at about twice the usual rate (54 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as angry as the world's.
963 of its 1,796 stories (54%) were about people being harmed, usually 30%. Reports of people affected ran at about 5 times the usual rate (180 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as warm as the world's.
180 of its 363 stories (50%) were about people being harmed, usually 32%. Reports of people injured ran at about 6 times the usual rate (64 stories). Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's.
705 of its 1,219 stories (58%) were about people being harmed, usually 42%. Jerusalem accounted for 438 of Israel's 705 stories about harm, carried by 191 outlets. Reports of abductions ran at more than ten times the usual rate (94 stories).
99 of its 239 stories (41%) were about people being harmed, usually 30%. 20 of Sonawar's 33 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of arrests ran at about twice the usual rate (26 stories).
Also named far more than usual: malaria in Switzerland (23 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); flooding in Taiwan (17 of its stories, about 6 times its usual); flooding in Sudan (13 of its stories, about 8 times its usual); drought in Mexico (23 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); measles in New Zealand (18 of its stories, about 6 times its usual).
Stories about people being harmed, in every 100 stories, the 30 days to 23 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 33,065 stories about harm among 158,850 counted on 23 Aug.
Poland stood out: 72% of its news was about people being harmed, usually 18%. 21 in every 100 of the day's 158,850 news stories were about people being harmed, below the usual 22. In Switzerland's news, mentions of the malaria ran more than ten times their usual. People falling ill were reported at about twice the usual rate, most often about the US and Spain. It was the second day running that the news turned to Poland.
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?
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