← 21 Mar Sunday 22 March 2020 · to 23:59 UTC 23 Mar →
What the world's news said happened to people.
Counts of coverage, not of suffering
26,656 stories about harm· Trends· Every past day

We measure how the world's news covered people being harmed — and the help and hope within it.

How to read these numbers →

Extreme cold in Croatia, protests in Havana (Cuba) and people killed in the UK drew the news. Croatia's coverage was about twice as fearful as the world's. Across the world, the tone of the words was much softer than usual.

Part of lifeHealth 86 in 100 of the stories about harm · much more than usual Country that rose mostCroatia 86 in 100 of its 183 stories, usually 21
RegionCentral Asia 52 in 100 of its stories, usually 26
Tone of the words Much softer than usual across the world's stories about harm

What the world's news was about today

how these are picked →
Disasters & accidents

Croatia

157 of its 183 stories (86%) were about people being harmed, usually 21%. Zagreb accounted for 156 of Croatia's 157 stories about harm, carried by 417 outlets. Reports of people injured ran at more than ten times the usual rate (16 stories). Extreme cold was named in 19 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual. Its coverage was about twice as fearful as the world's.

Croatia over 30 days → its stories → Zagreb stories →
Protests & strikes

Cuba

36 of its 49 stories (73%) were about people being harmed, usually 29%. 9 of Havana's 18 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of evacuations ran at more than ten times the usual rate (9 stories). Ebola was named in 16 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual, with cholera.

Cuba over 30 days → its stories → Havana stories →
Health

UK

1,831 of its 3,982 stories (46%) were about people being harmed, usually 29%. Reports of people killed ran at about twice the usual rate (606 stories). Tsunami was named in 11 of its stories about harm, about 4 times usual. Its coverage was about one and a half times as fearful as the world's.

UK over 30 days → its stories →
Protests & strikes

Colombia

41 of its 58 stories (71%) were about people being harmed, usually 31%. 12 of la Modelo's 12 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of people injured ran at more than ten times the usual rate (22 stories). Its coverage was about twice as grief-stricken as the world's.

Colombia over 30 days → its stories → La Modelo stories →
6 more places the news pointed at
Health

Spain

282 of its 546 stories (52%) were about people being harmed, usually 28%. Reports of people injured ran at about 4 times the usual rate (8 stories). Its coverage was about twice as grief-stricken as the world's.

its stories →
Health

US

9,054 of its 18,454 stories (49%) were about people being harmed, usually 32%. Reports of people injured ran at about three times the usual rate (531 stories). Malaria was named in 132 of its stories about harm, about 5 times usual, with west nile virus.

its stories →
Health

Romania

29 of its 46 stories (63%) were about people being harmed, usually 28%. Reports of people killed ran at about 4 times the usual rate (10 stories). Its coverage was about twice as grief-stricken as the world's.

its stories →
Health

United Arab Emirates

151 of its 363 stories (42%) were about people being harmed, usually 24%. Dubai accounted for 138 of the United Arab Emirates' 151 stories about harm, carried by 321 outlets. Reports of people killed ran at about twice the usual rate (29 stories).

its stories →
Health

Uganda

50 of its 89 stories (56%) were about people being harmed, usually 34%. Reports of people killed ran at about twice the usual rate (19 stories). Flu was named in 11 of its stories about harm, about 8 times usual.

its stories →
Health

Libya

34 of its 44 stories (77%) were about people being harmed, usually 48%. Tripoli accounted for 28 of Libya's 34 stories about harm, carried by 62 outlets. Its coverage was about three times as angry as the world's.

its stories →

Also named far more than usual: flu in Uganda (11 of its stories, about 8 times its usual); respiratory illness in Germany (18 of its stories, about 4 times its usual); plague in Nigeria (29 of its stories, about 4 times its usual); tsunami in China (16 of its stories, about 6 times its usual); malaria in US (132 of its stories, about 5 times its usual).

43 in 100 stories were about harm

usually 29; 41 the day before
43 in 10021 in 10022 Feb29 Feb7 Mar14 Mar22 Mar22 Feb: 21 in 10023 Feb: 21 in 10024 Feb: 21 in 10025 Feb: 22 in 10026 Feb: 22 in 10027 Feb: 23 in 10028 Feb: 24 in 10029 Feb: 26 in 1001 Mar: 25 in 1002 Mar: 24 in 1003 Mar: 25 in 1004 Mar: 25 in 1005 Mar: 25 in 1006 Mar: 26 in 1007 Mar: 27 in 1008 Mar: 28 in 1009 Mar: 27 in 10010 Mar: 28 in 10011 Mar: 29 in 10012 Mar: 31 in 10013 Mar: 33 in 10014 Mar: 36 in 10015 Mar: 37 in 10016 Mar: 37 in 10017 Mar: 38 in 10018 Mar: 39 in 10019 Mar: 40 in 10020 Mar: 40 in 10021 Mar: 41 in 10022 Mar: 43 in 100 · this day

Stories about people being harmed, in every 100 stories, the 30 days to 22 Mar. 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 26,656 stories about harm among 61,655 counted on 22 Mar.

Read the day's briefing

Of the day's 61,655 news stories, 43 in every 100 were about people being harmed, above the usual 29. the share of stories about people being harmed was the highest in all 1543 days held. Croatia's news was 86% about people being harmed, against a usual 21%. In Cuba's news, mentions of Ebola ran more than ten times their usual. This week the news turned most often to Iraq, on 3 of 7 days; help rose on 4 of them.

Written by code from the day's numbers.

Where harm was most of the news all →

Croatia86 in 100 of its 183 stories · usually 21 · mostly disasters & accidents North Korea80 in 100 of its 98 stories · usually 50 · mostly health Iran79 in 100 of its 317 stories · usually 66 · mostly health Syria73 in 100 of its 78 stories · usually 73 · mostly health Colombia71 in 100 of its 58 stories · usually 31 · mostly health

Countries with at least 50 stories that day.

Where people protested

Washington US126 stories about protests or strikes, of its 1347 Delhi India45 stories about protests or strikes, of its 526 Wuhan China35 stories about protests or strikes, of its 455 Jerusalem Israel30 stories about protests or strikes, of its 125 Zagreb Croatia17 stories about protests or strikes, of its 156

Stories, not people.

Where the news was warmest

feelings in full →
Feelings Events Harm Warmth
Zimbabwe: about as warm as its own usual or lessZambia: about as warm as its own usual or lessYemen: about as warm as its own usual or lessVietnam: about as warm as its own usual or lessVenezuela: about as warm as its own usual or lessVanuatu: about as warm as its own usual or lessUzbekistan: about as warm as its own usual or lessUruguay: about as warm as its own usual or lessMicronesia: too little coverage to readU.S. Virgin Islands: too little coverage to readGuam: about as warm as its own usual or lessPuerto Rico: too little coverage to readUnited States: about as warm as its own usual or lessSouth Georgia & South Sandwich Islands: too little coverage to readFalkland Islands: too little coverage to readCayman Islands: about as warm as its own usual or lessIsle of Man: too little coverage to readUnited Arab Emirates: about as warm as its own usual or lessUkraine: about as warm as its own usual or lessUganda: about as warm as its own usual or lessTurkmenistan: too little coverage to readTurkey: about as warm as its own usual or lessTunisia: about as warm as its own usual or lessTrinidad & Tobago: about as warm as its own usual or lessTonga: too little coverage to readTogo: too little coverage to readTimor-Leste: too little coverage to readThailand: about as warm as its own usual or lessTanzania: about as warm as its own usual or lessTajikistan: too little coverage to readSyria: about as warm as its own usual or lessSwitzerland: about as warm as its own usual or lessSweden: about as warm as its own usual or lessEswatini: too little coverage to readSuriname: about as warm as its own usual or lessSouth Sudan: about as warm as its own usual or lessSudan: about as warm as its own usual or lessSri Lanka: about as warm as its own usual or lessSpain: about as warm as its own usual or lessSouth Africa: about as warm as its own usual or lessSomalia: about as warm as its own usual or lessSomaliland: too little coverage to readSolomon Islands: too little coverage to readSlovakia: about as warm as its own usual or lessSlovenia: about as warm as its own usual or lessSingapore: about as warm as its own usual or lessSierra Leone: about as warm as its own usual or lessSeychelles: too little coverage to readSerbia: too little coverage to readSenegal: about as warm as its own usual or lessSaudi Arabia: about as warm as its own usual or lessSão Tomé: too little coverage to readSamoa: too little coverage to readSt Vincent: too little coverage to readSt. Lucia: about as warm as its own usual or lessRwanda: too little coverage to readRussia: about as warm as its own usual or lessRomania: about as warm as its own usual or lessPortugal: too little coverage to readPhilippines: about as warm as its own usual or lessPeru: too little coverage to readParaguay: too little coverage to readPapua New Guinea: too little coverage to readPanama: about as warm as its own usual or lessPalau: too little coverage to readPakistan: about as warm as its own usual or lessOman: too little coverage to readNorway: about as warm as its own usual or lessNigeria: about as warm as its own usual or lessNiger: about as warm as its own usual or lessNicaragua: about as warm as its own usual or lessNew Zealand: about as warm as its own usual or lessNiue: too little coverage to readCuraçao: too little coverage to readNepal: about as warm as its own usual or lessNamibia: about as warm as its own usual or lessMozambique: about as warm as its own usual or lessMorocco: about as warm as its own usual or lessWestern Sahara: too little coverage to readMontenegro: too little coverage to readMongolia: too little coverage to readMoldova: about as warm as its own usual or lessMauritius: about as warm as its own usual or lessMauritania: too little coverage to readMalta: about as warm as its own usual or lessMali: about as warm as its own usual or lessMalaysia: about as warm as its own usual or lessMadagascar: about as warm as its own usual or lessNorth Macedonia: about as warm as its own usual or lessLuxembourg: about as warm as its own usual or lessLithuania: about as warm as its own usual or lessLiberia: about as warm as its own usual or lessLesotho: too little coverage to readLatvia: too little coverage to readLaos: about as warm as its own usual or lessKyrgyzstan: about as warm as its own usual or lessKuwait: about as warm as its own usual or lessKosovo: too little coverage to readKiribati: too little coverage to readKenya: about as warm as its own usual or lessKazakhstan: about as warm as its own usual or lessJapan: about as warm as its own usual or lessIsrael: about as warm as its own usual or lessPalestine: about as warm as its own usual or lessIreland: about as warm as its own usual or lessIraq: about as warm as its own usual or lessIndonesia: about as warm as its own usual or lessIndia: about as warm as its own usual or lessIceland: about as warm as its own usual or lessHungary: about as warm as its own usual or lessHonduras: too little coverage to readHaiti: about as warm as its own usual or lessGuyana: about as warm as its own usual or lessGuinea-Bissau: too little coverage to readGuinea: about as warm as its own usual or lessGuatemala: about as warm as its own usual or lessGrenada: too little coverage to readGreece: about as warm as its own usual or lessGhana: about as warm as its own usual or lessGermany: about as warm as its own usual or lessGeorgia: about as warm as its own usual or lessGambia: about as warm as its own usual or lessGabon: about as warm as its own usual or lessFrance: about as warm as its own usual or lessSt Pierre & Miquelon: too little coverage to readFrench Polynesia: too little coverage to readNew Caledonia: too little coverage to readFrench Southern Territories: too little coverage to readÅland Islands: too little coverage to readFinland: about as warm as its own usual or lessFiji: about as warm as its own usual or lessEthiopia: too little coverage to readEstonia: about as warm as its own usual or lessEritrea: about as warm as its own usual or lessEquatorial Guinea: too little coverage to readEl Salvador: about as warm as its own usual or lessEgypt: about as warm as its own usual or lessEcuador: about as warm as its own usual or lessDominican Republic: about as warm as its own usual or lessDominica: too little coverage to readDjibouti: too little coverage to readGreenland: about as warm as its own usual or lessFaroe Islands: too little coverage to readDenmark: about as warm as its own usual or lessCzech Republic: about as warm as its own usual or lessN. Cyprus: too little coverage to readCyprus: about as warm as its own usual or lessCuba: about as warm as its own usual or lessCroatia: about as warm as its own usual or lessCôte d'Ivoire: about as warm as its own usual or lessCosta Rica: too little coverage to readDR Congo: about as warm as its own usual or lessCongo: about as warm as its own usual or lessComoros: too little coverage to readColombia: about as warm as its own usual or lessChina: about as warm as its own usual or lessHong Kong: about as warm as its own usual or lessChile: too little coverage to readChad: about as warm as its own usual or lessCentral African Republic: too little coverage to readCape Verde: too little coverage to readCameroon: about as warm as its own usual or lessCambodia: about as warm as its own usual or lessMyanmar: about as warm as its own usual or lessBurundi: too little coverage to readBurkina Faso: about as warm as its own usual or lessBulgaria: about as warm as its own usual or lessBrunei: too little coverage to readBrazil: about as warm as its own usual or lessBotswana: about as warm as its own usual or lessBosnia and Herzegovina: too little coverage to readBolivia: about as warm as its own usual or lessBhutan: about as warm as its own usual or lessBenin: too little coverage to readBelize: about as warm as its own usual or lessBelgium: about as warm as its own usual or lessBelarus: too little coverage to readBarbados: about as warm as its own usual or lessBangladesh: about as warm as its own usual or lessBahrain: about as warm as its own usual or lessBahamas: about as warm as its own usual or lessAustria: about as warm as its own usual or lessAustralia: about as warm as its own usual or lessHeard & McDonald Islands: too little coverage to readArmenia: about as warm as its own usual or lessArgentina: about as warm as its own usual or lessAntigua & Barbuda: too little coverage to readAngola: too little coverage to readAndorra: too little coverage to readAlgeria: about as warm as its own usual or lessAlbania: about as warm as its own usual or lessAfghanistan: about as warm as its own usual or lessJammu & Kashmir: too little coverage to readAksai Chin: about as warm as its own usual or lessGaza: about as warm as its own usual or lessWest Bank: about as warm as its own usual or lessWestern Sahara (Moroccan-controlled): too little coverage to readWestern Sahara (Free Zone): too little coverage to readAzad Kashmir & Gilgit-Baltistan: too little coverage to readSiachen Glacier: too little coverage to readCrimea: about as warm as its own usual or lessEast Jerusalem: about as warm as its own usual or lessAzad Kashmir & Gilgit-Baltistan: too little coverage to readVatican City: about as warm as its own usual or lessMarshall Islands: too little coverage to readNorthern Mariana Islands: too little coverage to readAmerican Samoa: about as warm as its own usual or lessChagos Islands: too little coverage to readSt. Helena: too little coverage to readPitcairn: too little coverage to readAnguilla: too little coverage to readBermuda: about as warm as its own usual or lessBritish Virgin Islands: too little coverage to readTurks & Caicos Islands: too little coverage to readMontserrat: too little coverage to readJersey: too little coverage to readGuernsey: too little coverage to readSan Marino: too little coverage to readSt Kitts & Nevis: about as warm as its own usual or lessCook Islands: too little coverage to readAruba: too little coverage to readNauru: too little coverage to readMonaco: about as warm as its own usual or lessMaldives: about as warm as its own usual or lessLiechtenstein: too little coverage to readWallis & Futuna: too little coverage to readSt. Martin: too little coverage to readSt. Barthélemy: too little coverage to readMacao: too little coverage to readNorfolk Island: too little coverage to readSint Maarten: too little coverage to readChristmas Island: too little coverage to readGibraltar: about as warm as its own usual or lessMayotte: too little coverage to readUK: warmth about its own usualTaiwan: warmth about its own usualSouth Korea: warmth about its own usualQatar: warmth about its own usualPoland: warmth about its own usualNorth Korea: warmth about its own usualNetherlands: warmth about its own usualMexico: warmth about its own usualMalawi: warmth about its own usualLibya: warmth about its own usualLebanon: warmth about its own usualJordan: warmth about its own usualJamaica: warmth about its own usualItaly: warmth about its own usualIran: warmth about its own usualCanada: warmth about its own usualAzerbaijan: warmth about one and a half times its own usualFelixstowe, UK -- health: 10 stories, carried by 14 outletsArkansas, US -- health: 10 stories, carried by 17 outletsSukma, India -- conflict & violence: 18 stories, carried by 27 outletsColorado, US -- health: 12 stories, carried by 12 outletsKabul, Afghanistan -- health: 30 stories, carried by 42 outletsCambridge, UK -- health: 56 stories, carried by 53 outletsVancouver, Canada -- health: 56 stories, carried by 72 outletsNoosa, Australia -- health: 17 stories, carried by 29 outlets
Warmer than its own usual The warmest eventsAbout as warm or lessToo little news

Each country shaded by the warmth in its news — care, help, gratitude — against its own last 30 days. Stronger colour: further above. Dots: the events whose coverage carried the most warmth, even where the event itself began as harm. Warm words, not good outcomes. Click a country or a dot.

Warmest news

● Azerbaijan warmth about one and a half times usual

Warmest events

● Felixstowe UK about twice as warm as the day's news · health · 10 stories ● Arkansas US about one and a half times as warm as the day's news · health · 10 stories ● Sukma India about one and a half times as warm as the day's news · conflict & violence · 18 stories ● Colorado US about one and a half times as warm as the day's news · health · 12 stories ● Kabul Afghanistan about one and a half times as warm as the day's news · health · 30 stories

The day in three measures

Parts of life 30 days →

Health86% 22,835 stories · much more than usual (usually 63%) Rights & justice4% 1,005 stories · much less than usual (usually 15%) Disasters & accidents4% 963 stories · less than usual (usually 8%) Conflict & violence2% 510 stories · less than usual (usually 7%) Shelter & services2% 478 stories · about as usual Deaths & injuries, cause not given2% 447 stories · about as usual Food & livelihood1% 165 stories · about as usual Displacement1% 153 stories · about as usual

Of the stories about people being harmed, what part of life each was about. The mark is usual.

Harm reported 30 days →

Stories reporting people killed7,393 at about one and a half times the usual rate · most about the US and the UK Stories reporting people affected1,662 at about the usual rate Stories reporting people injured914 at about one and a half times the usual rate · most about the US and India Stories reporting arrests835 at about the usual rate Stories reporting people falling ill103 at about the usual rate Stories reporting evacuations93 at about two-thirds of the usual rate · most about India and the US Stories reporting people displaced91 at about the usual rate Stories reporting refugees90 at about two-thirds of the usual rate · most about the US and Malaysia Stories reporting abductions47 at about two-thirds of the usual rate · most about Nigeria and the US

Stories that report it, not people: we count what reporters wrote, not what happened.

How it felt 30 days →

harshwarm

The words in the day's stories were much softer than usual. Filled dot: today. Ring: usual.

● Angerabout two-thirds of usual
● Warmthabout as usual
● Griefabout as usual
● Fearabout as usual

From the words reporters used across the whole day, never one story. Fear is the weakest of the four measures. How?

The weekly briefing · 19 Oct – 25 Oct

The week in human impact

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How to read these numbers →

These are counts of stories, not counts of suffering. Most of what happens to people is never reported at all.