We measure how the world's news covered people being harmed — and the help and hope within it.
169 of its 327 stories (52%) were about people being harmed, usually 41%. Harare accounted for 113 of Zimbabwe's 169 stories about harm, carried by 119 outlets. 81 of Harare's 113 stories were about protests or strikes. Drought was named in 22 of its stories about harm, about three times usual. Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's.
29 of its 47 stories (62%) were about people being harmed, usually 39%. Reports of arrests ran at about 5 times the usual rate (6 stories). Illness was named in 13 of its stories about harm, about three times usual. Its coverage was about one and a half times as angry as the world's.
181 of its 245 stories (74%) were about people being harmed, usually 31%. Reports of evacuations ran at more than ten times the usual rate (11 stories). Hurricane was named in 169 of its stories about harm, about 4 times usual, with storms, heavy rain and landslides.
150 of its 201 stories (75%) were about people being harmed, usually 65%. Kabul accounted for 84 of Afghanistan's 150 stories about harm, carried by 94 outlets. Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's.
144 of its 290 stories (50%) were about people being harmed, usually 35%. da Nang accounted for 93 of Vietnam's 144 stories about harm, carried by 268 outlets. Its coverage was about one and a half times as grief-stricken as the world's.
43 of its 56 stories (77%) were about people being harmed, usually 56%. Reports of people affected ran at about 7 times the usual rate (14 stories). Landslides were named in 16 of its stories about harm, about 6 times usual, with storms and power cuts.
154 of its 279 stories (55%) were about people being harmed, usually 45%. 31 of Hong Kong's 48 stories were about protests or strikes. Its coverage was about one and a half times as fearful as the world's.
Reports of people injured ran at about three times the usual rate (16 stories). Measles was named in 13 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual. Grief in its coverage rose to about one and a half times its own usual.
3 of Amman's 5 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of arrests ran at about three times the usual rate (9 stories). Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's.
Reports of people falling ill ran at about 8 times the usual rate (7 stories). Poisoning was named in 14 of its stories about harm, about 5 times usual. Its coverage was about one and a half times as grief-stricken as the world's.
Also named far more than usual: hurricane in Dominican Republic (12 of its stories, about three times its usual); landslides in Puerto Rico (16 of its stories, about 6 times its usual); outbreaks in Nepal (10 of its stories, about 5 times its usual); measles in New Zealand (13 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); flu in Ireland (15 of its stories, about 4 times its usual).
Stories about people being harmed, in every 100 stories, the 30 days to 31 Jul. 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 29,501 stories about harm among 101,514 counted on 31 Jul.
It was the second day running that the news turned to Zimbabwe. of the day's 101,514 news stories, 29 in every 100 were about people being harmed, below the usual 30. the Bahamas' news mentioned the hurricane about 4 times as often as usual. A year earlier, on 1 August 2019, 20 in every 100 stories were about people being harmed, against 29 today. In Zimbabwe, 52% of the news was about people being harmed, where 41% is usual.
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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