Hong Kong
152 of its 223 stories (68%) were about people being harmed, usually 32%. 17 of Hong Kong's 28 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of arrests ran at about 8 times the usual rate (122 stories).
What the world's news said happened to people.
Counts of coverage, not of suffering
We measure how the world's news covered people being harmed — and the help and hope within it.
The news turned to protests in Hong Kong, illness in Philippine and abductions in Pakistan. Pakistan's coverage was about twice as angry as the world's. Language across the world's news ran about as usual.
Part of lifeHealth
60 in 100 of the stories about harm · about as usual
Country that rose mostHong Kong
68 in 100 of its 223 stories, usually 32
RegionCentral Asia
42 in 100 of its stories, usually 35
Tone of the words
About as usual
across the world's stories about harm
What the world's news was about today
how these are picked →Philippines
306 of its 567 stories (54%) were about people being harmed, usually 44%. Philippine accounted for 121 of the Philippines' 306 stories about harm, carried by 54 outlets. Reports of arrests ran at about three times the usual rate (46 stories).
Pakistan
316 of its 725 stories (44%) were about people being harmed, usually 36%. Reports of abductions ran at about twice the usual rate (16 stories). Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's. Fear in its coverage rose to about one and a half times its own usual.
Kashmir
Reports of evacuations ran at more than ten times the usual rate (5 stories). Snowstorms were named in 22 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual, with avalanche and landslides. Its coverage was about one and a half times as grief-stricken as the world's.
6 more places the news pointed at
North Korea
64 of its 107 stories (60%) were about people being harmed, usually 46%. Pyongyang accounted for 49 of North Korea's 64 stories about harm, carried by 156 outlets. Typhoon was named in 15 of its stories about harm, about 5 times usual.
UK
Reports of evacuations ran at about three times the usual rate (18 stories). Extreme cold was named in 22 of its stories about harm, about three times usual. Its coverage was about one and a half times as fearful as the world's.
US
918 of Washington's 1,557 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of evacuations ran at about three times the usual rate (72 stories). Accidents were named in 35 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual.
Armenia
17 of its 35 stories (49%) were about people being harmed, usually 30%. Reports of people affected ran at about three times the usual rate (5 stories).
Ukraine
51 of its 135 stories (38%) were about people being harmed, usually 28%. Reports of people affected ran at about twice the usual rate (6 stories).
China
803 of its 2,397 stories (34%) were about people being harmed, usually 27%. Reports of arrests ran at about three times the usual rate (166 stories).
Also named far more than usual: typhoon in North Korea (15 of its stories, about 5 times its usual); flu in India (190 of its stories, about 9 times its usual); drownings in New Zealand (14 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); flu in France (11 of its stories, about 4 times its usual); extreme cold in Ireland (11 of its stories, about 7 times its usual).
27 in 100 stories were about harm
usually 27; 27 the day beforeStories about people being harmed, in every 100 stories, the 30 days to 6 Jan. 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 24,736 stories about harm among 93,038 counted on 6 Jan.
Read the day's briefing
Hong Kong's news was 68% about people being harmed, against a usual 32%. of the day's 93,038 news stories, 27 in every 100 were about people being harmed, as usual. A year earlier, on 7 January 2020, 20 in every 100 stories were about people being harmed, against 27 today.
- 27 in every 100 of the day's 93,038 news stories were about people being harmed (usually 27).
- Hong Kong: 152 of its 223 stories (68%) were about people being harmed, usually 32%.
- Philippines: 306 of its 567 stories (54%) were about people being harmed, usually 44%.
- Pakistan: 316 of its 725 stories (44%) were about people being harmed, usually 36%.
- Kashmir: Reports of evacuations ran at more than ten times the usual rate (5 stories).
- Mentions of snowstorms ran more than ten times their usual in Kashmir's news.
- Mentions of the typhoon ran about 5 times their usual in North Korea's news.
- Across the world, the words of the day's news were about as usual.
- A year earlier, on 7 January 2020, 20 in every 100 stories were about people being harmed, against 27 today.
Written by code from the day's numbers.
Where harm was most of the news all →
Hong Kong68 in 100 of its 223 stories · usually 32 · mostly rights & justice North Korea60 in 100 of its 107 stories · usually 46 · mostly health Palestine55 in 100 of its 74 stories · usually 47 · mostly conflict & violence Philippines54 in 100 of its 567 stories · usually 44 · mostly health Syria50 in 100 of its 88 stories · usually 55 · mostly conflict & violenceCountries with at least 50 stories that day.
Where people protested
Washington US918 stories about protests or strikes, of its 1557 Beijing China145 stories about protests or strikes, of its 355 Kenosha US132 stories about protests or strikes, of its 195 Atlanta US58 stories about protests or strikes, of its 180 New Delhi India50 stories about protests or strikes, of its 328Stories, not people.
Where it happened
feelings in full →
Attacks & violenceAccidents & disastersPeople displacedDeaths, cause not givenProtests & strikesDisease & outbreaks
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.
Biggest events
● Washington US protests & strikes · 1,557 stories, 1,611 outlets ● Kenosha US protests & strikes · 195 stories, 579 outlets ● Khartoum Sudan attacks & violence · 23 stories, 163 outlets ● Pyongyang North Korea accidents & disasters · 49 stories, 156 outlets ● New Delhi India disease & outbreaks · 328 stories, 119 outlets ● Tehran Iran attacks & violence · 79 stories, 93 outlets ● Quetta Pakistan protests & strikes · 43 stories, 48 outlets ● Peshawar Pakistan attacks & violence · 19 stories, 39 outletsThe day in three measures
Parts of life 30 days →
Health60% 14,775 stories · about as usual Rights & justice17% 4,168 stories · more than usual (usually 14%) Disasters & accidents7% 1,689 stories · about as usual Conflict & violence7% 1,621 stories · about as usual Deaths & injuries, cause not given4% 895 stories · about as usual Displacement3% 658 stories · about as usual Shelter & services2% 432 stories · about as usual Food & livelihood1% 276 stories · about as usualOf the stories about people being harmed, what part of life each was about. The mark is usual.
Harm reported 30 days →
Stories reporting people killed6,202 at about the usual rate Stories reporting arrests2,183 at about one and a half times the usual rate · most about the US and India Stories reporting people affected1,477 at about the usual rate Stories reporting people injured1,077 at about two-thirds of the usual rate · most about the US and Pakistan Stories reporting evacuations147 at about one and a half times the usual rate · most about the US and the UK Stories reporting abductions124 at about half the usual rate · most about Nigeria and Pakistan Stories reporting refugees90 at about half the usual rate · most about the US and Nigeria Stories reporting people displaced89 at about two-thirds of the usual rate · most about the US and Nigeria Stories reporting people falling ill39 at about the usual rateStories 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 about as usual. Filled dot: today. Ring: usual.
● Angerabout as usual
● Warmthabout as usual
● Griefa little less than 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
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These are counts of stories, not counts of suffering. Most of what happens to people is never reported at all.