We measure how the world's news covered people being harmed — and the help and hope within it.
41 of its 52 stories (79%) were about people being harmed, usually 24%. Tripoli accounted for 17 of Libya's 41 stories about harm, carried by 38 outlets. Reports of people affected ran at about 5 times the usual rate (28 stories). Its coverage was about twice as grief-stricken as the world's.
29 of its 55 stories (53%) were about people being harmed, usually 28%. 9 of Tunis' 16 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of arrests ran at about 6 times the usual rate (12 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as fearful as the world's.
25 of its 36 stories (69%) were about people being harmed, usually 41%. Reports of people killed ran at about twice the usual rate (23 stories). Ebola was named in 18 of its stories about harm, about 8 times usual, with outbreaks and haemorrhagic fever. Its coverage was about one and a half times as grief-stricken as the world's.
43 of its 75 stories (57%) were about people being harmed, usually 42%. Kabul accounted for 25 of Afghanistan's 43 stories about harm, carried by 21 outlets. Reports of refugees ran at about twice the usual rate (5 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as angry as the world's.
44 of its 66 stories (67%) were about people being harmed, usually 22%. Chiriqui accounted for 19 of Panama's 44 stories about harm, carried by 27 outlets. Reports of people injured ran at more than ten times the usual rate (24 stories).
250 of its 442 stories (57%) were about people being harmed, usually 36%. Reports of people displaced ran at more than ten times the usual rate (32 stories). Cyclone was named in 195 of its stories about harm, about 4 times usual, with power cuts, landslides and tsunami.
31 of its 34 stories (91%) were about people being harmed, usually 41%. Its coverage was about one and a half times as grief-stricken as the world's.
256 of its 796 stories (32%) were about people being harmed, usually 27%. Heavy rain was named in 22 of its stories about harm, about three times usual.
Reports of evacuations ran at about 5 times the usual rate (5 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as angry as the world's.
Reports of evacuations ran at about twice the usual rate (66 stories). Train derailment was named in 408 of its stories about harm, about 8 times usual.
Also named far more than usual: cyclone in New Zealand (195 of its stories, about 4 times its usual); covid in Armenia (12 of its stories, about 6 times its usual); extreme cold in Syria (32 of its stories, about three times its usual); train derailment in US (408 of its stories, about 8 times its usual); heavy rain in South Africa (22 of its stories, about three times its usual).
Stories about people being harmed, in every 100 stories, the 30 days to 15 Feb. 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 15,612 stories about harm among 79,086 counted on 15 Feb.
Libya stood out: 79% of its news was about people being harmed, usually 24%. 20 in every 100 of the day's 79,086 news stories were about people being harmed, as usual. A year earlier, on 15 February 2022, 23 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 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?
Unlock a year of trends, free. Follow up to 5 countries, with a bell when their news changes, and 👍 vote for Pro — ten years of the archive, any period, daily alerts.
Create a free accountSign in · a username, an email and a password.