← 16 Dec Tuesday 17 December 2024 · to 23:59 UTC 18 Dec →
What the world's news said happened to people.
Counts of coverage, not of suffering
17,534 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 →

Most of the day's attention went to violence in Moscow, illness in Gudauri and a disaster in Mamoudzou. Georgia's coverage was about three times as grief-stricken as the world's. Taken together, the world's news read much harsher than usual.

Part of lifeHealth 29 in 100 of the stories about harm · about as usual Country that rose mostVanuatu 87 in 100 of its 196 stories, usually 26
RegionOceania 22 in 100 of its stories, usually 18
Tone of the words Much harsher than usual across the world's stories about harm

What the world's news was about today

how these are picked →
Conflict & violence

Russia

450 of its 1,022 stories (44%) were about people being harmed, usually 23%. Moscow accounted for 322 of Russia's 450 stories about harm, carried by 525 outlets. Reports of people killed ran at about three times the usual rate (247 stories). Accidents were named in 16 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual. Its coverage was about three times as angry as the world's.

Russia over 30 days → its stories → Moscow stories →
Health

Georgia

60 of its 79 stories (76%) were about people being harmed, usually 50%. Gudauri accounted for 34 of Georgia's 60 stories about harm, carried by 97 outlets. Reports of people killed ran at about 7 times the usual rate (41 stories). Poisoning was named in 36 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual. Its coverage was about three times as grief-stricken as the world's.

Georgia over 30 days → its stories → Gudauri stories →
Disasters & accidents

Mayotte

71 of its 82 stories (87%) were about people being harmed, usually 72%. Mamoudzou accounted for 54 of Mayotte's 71 stories about harm, carried by 107 outlets. Reports of people affected ran at about 4 times the usual rate (27 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as grief-stricken as the world's.

Mayotte over 30 days → its stories → Mamoudzou stories →
6 more places the news pointed at
Disasters & accidents

Vanuatu

170 of its 196 stories (87%) were about people being harmed, usually 26%. Reports of people injured ran at more than ten times the usual rate (19 stories). Tsunami was named in 128 of its stories about harm, about 4 times usual.

its stories →
Conflict & violence

Iraq

50 of its 84 stories (60%) were about people being harmed, usually 32%. Baghdad accounted for 31 of Iraq's 50 stories about harm, carried by 59 outlets. Covid was named in 22 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual.

its stories →
Disasters & accidents

Mozambique

38 of its 56 stories (68%) were about people being harmed, usually 53%. Reports of people affected ran at about twice the usual rate (9 stories). Cyclone was named in 27 of its stories about harm, about 6 times usual.

its stories →
Conflict & violence

Iran

68 of its 150 stories (45%) were about people being harmed, usually 35%. Reports of people injured ran at about 4 times the usual rate (11 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as fearful as the world's.

its stories →
Health

Fiji

41 of its 78 stories (53%) were about people being harmed, usually 28%. Reports of people affected ran at about three times the usual rate (19 stories).

its stories →
Disasters & accidents

Malawi

23 of its 66 stories (35%) were about people being harmed, usually 26%. Reports of people killed ran at about three times the usual rate (12 stories).

its stories →

Also named far more than usual: tsunami in Vanuatu (128 of its stories, about 4 times its usual); cyclone in Mozambique (27 of its stories, about 6 times its usual); covid in Iraq (22 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); cyclone in France (35 of its stories, about 5 times its usual); natural hazards in Senegal (12 of its stories, more than ten times its usual).

18 in 100 stories were about harm

usually 18; 17 the day before
20 in 10017 in 10018 Nov25 Nov2 Dec9 Dec17 Dec18 Nov: 18 in 10019 Nov: 18 in 10020 Nov: 17 in 10021 Nov: 18 in 10022 Nov: 17 in 10023 Nov: 17 in 10024 Nov: 18 in 10025 Nov: 18 in 10026 Nov: 18 in 10027 Nov: 18 in 10028 Nov: 17 in 10029 Nov: 17 in 10030 Nov: 17 in 1001 Dec: 18 in 1002 Dec: 17 in 1003 Dec: 17 in 1004 Dec: 17 in 1005 Dec: 17 in 1006 Dec: 18 in 1007 Dec: 18 in 1008 Dec: 20 in 1009 Dec: 19 in 10010 Dec: 18 in 10011 Dec: 17 in 10012 Dec: 17 in 10013 Dec: 17 in 10014 Dec: 17 in 10015 Dec: 18 in 10016 Dec: 17 in 10017 Dec: 18 in 100 · this day

Stories about people being harmed, in every 100 stories, the 30 days to 17 Dec. 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 17,534 stories about harm among 97,692 counted on 17 Dec.

Read the day's briefing

For the second day running, the news turned to Russia. Stories about people being harmed made up 18 in every 100 of the day's 97,692 stories, as usual. Mentions of the tsunami ran about 4 times their usual in Vanuatu's news. In Russia, 44% of the news was about people being harmed, where 23% is usual. On 18 December 2023, a year earlier, the share was 19 in every 100, against 18 today.

Written by code from the day's numbers.

Where harm was most of the news all →

Vanuatu87 in 100 of its 196 stories · usually 26 · mostly disasters & accidents Mayotte87 in 100 of its 82 stories · usually 72 · mostly disasters & accidents Georgia76 in 100 of its 79 stories · usually 50 · mostly health Mozambique68 in 100 of its 56 stories · usually 53 · mostly disasters & accidents Syria65 in 100 of its 782 stories · usually 70 · mostly conflict & violence

Countries with at least 50 stories that day.

Where people protested

Moscow Russia69 stories about protests or strikes, of its 322 Washington US61 stories about protests or strikes, of its 522 Damascus Syria60 stories about protests or strikes, of its 310 London UK23 stories about protests or strikes, of its 280 Melbourne Australia22 stories about protests or strikes, of its 45

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 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessUnited 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 Kingdom: about as warm as its own usual or lessUnited 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessTogo: too little coverage to readTimor-Leste: about as warm as its own usual or lessThailand: about as warm as its own usual or lessTanzania: about as warm as its own usual or lessTajikistan: about as warm as its own usual or lessTaiwan: about as warm as its own usual or lessSyria: 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessSuriname: too little coverage to readSouth Sudan: about as warm as its own usual or lessSudan: about as warm as its own usual or lessSpain: about as warm as its own usual or lessSouth Korea: 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessSerbia: 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessSt Vincent: about as warm as its own usual or lessSt. Lucia: too little coverage to readRwanda: about as warm as its own usual or lessRussia: about as warm as its own usual or lessRomania: about as warm as its own usual or lessQatar: about as warm as its own usual or lessPortugal: too little coverage to readPoland: about as warm as its own usual or lessPhilippines: too little coverage to readPeru: about as warm as its own usual or lessParaguay: about as warm as its own usual or lessPapua New Guinea: about as warm as its own usual or lessPanama: about as warm as its own usual or lessPalau: about as warm as its own usual or lessPakistan: about as warm as its own usual or lessOman: about as warm as its own usual or lessNorway: about as warm as its own usual or lessNorth Korea: 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 readNetherlands: about as warm as its own usual or lessCuraçao: 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessMoldova: about as warm as its own usual or lessMexico: 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 lessMalawi: 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 lessLibya: about as warm as its own usual or lessLiberia: about as warm as its own usual or lessLesotho: too little coverage to readLebanon: about as warm as its own usual or lessLatvia: about as warm as its own usual or lessLaos: about as warm as its own usual or lessKyrgyzstan: about as warm as its own usual or lessKuwait: too little coverage to readKosovo: 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 lessJordan: about as warm as its own usual or lessJapan: about as warm as its own usual or lessJamaica: about as warm as its own usual or lessItaly: 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 lessIran: about as warm as its own usual or lessIndonesia: about as warm as its own usual or lessIndia: too little coverage to readIceland: about as warm as its own usual or lessHungary: about as warm as its own usual or lessHonduras: about as warm as its own usual or lessHaiti: 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: too little coverage to readFrance: 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessEstonia: about as warm as its own usual or lessEritrea: too little coverage to readEquatorial Guinea: too little coverage to readEl Salvador: too little coverage to readEgypt: 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessGreenland: 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: too little coverage to readCosta Rica: about as warm as its own usual or lessDR Congo: about as warm as its own usual or lessComoros: too little coverage to readColombia: 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessCape Verde: about as warm as its own usual or lessCanada: about as warm as its own usual or lessCameroon: 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessBurkina Faso: about as warm as its own usual or lessBulgaria: about as warm as its own usual or lessBrunei: about as warm as its own usual or lessBrazil: about as warm as its own usual or lessBotswana: about as warm as its own usual or lessBosnia and Herzegovina: about as warm as its own usual or lessBolivia: 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessBarbados: too little coverage to readBangladesh: about as warm as its own usual or lessBahrain: too little coverage to readBahamas: about as warm as its own usual or lessAzerbaijan: 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessAngola: about as warm as its own usual or lessAndorra: too little coverage to readAlgeria: too little coverage to readAlbania: about as warm as its own usual or lessJammu & Kashmir: 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessSiachen Glacier: about as warm as its own usual or lessCrimea: about as warm as its own usual or lessEast Jerusalem: about as warm as its own usual or lessAzad Kashmir & Gilgit-Baltistan: about as warm as its own usual or lessVatican City: about as warm as its own usual or lessMarshall Islands: about as warm as its own usual or lessNorthern Mariana Islands: too little coverage to readAmerican Samoa: too little coverage to readChagos Islands: about as warm as its own usual or lessSt. 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessGuernsey: about as warm as its own usual or lessSan Marino: too little coverage to readSt Kitts & Nevis: too little coverage to readCook Islands: about as warm as its own usual or lessAruba: 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: about as warm as its own usual or lessNorfolk Island: too little coverage to readSint Maarten: too little coverage to readChristmas Island: too little coverage to readGibraltar: too little coverage to readMayotte: about as warm as its own usual or lessVenezuela: warmth about its own usualSri Lanka: warmth about one and a half times its own usualCongo: warmth about its own usualChina: warmth about its own usualAfghanistan: warmth about its own usualChina: warmth about its own usualBerkshire, UK -- health: 19 stories, carried by 17 outletsAbuja, Nigeria -- health: 34 stories, carried by 23 outletsSanta Monica, US -- rights & justice: 21 stories, carried by 47 outletsBrussels, Belgium -- health: 13 stories, carried by 74 outletsOrlando, US -- health: 12 stories, carried by 11 outletsBaghdad, Iraq -- conflict & violence: 31 stories, carried by 59 outletsRiyadh, Saudi Arabia -- disasters & accidents: 10 stories, carried by 10 outletsGlasgow, UK -- health: 50 stories, carried by 109 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

● Sri Lanka warmth about one and a half times usual

Warmest events

● Berkshire UK about one and a half times as warm as the day's news · health · 19 stories ● Abuja Nigeria about one and a half times as warm as the day's news · health · 34 stories ● Santa Monica US about one and a half times as warm as the day's news · rights & justice · 21 stories ● Brussels Belgium about one and a half times as warm as the day's news · health · 13 stories ● Orlando US about one and a half times as warm as the day's news · health · 12 stories

The day in three measures

Parts of life 30 days →

Health29% 4,983 stories · about as usual Rights & justice25% 4,255 stories · about as usual Disasters & accidents16% 2,695 stories · about as usual Conflict & violence14% 2,448 stories · about as usual Deaths & injuries, cause not given7% 1,131 stories · about as usual Food & livelihood4% 643 stories · about as usual Shelter & services4% 634 stories · about as usual Displacement2% 337 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 killed4,283 at about the usual rate Stories reporting arrests1,987 at about the usual rate Stories reporting people affected1,811 at about the usual rate Stories reporting people injured1,296 at about one and a half times the usual rate · most about the US and Israel Stories reporting abductions230 at about two-thirds of the usual rate · most about Israel and the US Stories reporting people displaced205 at about two-thirds of the usual rate · most about Syria and Israel Stories reporting refugees181 at about the usual rate Stories reporting evacuations67 at about half the usual rate · most about the US and Canada Stories reporting people falling ill15 at about a third of the usual rate · most about the US and Fiji

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 harsher than usual. Filled dot: today. Ring: usual.

● Angerabout as usual
● Warmthabout as usual
● Griefa little more 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

The week in human impact

Read the week →

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 account

Sign in · a username, an email and a password.

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.