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.
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The news turned to violence in Pyongyang, the earthquake in Japan and people affected in Poland. North Korea's coverage was about three times as grief-stricken as the world's. Worldwide, the words used were much softer than usual.
Conflict & violence
57 of its 85 stories (67%) were about people being harmed, usually 23%. Pyongyang accounted for 37 of North Korea's 57 stories about harm, carried by 164 outlets. Reports of arrests ran at more than ten times the usual rate (22 stories). Its coverage was about three times as grief-stricken as the world's.
Disasters & accidents
201 of its 773 stories (26%) were about people being harmed, usually 13%. Reports of people killed ran at about twice the usual rate (45 stories). Earthquake was named in 124 of its stories about harm, about 6 times usual, with tsunami and volcanic eruption.
Rights & justice
32 of its 127 stories (25%) were about people being harmed, usually 17%. Reports of people affected ran at about 5 times the usual rate (10 stories). Its coverage was about twice as grief-stricken as the world's.
Health
Reports of people displaced ran at about three times the usual rate (6 stories). Hypothermia was named in 10 of its stories about harm, about three times usual.
6 more places the news pointed at
Conflict & violence
Reports of people displaced ran at about twice the usual rate (6 stories). Accidents were named in 10 of its stories about harm, about 4 times usual. Its coverage was about one and a half times as angry as the world's.
Conflict & violence
8 of its 11 stories (73%) were about people being harmed, usually 19%. Its coverage was about one and a half times as fearful as the world's.
Disasters & accidents
30 of its 104 stories (29%) were about people being harmed, usually 20%. Reports of people killed ran at about three times the usual rate (16 stories).
Disasters & accidents
67 of its 250 stories (27%) were about people being harmed, usually 20%. Reports of people affected ran at about twice the usual rate (11 stories).
Rights & justice
Reports of arrests ran at about twice the usual rate (15 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as grief-stricken as the world's.
Conflict & violence
Reports of abductions ran at more than ten times the usual rate (11 stories). Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's.
Also named far more than usual:
avalanche in Kashmir (17 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); heavy rain in Brazil (13 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); covid in South Africa (30 of its stories, about 4 times its usual); road crashes in Ireland (31 of its stories, about 4 times its usual); outbreaks in Germany (13 of its stories, about 5 times its usual).
Read the day's briefing
In North Korea, 67% of the news was about people being harmed, where 23% is usual. Stories about people being harmed made up 20 in every 100 of the day's 85,688 stories, as usual. Mentions of the earthquake ran about 6 times their usual in Japan's news. On 14 January 2024, a year earlier, the share was 20 in every 100, the same as today.
20 in every 100 of the day's 85,688 news stories were about people being harmed (usually 20). North Korea: 57 of its 85 stories (67%) were about people being harmed, usually 23%. Japan: 201 of its 773 stories (26%) were about people being harmed, usually 13%. Poland: 32 of its 127 stories (25%) were about people being harmed, usually 17%. UK: Reports of people displaced ran at about three times the usual rate (6 stories). Mentions of the earthquake ran about 6 times their usual in Japan's news. Mentions of the avalanche ran more than ten times their usual in Kashmir's news. Across the world, the words of the day's news were much softer than usual. A year earlier, on 14 January 2024, 20 in every 100 stories were about people being harmed, the same as today. Written by code from the day's numbers.
Zimbabwe: about as warm as its own usual or less Zambia: about as warm as its own usual or less Vietnam: about as warm as its own usual or less Venezuela: about as warm as its own usual or less Vanuatu: about as warm as its own usual or less Uzbekistan: about as warm as its own usual or less Uruguay: too little coverage to read Micronesia: about as warm as its own usual or less U.S. Virgin Islands: too little coverage to read Guam: about as warm as its own usual or less Puerto Rico: about as warm as its own usual or less United States: about as warm as its own usual or less South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands: too little coverage to read Falkland Islands: too little coverage to read Cayman Islands: about as warm as its own usual or less Isle of Man: too little coverage to read United Kingdom: about as warm as its own usual or less United Arab Emirates: about as warm as its own usual or less Ukraine: about as warm as its own usual or less Uganda: about as warm as its own usual or less Turkmenistan: too little coverage to read Tunisia: too little coverage to read Trinidad & Tobago: about as warm as its own usual or less Tonga: too little coverage to read Togo: too little coverage to read Timor-Leste: about as warm as its own usual or less Thailand: about as warm as its own usual or less Tanzania: about as warm as its own usual or less Tajikistan: too little coverage to read Syria: about as warm as its own usual or less Switzerland: about as warm as its own usual or less Sweden: about as warm as its own usual or less Eswatini: too little coverage to read Suriname: about as warm as its own usual or less South Sudan: about as warm as its own usual or less Sudan: about as warm as its own usual or less Sri Lanka: about as warm as its own usual or less Spain: about as warm as its own usual or less South Africa: about as warm as its own usual or less Somalia: about as warm as its own usual or less Somaliland: too little coverage to read Solomon Islands: too little coverage to read Slovakia: too little coverage to read Slovenia: about as warm as its own usual or less Singapore: about as warm as its own usual or less Sierra Leone: about as warm as its own usual or less Seychelles: about as warm as its own usual or less Serbia: too little coverage to read Senegal: about as warm as its own usual or less Saudi Arabia: about as warm as its own usual or less São Tomé: too little coverage to read Samoa: about as warm as its own usual or less St Vincent: too little coverage to read St. Lucia: too little coverage to read Rwanda: about as warm as its own usual or less Russia: about as warm as its own usual or less Romania: about as warm as its own usual or less Qatar: about as warm as its own usual or less Portugal: about as warm as its own usual or less Poland: about as warm as its own usual or less Philippines: too little coverage to read Peru: about as warm as its own usual or less Paraguay: too little coverage to read Papua New Guinea: about as warm as its own usual or less Panama: about as warm as its own usual or less Palau: about as warm as its own usual or less Oman: about as warm as its own usual or less Norway: about as warm as its own usual or less North Korea: about as warm as its own usual or less Nigeria: about as warm as its own usual or less Niger: about as warm as its own usual or less Nicaragua: about as warm as its own usual or less New Zealand: about as warm as its own usual or less Niue: too little coverage to read Netherlands: about as warm as its own usual or less Curaçao: too little coverage to read Nepal: about as warm as its own usual or less Namibia: about as warm as its own usual or less Mozambique: about as warm as its own usual or less Morocco: about as warm as its own usual or less Western Sahara: too little coverage to read Montenegro: too little coverage to read Mongolia: about as warm as its own usual or less Moldova: about as warm as its own usual or less Mexico: about as warm as its own usual or less Mauritius: about as warm as its own usual or less Mauritania: too little coverage to read Malta: about as warm as its own usual or less Mali: about as warm as its own usual or less Malaysia: about as warm as its own usual or less Malawi: about as warm as its own usual or less Madagascar: about as warm as its own usual or less North Macedonia: too little coverage to read Lithuania: about as warm as its own usual or less Libya: about as warm as its own usual or less Liberia: about as warm as its own usual or less Lesotho: about as warm as its own usual or less Lebanon: about as warm as its own usual or less Latvia: too little coverage to read Laos: about as warm as its own usual or less Kyrgyzstan: about as warm as its own usual or less Kuwait: about as warm as its own usual or less Kosovo: too little coverage to read Kiribati: too little coverage to read Jordan: about as warm as its own usual or less Japan: about as warm as its own usual or less Jamaica: about as warm as its own usual or less Italy: about as warm as its own usual or less Israel: about as warm as its own usual or less Palestine: about as warm as its own usual or less Ireland: about as warm as its own usual or less Iraq: about as warm as its own usual or less Iran: about as warm as its own usual or less Indonesia: about as warm as its own usual or less Iceland: about as warm as its own usual or less Hungary: about as warm as its own usual or less Honduras: about as warm as its own usual or less Haiti: about as warm as its own usual or less Guyana: about as warm as its own usual or less Guinea-Bissau: about as warm as its own usual or less Guinea: about as warm as its own usual or less Guatemala: about as warm as its own usual or less Grenada: about as warm as its own usual or less Greece: about as warm as its own usual or less Ghana: about as warm as its own usual or less Germany: about as warm as its own usual or less Georgia: about as warm as its own usual or less Gambia: about as warm as its own usual or less Gabon: too little coverage to read France: about as warm as its own usual or less St Pierre & Miquelon: too little coverage to read French Polynesia: about as warm as its own usual or less New Caledonia: about as warm as its own usual or less French Southern Territories: too little coverage to read Åland Islands: too little coverage to read Finland: about as warm as its own usual or less Fiji: about as warm as its own usual or less Ethiopia: too little coverage to read Estonia: about as warm as its own usual or less Eritrea: about as warm as its own usual or less Equatorial Guinea: about as warm as its own usual or less El Salvador: about as warm as its own usual or less Egypt: about as warm as its own usual or less Ecuador: about as warm as its own usual or less Dominican Republic: about as warm as its own usual or less Dominica: too little coverage to read Djibouti: about as warm as its own usual or less Greenland: about as warm as its own usual or less Faroe Islands: too little coverage to read Denmark: about as warm as its own usual or less Czech Republic: about as warm as its own usual or less N. Cyprus: too little coverage to read Cyprus: about as warm as its own usual or less Cuba: about as warm as its own usual or less Croatia: about as warm as its own usual or less Côte d'Ivoire: too little coverage to read Costa Rica: about as warm as its own usual or less DR Congo: about as warm as its own usual or less Congo: about as warm as its own usual or less Comoros: about as warm as its own usual or less Colombia: about as warm as its own usual or less China: about as warm as its own usual or less Hong Kong: about as warm as its own usual or less Chile: about as warm as its own usual or less Chad: about as warm as its own usual or less Central African Republic: about as warm as its own usual or less Cape Verde: too little coverage to read Canada: about as warm as its own usual or less Cameroon: about as warm as its own usual or less Cambodia: about as warm as its own usual or less Myanmar: about as warm as its own usual or less Burundi: too little coverage to read Burkina Faso: about as warm as its own usual or less Bulgaria: about as warm as its own usual or less Brunei: about as warm as its own usual or less Brazil: about as warm as its own usual or less Botswana: about as warm as its own usual or less Bosnia and Herzegovina: about as warm as its own usual or less Bolivia: about as warm as its own usual or less Bhutan: about as warm as its own usual or less Belize: too little coverage to read Belgium: about as warm as its own usual or less Belarus: about as warm as its own usual or less Barbados: too little coverage to read Bangladesh: too little coverage to read Bahrain: about as warm as its own usual or less Bahamas: about as warm as its own usual or less Austria: about as warm as its own usual or less Australia: about as warm as its own usual or less Heard & McDonald Islands: too little coverage to read Armenia: about as warm as its own usual or less Argentina: about as warm as its own usual or less Antigua & Barbuda: too little coverage to read Angola: about as warm as its own usual or less Andorra: too little coverage to read Algeria: about as warm as its own usual or less Albania: too little coverage to read Afghanistan: about as warm as its own usual or less Jammu & Kashmir: about as warm as its own usual or less Aksai Chin: about as warm as its own usual or less Gaza: about as warm as its own usual or less West Bank: about as warm as its own usual or less Western Sahara (Moroccan-controlled): too little coverage to read Western Sahara (Free Zone): too little coverage to read Azad Kashmir & Gilgit-Baltistan: about as warm as its own usual or less Siachen Glacier: about as warm as its own usual or less Crimea: about as warm as its own usual or less East Jerusalem: about as warm as its own usual or less Azad Kashmir & Gilgit-Baltistan: about as warm as its own usual or less Vatican City: too little coverage to read Marshall Islands: too little coverage to read Northern Mariana Islands: too little coverage to read American Samoa: too little coverage to read Chagos Islands: about as warm as its own usual or less St. Helena: too little coverage to read Pitcairn: too little coverage to read Anguilla: too little coverage to read Bermuda: about as warm as its own usual or less British Virgin Islands: too little coverage to read Turks & Caicos Islands: too little coverage to read Montserrat: too little coverage to read Jersey: about as warm as its own usual or less Guernsey: too little coverage to read San Marino: too little coverage to read St Kitts & Nevis: about as warm as its own usual or less Cook Islands: too little coverage to read Aruba: too little coverage to read Nauru: too little coverage to read Monaco: about as warm as its own usual or less Maldives: about as warm as its own usual or less Liechtenstein: too little coverage to read Wallis & Futuna: too little coverage to read St. Martin: too little coverage to read St. Barthélemy: too little coverage to read Macao: too little coverage to read Norfolk Island: too little coverage to read Sint Maarten: too little coverage to read Christmas Island: too little coverage to read Gibraltar: too little coverage to read Mayotte: about as warm as its own usual or less Yemen: warmth about its own usual Türkiye: warmth about its own usual Taiwan: warmth about its own usual South Korea: warmth about its own usual Pakistan: warmth about one and a half times its own usual Luxembourg: warmth about its own usual Kenya: warmth about its own usual Kazakhstan: warmth about its own usual India: warmth about its own usual Benin: warmth about its own usual Azerbaijan: warmth about its own usual Peshawar, Pakistan -- conflict & violence: 19 stories, carried by 14 outlets Dumba, Nigeria -- conflict & violence: 12 stories, carried by 14 outlets Glasgow, UK -- health: 47 stories, carried by 100 outlets Islamabad, Pakistan -- conflict & violence: 68 stories, carried by 40 outlets Montecito, US -- disasters & accidents: 77 stories, carried by 137 outlets New Orleans, US -- conflict & violence: 22 stories, carried by 29 outlets Istanbul, Türkiye -- conflict & violence: 12 stories, carried by 28 outlets Dubai, United Arab Emirates -- health: 21 stories, carried by 17 outlets
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.
The day in three measures
harsh warm
The words in the day's stories were much softer than 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?
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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.