We measure how the world's news covered people being harmed — and the help and hope within it.
47 of its 94 stories (50%) were about people being harmed, usually 25%. Reports of people killed ran at about 4 times the usual rate (34 stories). Illness was named in 36 of its stories about harm, about 4 times usual. Its coverage was about twice as fearful as the world's.
21 of its 25 stories (84%) were about people being harmed, usually 21%. Vaavu Atoll accounted for 19 of the Maldives' 21 stories about harm, carried by 21 outlets. Reports of people killed ran at about three times the usual rate (19 stories).
16 of its 30 stories (53%) were about people being harmed, usually 30%. Reports of people killed ran at about three times the usual rate (11 stories). Its coverage was about twice as grief-stricken as the world's.
79 of its 156 stories (51%) were about people being harmed, usually 43%. Havana accounted for 60 of Cuba's 79 stories about harm, carried by 44 outlets. Reports of people killed ran at about three times the usual rate (26 stories).
41 of its 44 stories (93%) were about people being harmed, usually 38%. Reports of people killed ran at about three times the usual rate (36 stories). Its coverage was about twice as grief-stricken as the world's. Fear in its coverage rose to about one and a half times its own usual.
140 of its 408 stories (34%) were about people being harmed, usually 13%. Reports of people injured ran at more than ten times the usual rate (54 stories). Accidents were named in 21 of its stories about harm, more than ten times usual.
58 of its 127 stories (46%) were about people being harmed, usually 21%. Bangkok accounted for 45 of Thailand's 58 stories about harm, carried by 83 outlets. Reports of people injured ran at more than ten times the usual rate (43 stories).
21 of its 21 stories (100%) were about people being harmed, usually 47%. Ituri accounted for 17 of the DR Congo's 21 stories about harm, carried by 62 outlets. Its coverage was about one and a half times as fearful as the world's.
90 of its 227 stories (40%) were about people being harmed, usually 30%. Reports of arrests ran at about twice the usual rate (18 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as angry as the world's.
Gaza accounted for 46 of Palestine's 79 stories about harm, carried by 57 outlets. Reports of abductions ran at about 4 times the usual rate (12 stories). Its coverage was about three times as grief-stricken as the world's. Anger in its coverage rose to about one and a half times its own usual.
Also named far more than usual: accidents in Italy (21 of its stories, more than ten times its usual); hantavirus in Canada (27 of its stories, about 5 times its usual); meningitis in UK (14 of its stories, about 5 times its usual).
Stories about people being harmed, in every 100 stories, the 30 days to 16 May. 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 8,382 stories about harm among 46,491 counted on 16 May.
Reports of abductions ran at about twice the usual rate, most often about Nigeria and Israel. of the day's 46,491 news stories, 18 in every 100 were about people being harmed, as usual. Canada's news mentioned hantavirus about 5 times as often as usual. Uganda's news was 50% about people being harmed, against a usual 25%. A year earlier, on 16 May 2025, 18 in every 100 stories were about people being harmed, the same as 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 much harsher 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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