We measure how the world's news covered people being harmed — and the help and hope within it.
168 of its 395 stories (43%) were about people being harmed, usually 27%. Moscow accounted for 147 of Russia's 168 stories about harm, carried by 315 outlets. Reports of evacuations ran at more than ten times the usual rate (28 stories). Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's.
153 of its 346 stories (44%) were about people being harmed, usually 31%. 32 of Islamabad's 50 stories were about protests or strikes. Reports of abductions ran at about 8 times the usual rate (19 stories). Its coverage was about twice as fearful as the world's.
50 of its 105 stories (48%) were about people being harmed, usually 32%. Dhaka accounted for 26 of Bangladesh's 50 stories about harm, carried by 15 outlets. Reports of people injured ran at about twice the usual rate (5 stories).
11 of its 28 stories (39%) were about people being harmed, usually 16%. Reports of people killed ran at about three times the usual rate (9 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as grief-stricken as the world's.
151 of its 351 stories (43%) were about people being harmed, usually 30%. Riyadh accounted for 114 of Saudi Arabia's 151 stories about harm, carried by 177 outlets. Reports of people displaced ran at about 4 times the usual rate (22 stories). Its coverage was about twice as angry as the world's.
134 of its 209 stories (64%) were about people being harmed, usually 55%. Gaza accounted for 83 of Palestine's 134 stories about harm, carried by 159 outlets. 63 of Gaza's 83 stories were about protests or strikes. Its coverage was about one and a half times as angry as the world's.
11 of its 34 stories (32%) were about people being harmed, usually 15%. Reports of people killed ran at about 4 times the usual rate (9 stories). Its coverage was about one and a half times as grief-stricken as the world's.
Reports of arrests ran at about twice the usual rate (119 stories). Outbreaks were named in 46 of its stories about harm, about three times usual, with poisoning. Its coverage was about one and a half times as grief-stricken as the world's.
87 of its 257 stories (34%) were about people being harmed, usually 26%. Anger in its coverage rose to about one and a half times its own usual.
30 of its 53 stories (57%) were about people being harmed, usually 45%. Havana accounted for 17 of Cuba's 30 stories about harm, carried by 17 outlets.
Also named far more than usual: outbreaks in Nigeria (46 of its stories, about three times its usual); drought in India (27 of its stories, about 4 times its usual); drownings in UK (12 of its stories, about 4 times its usual).
Stories about people being harmed, in every 100 stories, the 30 days to 20 Sep. 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 6,137 stories about harm among 32,751 counted on 20 Sep.
In Nigeria's news, mentions of outbreaks ran about three times their usual. Stories about people being harmed made up 19 in every 100 of the day's 32,751 stories, as usual. Russia's news was 43% about people being harmed, against a usual 27%. A year earlier, on 20 September 2025, 18 in every 100 stories were about people being harmed, against 19 today. This week the news turned most often to South Africa, on 4 of 7 days.
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?
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.