What comes to mind when you think of Europe? Perhaps delicious food or popular travel destinations. But what about Europe as seen in the news? We often encounter political and economic issues; more recently the UK’s exit from the EU (European Union), the euro crisis, the refugee issue and various terrorist attacks, as well as military-related news. There may also be many negative images, such as tension between Russia and Europe.

Such images of Europe are often shaped by the news we routinely see. Looking at international reporting in Japan by region, there is a disparity: compared with Asia, North America, and Europe, Africa and Latin America receive less coverage as entire continents. So while Europe is relatively well covered in global terms, which countries are reported on, and how?

Europe that gets covered

This time, we examined three years of coverage of Europe by Japan’s major newspapers (※１). The figure below shows the three-year total (2015–2017) of international reporting (by character count) from Asahi Shimbun, Yomiuri Shimbun, and Mainichi Shimbun, broken down by region (※２), with totals aggregated per region (※３). Over the three years, Europe accounted for about 21% of total coverage and consistently ranked among the top three regions. It is fair to say the region attracts significant media attention globally.

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Next, let’s look at the ranking of coverage by European country over these three years. The figure shows the ranking (by character count) for European countries during the same period. Of Europe’s 54 countries and territories, the top four countries account for more than 70% of the total, and the top 10 account for more than 90%. Among the top four—Russia, France, the UK, and Germany—both population and GDP (gross domestic product) together make up about half of the European total (for the top 10, 74% of the population and 76% of GDP).

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Russia, in first place, consistently ranked high over the three years, with a variety of reports focusing mainly on foreign relations with neighboring countries including Japan and military actions. About 23% of the three years of coverage on Russia involved Japan, and more than 30% of that concerned territorial issues. Besides Japan, the United States frequently appears as a related country in Russia coverage. Especially after Trump took office in 2017, allegations of Russian interference in the U.S. presidential election drew prominent coverage. In addition, there has been a chronic volume of military-related news, including the Syrian conflict, the Ukraine issue, and policy toward Turkey. Since the North Korean missile issue emerged in 2017, there has also been substantial coverage of sanctions on North Korea and military policy toward it.

France, in second place, is chronically reported on for political issues with neighboring countries centered on the EU, domestic elections, international summits, and economic conditions, but its coverage volume surged due to the 2015 and 2016 terrorist attacks. Coverage related to terrorism in France accounts for about 30% of the total. Multiple attacks across multiple locations contributed to this, but even after the attacks, reporting on terrorism and its aftermath continued almost every month through September 2017.

Anti-Brexit protest in Manchester, UK (Photo: Ilovetheeu /Wikimedia commons[CC BY-SA 4.0])

The UK, in third place, is covered chronically on politics, the economy, and culture, although the bulk of its coverage concerns Brexit. Especially since the June 2016 referendum on leaving the EU, roughly 30%—the majority—of coverage has been about Brexit and the political and economic issues affected by it. There was also notable coverage of the 2017 terror attacks in London and numerous stories about the royal family.

Germany, in fourth place, has attracted visible coverage on the refugee issue in recent years, while political developments such as elections and foreign policy are chronically reported. Coverage of the refugee issue accounts for about 10%. Other prominent topics at various times include Volkswagen’s wrongdoing, a passenger plane crash, the December 2016 terror attack in Berlin, and the 2017 general election. Overall, the impression is of balanced coverage across topics.

Let’s also look at the content from fifth place onward. Greece, in fifth, is dominated by the economic crisis, reforms and assistance; Ukraine, in seventh, by its conflict and relations with Russia; Spain, in eighth, by the Catalonia issue; Belgium, in ninth, by the Paris coordinated terror attacks and the 2016 attacks in Belgium; and the Netherlands, in tenth, by the 2017 general election. Italy, in sixth, is covered relatively broadly, with notable attention to the Pope’s activities, the Italy summit, and the 2016 earthquake. Among the mid-ranked countries outside the top 10 are Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, and Poland.

Europe that is not reported

Now let’s examine the European countries that are not covered. In the same period, about 80% of European countries each accounted for less than 1% of Europe’s total coverage, and some countries—such as Andorra, San Marino, and Liechtenstein—were not reported even once over the three years. Are these countries simply “unimportant”?

Consider six former Soviet republics located in Europe: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Belarus, and Moldova. Among these, Ukraine—due to its ongoing conflict—has been covered relatively more. However, over three years, the total coverage (by character count) for these six countries combined amounts to only 3% of Europe’s total. Excluding Ukraine, the combined total for the remaining five countries is a mere 0.2% of Europe’s total. Compared with Russia, the largest former Soviet state, the six countries’ combined population is 43% of Russia’s, yet their coverage amounts to less than 17% of Russia-related reporting.

NATO Deputy Secretary General visits Lithuania (Photo: NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization /Flickr [CC BY-NC-ND 2.0] )

Among the five former Soviet countries above, excluding Ukraine, the smallest by population and GDP—Moldova—accounts for just 0.03% of Europe’s total coverage. Of the 11 articles in total, about half involve Russia. The most-covered among the five is Belarus, while the least-covered is Latvia; excluding pieces about the Baltic states as a whole, there are only three articles about Latvia. Reporting on the Baltic states frequently focuses on NATO-related news.

Let’s look at another example. The Nordic countries are well known for welfare and education systems and regularly rank high in the UN’s World Happiness Report and the WEF’s Inclusive Development Index (IDI). They are also popular destinations for Japanese travelers. One might expect substantial coverage of these highly developed nations—but that is not the case. Over three years, the combined coverage of the five Nordic countries (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland) amounts to less than 2% of Europe’s total.

Refugees stranded at the Macedonian border (Photo: Steve Evans /Flickr [CC BY-NC 2.0] )

What about the Balkans? Of the nine countries—Greece, Albania, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo—Greece accounts for about 6% of Europe’s total coverage, ranking fifth overall. The other eight countries are each at 0.2% of Europe’s total, and combined they still amount to less than 1%. For example, Montenegro has eight articles in total, half of which are about its accession to NATO. The least-covered among the eight is Albania, with just one Japan-related story about the opening of its embassy in Japan in 2015. The most-covered is Macedonia, but about half of its coverage is negative news such as refugees and shootings.

Countries that are covered and those that are not

What explains the difference between countries that are covered and those that are not? One factor, as noted above, is whether a newspaper has a bureau there. The top four countries all host either a general bureau or a branch bureau for all three newspapers, which likely makes reporting easier than in places without such offices. In the UK, which ranks third, all three newspapers have their European headquarters in London, making it the hub for European reporting. By contrast, there are no bureaus in the Nordic, Central, or Eastern European regions, which likely contributes to the lower volume of coverage there.

GDP size and population are also likely factors in determining a country’s importance. Russia is Europe’s most populous major power, and France, the UK, and Germany are the top three European countries by GDP. Germany has the highest GDP in Europe, has substantial trade with Japan, and strong political ties—likely contributing to its consistently high coverage. Countries with large GDPs tend to be well-developed and wield global influence, and thus are seen as “important.” Countries with large populations may be regarded as “big” nations with abundant labor and economic power. However, the six former Soviet countries in our example have a combined population that is 43% of Russia’s, yet their total coverage is only 17% of Russia’s. Still, there are exceptions. Greece, ranked fifth in this study, does not have especially large GDP or population within Europe, but its coverage was very high because the 2016 economic crisis was treated as a major issue with implications for Europe as a whole. In other words, even without large GDP or population, coverage can surge when a globally significant story breaks.

Riots during the Greek crisis (Photo: Insociableblog /Flickr [CC BY-NC-SA 2.0] )

Furthermore, countries that are physically closer, or have stronger political and economic ties with Japan, are likely to receive more coverage in Japan. For countries with consistently close ties to Japan, the importance of reporting on them may be judged higher from a Japan-centric perspective. Russia is a good example. It is Japan’s neighbor and maintains strong political and economic relations, including the Northern Territories dispute. Germany, in fourth place, likely ranks high every year for reasons such as significant trade with Japan and deep, longstanding political relations.

Is European coverage fine as it is? Europe is not just the major powers like Russia, France, the UK, and Germany. Even small countries can, depending on circumstances, have an impact on Europe and the world. We cannot truly understand countries that are not regularly covered. Going forward, we hope to see more balanced European reporting that fosters a comprehensive understanding of Europe.

Nature in Moldova (Photo: Aliona /Pixabay [CC0 1.0] )

Writer: Saeka Inaka

※１　　We consulted each company’s online database. For the definition of international news articles, see “GNV Data Analysis Methods [PDF].”

※２　　Regions were divided into six—Asia, Africa, Oceania, Europe, North America, and Latin America—according to the standards of the UNSD (United Nations Statistics Division).

※３　　Character counts are based on GNV’s own criteria.