The GDELT Project

Television News GEG: Master Ranked List Of Unique Spoken Entities From Television News 2009-2019 By Station

Yesterday we looked at the top overall well known entities (those with MID codes) spoken on television news over the past decade using the Television News Entity Graph, looking across CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, BBC and the evening news broadcasts of ABC, CBS and NBC. What would this list look like if it was broken out by station?

Below you can see the top 20 well-known entities by station from the dataset. It is fascinating to see how the stations both align and diverge. Remember that the all-capitalized text of closed captioning represents a worst-case scenario for the Cloud Natural Language API and thus the entities below may struggle for certain names like Donald Trump, but such error will be systematic across the seven stations, making them directly comparable.

You can download the full dataset for analysis:

CNN

Entity MID Type WikipediaURL AvgSalience Count
U.S. /m/09c7w0 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States 0.00777 1225524
CNN /m/0gsgr ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CNN 0.002264 348226
PRESIDENT OBAMA /m/02mjmr PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama 0.123429 321887
DONALD TRUMP /m/0cqt90 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump 0.237342 316179
REPUBLICAN /m/07wbk ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_Party_(United_States) 0.006708 315026
WHITE HOUSE /m/081sq LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House 0.004438 254497
DEMOCRATS /m/0d075m ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_(United_States) 0.004488 248257
RUSSIA /m/06bnz LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia 0.006014 155921
HILLARY CLINTON /m/0d06m5 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillary_Clinton 0.049655 141070
NEW YORK /m/02_286 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City 0.004006 139395
CONGRESS /m/07t31 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Congress 0.00941 134430
SENATE /m/07t58 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Senate 0.010552 111902
FBI /m/02_1m ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Bureau_of_Investigation 0.017207 105418
ISIS /m/027×630 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_State_of_Iraq_and_the_Levant 0.056977 87698
WASHINGTON /m/081yw LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_(state) 7.88E-04 85564
SYRIA /m/06vbd LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syria 0.020168 81723
FLORIDA /m/02xry LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida 0.005774 75129
MITT ROMNEY /m/0271_s PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitt_Romney 0.121932 73729
WOLF BLITZER /m/02qry6 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolf_Blitzer 0.005034 67266
IRAN /m/03shp LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran 0.006897 67212

MSNBC

Entity MID Type WikipediaURL AvgSalience Count
U.S. /m/09c7w0 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States 0.003792 1094216
REPUBLICAN /m/07wbk ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_Party_(United_States) 0.013173 534803
PRESIDENT OBAMA /m/02mjmr PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama 0.147778 425743
DEMOCRATS /m/0d075m ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_(United_States) 0.005099 368571
DONALD TRUMP /m/0cqt90 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump 0.222286 354201
WHITE HOUSE /m/081sq LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House 0.004373 278238
CONGRESS /m/07t31 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Congress 0.011942 191831
SENATE /m/07t58 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Senate 0.012243 186807
HILLARY CLINTON /m/0d06m5 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillary_Clinton 0.037542 159282
RUSSIA /m/06bnz LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia 0.005746 149866
NEW YORK /m/02_286 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City 0.004473 140684
MITT ROMNEY /m/0271_s PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitt_Romney 0.167804 122752
MSNBC /m/0152x_ ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MSNBC 5.12E-04 107647
WASHINGTON /m/081yw LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_(state) 0.001203 95538
FBI /m/02_1m ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Bureau_of_Investigation 0.01585 87735
FLORIDA /m/02xry LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida 0.005201 81669
WASHINGTON, D.C. /m/0rh6k LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington,_D.C. 6.59E-04 76183
NBC NEWS /m/016bvz ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBC_News 8.10E-04 73856
WHITE HOUSE /m/0b3wk ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_House_of_Representatives 0.001594 67293
NEW YORK TIMES /m/07k2d ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_York_Times 5.64E-04 63855

Fox News

Entity MID Type WikipediaURL AvgSalience Count
U.S. /m/09c7w0 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States 0.004656 1204521
PRESIDENT OBAMA /m/02mjmr PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama 0.135765 505453
DEMOCRATS /m/0d075m ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_(United_States) 0.005025 373406
REPUBLICAN /m/07wbk ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_Party_(United_States) 0.00578 363029
DONALD TRUMP /m/0cqt90 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump 0.186587 277829
WHITE HOUSE /m/081sq LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House 0.003091 241505
FOX NEWS /m/02z_b ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fox_News 0.002252 200153
HILLARY CLINTON /m/0d06m5 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillary_Clinton 0.041451 175918
CONGRESS /m/07t31 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Congress 0.008312 163821
NEW YORK /m/02_286 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City 0.002755 152902
SENATE /m/07t58 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Senate 0.010408 142943
FBI /m/02_1m ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Bureau_of_Investigation 0.012212 110829
RUSSIA /m/06bnz LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia 0.003136 108893
WASHINGTON /m/081yw LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_(state) 0.001016 106773
IRAN /m/03shp LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran 0.00426 93331
MITT ROMNEY /m/0271_s PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitt_Romney 0.089317 82808
FLORIDA /m/02xry LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida 0.004049 81957
WASHINGTON, D.C. /m/0rh6k LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington,_D.C. 0.001433 80856
ISIS /m/027×630 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_State_of_Iraq_and_the_Levant 0.032115 79846
CALIFORNIA /m/01n7q LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California 0.002045 79232

BBC News

Entity MID Type WikipediaURL AvgSalience Count
US /m/09c7w0 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States 0.012459 313653
UK /m/07ssc LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom 0.008901 271885
BBC NEWS /m/01gw2 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC_News_(TV_channel) 0.009329 151191
ENGLAND /m/02jx1 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England 0.004935 130793
EU /m/0_6t_z8 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Union 0.032437 109617
BREXIT /g/1203lq0mw LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brexit 0.018557 93478
SCOTLAND /m/06q1r LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scotland 0.003874 91366
DONALD TRUMP /m/0cqt90 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump 0.114845 84369
NORTHERN IRELAND /m/05bcl LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Ireland 0.006958 76226
THERESA MAY /m/01zczs PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theresa_May 0.042617 72391
LONDON /m/04jpl LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London 0.00368 70876
WALES /m/0j5g9 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wales 0.001377 69249
EUROPE /m/02j9z LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europe 0.004274 59695
RUSSIA /m/06bnz LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia 0.012379 48065
BBC /m/0ncl8zk ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC 0.014188 44081
CHINA /m/0d05w3 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China 0.007886 39824
FRANCE /m/0f8l9c LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France 0.003639 37229
BORIS JOHNSON /m/0h508 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Johnson 0.043679 35684
LABOUR PARTY /m/01c9x ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labour_Party_(UK) 0.01708 31101
NORTH KOREA /m/05b7q LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Korea 0.02811 28202

ABC Evening News

Entity MID Type WikipediaURL AvgSalience Count
U.S. /m/09c7w0 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States 0.003836 59616
ABC NEWS /m/01v3sw ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ABC_News 0.005566 43608
NEW YORK /m/02_286 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City 0.002993 17643
WORLD NEWS NOW /m/030_hp WORK_OF_ART https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_News_Now 0.004242 15635
ABC /m/0gsg7 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Broadcasting_Company 0.003498 11687
PRESIDENT OBAMA /m/02mjmr PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama 0.049123 10548
WHITE HOUSE /m/081sq LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House 0.001898 10422
DAVID MUIR /m/0fg6cv PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Muir 0.042729 7649
CALIFORNIA /m/01n7q LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California 9.60E-04 7268
REPUBLICAN /m/07wbk ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_Party_(United_States) 0.002092 6982
FLORIDA /m/02xry LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida 0.001487 6505
DONALD TRUMP /m/0cqt90 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump 0.076294 6064
TEXAS /m/07b_l LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas 0.001413 5927
DAVID KERLEY /m/05232kr PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Kerley 0.059582 5908
WASHINGTON /m/081yw LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_(state) 6.40E-04 5647
MEDICARE /m/0fzh9 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medicare_(United_States) 0.001025 5245
FBI /m/02_1m ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Bureau_of_Investigation 0.002496 5166
TOM LLAMAS /m/0ch326w PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Llamas 0.00387 5014
CHICAGO /m/01_d4 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago 8.38E-04 4968
DEMOCRATS /m/0d075m ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_(United_States) 0.006041 4770

CBS Evening News

Entity MID Type WikipediaURL AvgSalience Count
U.S. /m/09c7w0 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States 0.003834 23756
SCOTT PELLEY /m/026h80g PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Pelley 0.064989 13795
CBS /m/01_8w2 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CBS_News 0.002081 11729
JEFF GLOR /m/0h95nnq PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Glor 0.126326 7619
CBS EVENING NEWS /m/01bndp WORK_OF_ART https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CBS_Evening_News 0.002565 7327
NEW YORK /m/02_286 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City 0.001707 4830
PRESIDENT OBAMA /m/02mjmr PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama 0.021089 4818
REPUBLICAN /m/07wbk ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_Party_(United_States) 0.003876 4658
WHITE HOUSE /m/081sq LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House 0.001659 4065
CALIFORNIA /m/01n7q LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California 0.001213 3424
JIM AXELROD /m/02x32bd PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Axelrod 0.093776 3224
DEMOCRATS /m/0d075m ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_(United_States) 0.003088 3132
DONALD TRUMP /m/0cqt90 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump 0.056016 2916
ANTHONY MASON /m/0hr6z36 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Mason_(journalist) 0.03446 2464
KATIE COURIC /m/01w_10 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katie_Couric 0.064219 2440
WASHINGTON /m/081yw LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_(state) 0.001076 2404
CONGRESS /m/07t31 ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Congress 0.003244 2245
NANCY CORDES /m/04n6g3k PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nancy_Cordes 0.0011 2157
SYRIA /m/06vbd LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syria 0.002265 2061
FBI /m/02_1m ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Bureau_of_Investigation 0.002848 2054

NBC Evening News

Entity MID Type WikipediaURL AvgSalience Count
U.S. /m/09c7w0 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States 0.00568 28383
NBC NEWS /m/016bvz ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBC_News 0.009039 20105
NBC /m/05gnf ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBC 0.004288 8109
NEW YORK /m/02_286 LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City 0.002653 7166
LESTER HOLT /m/06jvj7 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lester_Holt 0.00659 6357
BRIAN WILLIAMS /m/030p0z PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Williams 0.074375 6225
WHITE HOUSE /m/081sq LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House 0.001818 5407
NIGHTLY NEWS /m/01bncw WORK_OF_ART https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBC_Nightly_News 0.002816 5238
PRESIDENT OBAMA /m/02mjmr PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama 0.032736 4760
DONALD TRUMP /m/0cqt90 PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump 0.078917 4190
REPUBLICAN /m/07wbk ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_Party_(United_States) 0.002301 3864
CALIFORNIA /m/01n7q LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California 0.001135 3136
WASHINGTON /m/081yw LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_(state) 0.00111 3042
DEMOCRATS /m/0d075m ORGANIZATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_(United_States) 0.001677 2885
FLORIDA /m/02xry LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida 0.004091 2546
RUSSIA /m/06bnz LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia 0.003437 2277
TOM COSTELLO /m/0bbx09g PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Costello_(journalist) 6.11E-04 2264
MIGUEL ALMAGUER /m/0yv43lv PERSON https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miguel_Almaguer 6.91E-04 2226
TEXAS /m/07b_l LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas 0.001267 2203
WASHINGTON, D.C. /m/0rh6k LOCATION https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington,_D.C. 0.001119 2187

TECHNICAL DETAILS

Creating this analysis required only the addition of the "Station" field to the "group by" clause of our original SQL query.

SELECT Station, APPROX_TOP_COUNT(entities.name, 1)[OFFSET(0)].value entity,
entities.mid mid,
APPROX_TOP_COUNT(entities.type, 1)[OFFSET(0)].value type,
APPROX_TOP_COUNT(entities.wikipediaUrl, 1)[OFFSET(0)].value wikipediaurl,
avg(avgSalience) avgsalience,
count(1) count 
 FROM `gdelt-bq.gdeltv2.geg_iatv`, unnest(entities) entities
where entities.mid is not null
group by Station, entities.mid order by Count desc

Happy exploring!