News & Values

Behind every news event are the values that drive people and nations. See how they offer a deeper, clearer understanding of the latest stories, or sort through all our stories by the different values beneath them.

LATEST STORIES
BALANCE

The effort to find a harmony between extremes, not to avoid confrontation or make bold ideas blander or more palatable.

COMMUNITY

The coming together of individuals or groups to form bonds of fellowship that strengthen and enrich themselves and those around them.

Malibu’s wildfire threatens my community. It’s also bringing us together.

The Monitor's View

Longings for home drove Syria’s liberation

Five years after fire, a shining Notre Dame is ready to reopen its doors

Curtis Chin grew up in a Chinese restaurant. He’s on a 300-city tour to save others.

French women flock to Gisèle Pelicot rape trial, ‘to show her that she’s not alone’

‘Circling the drain.’ How one Georgia veteran fought off homelessness.

COMPASSION

An unselfish love that embraces others.

COOPERATION

The effort to work together, respecting the diverse strengths and views in others.

COURAGE

The honest struggle to overcome fear and suffering from a desire to do right. Hatred and anger are not courage.

Ukraine’s Pokrovsk was about to fall to Russia 2 months ago. It’s hanging on.

Podcast: Why We Wrote This

Fluency, curiosity, and a bike: Letting Taiwan tell its own story

Georgia unveiled a statue of John Lewis. It stands on symbolic ground.

A different gold medal – for gentile diplomats who quietly saved Jews

Cover Story

The Olympic spirit: 7 athletes share tales of grit and sacrifice

Commentary

For Martin Luther King Jr., the conversation on political violence was very different

CREATIVITY

The application of inventiveness, originality, and imagination to address a problem or produce something fresh.

DIGNITY

An inherent quality or worth that cannot be degraded.

EQUALITY

The effort to ensure everyone has the same opportunity to thrive and be treated with respect.

FAIRNESS

The effort to base decisions and judgments on impartial fact and proof without bias toward one group or viewpoint.

FORGIVENESS

An overcoming of resentment or a desire for vengeance in the face of injustice. It never excuses wrong behavior.

FREEDOM

The unhindered expression of universal rights, qualities, and dignity. Freedom expands rights rather than pitting one against another.

GENEROSITY

An expression of compassion that gives of one’s own gifts – a sharing of abundance or charity despite hardship.

GRATITUDE

The deep recognition or appreciation of goodness or generosity in others.

Podcast: Why We Wrote This

Feast mode: Our food writer serves up a complicated holiday’s history and hits

The Monitor's View

The delights of US democracy

As summer wanes, I'm chasing flickers of nostalgia by the campfire

He sought asylum. She was seeking to help. Friday, he graduated from law school.

Kharkiv hails Biden’s OK to strike inside Russia: ‘We’ve been waiting’

The Monitor's View

Gratitude as a global change agent

HONESTY

A commitment to truth that challenges oneself and others to look at issues deeply, without deceit or bias.

HOPE

The earnest expectation of good, no matter the circumstances.

Time to go home? Hezbollah ceasefire offers northern Israelis hope.

For Syrians, Assad is in the past: ‘The thing we all have now is hope’

Ukraine’s jittery new reality: ‘Work with Trump and hope for the best’

UN schools in Gaza shaped our reporter’s childhood. She worries for the future.

A journalist recounts his daughter’s miraculous birth in war-torn Sudan

Podcast: Why We Wrote This

‘Sharing the human stories’: What keeps our Gazan reporter going

HUMILITY

Free from pride or arrogance; not impotent or subservient.

INNOVATION

The search for new ways to find solutions and discoveries.

INTEGRITY

The commitment to acting honestly and according to high principles of compassion, responsibility, and fairness.

JOY

A happiness whose genuineness and radiance brightens others.

JUSTICE

The effort to ensure the fair and moral treatment of everyone. Honesty and reformation create the conditions for restoration.

The Monitor's View

A questionable pardon’s deeper resonance

Amid Gaza food shortages, ICC issues arrest warrant for Netanyahu

Loggers were stealing the forest. These women started stealing their chain saws.

50 years ago, the UK expelled Chagos Islanders. A court ruling may mean they can go home.

An unwanted kiss shook Spanish soccer – and society. A new documentary explores why.

The Explainer

Transgender rights, ghost guns – and an election? The Supreme Court returns.

PEACE

The calm achieved in the struggle to overcome strife or find personal meaning. It is not achieved merely through force or avoidance.

Time to go home? Hezbollah ceasefire offers northern Israelis hope.

Trump’s Mideast team: A familiar look for a transformed region

Why many in Ukraine oppose a ‘land for peace’ formula to end the war

Israeli strikes inside Iran cross a threshold. How will Iran respond?

Is an Israel-Hamas cease-fire possible? Pressures mount on Netanyahu.

In Gaza or Ukraine, peace can look impossible. Here, there’s hope.

PROSPERITY

The thriving of people or communities. It can involve monetary wealth but points more deeply to well-being.

RESILIENCE

The strength expressed by people and communities in recovering from difficulties. It involves victories – small or large – amid adversity.

As Syrian rebels advance, what can Iran and its tired allies do for Assad?

The Monitor's View

South Korea’s swift rescue of freedom

In wartime Gaza, turning meager olive harvest into oil is an act of defiance

Howard University hoped to make history. Now it’s ready for a different role.

Cover Story

Women in construction find solidarity as ‘sisters in the brotherhood’

Ukraine’s Pokrovsk was about to fall to Russia 2 months ago. It’s hanging on.

RESPECT

An appreciation for others’ efforts or principles that promotes cooperation instead of anger or distrust. It does not excuse wrongdoing.

Where Nazis first won office, Germans are voting for right-wing extremists

The Monitor's View

Of dogs and din

Podcast: Why We Wrote This

Feast mode: Our food writer serves up a complicated holiday’s history and hits

Podcast: Why We Wrote This

How to move past ‘othering,’ and toward mutual respect

The Monitor's View

The election’s other message

Podcast: Why We Wrote This

‘Sharing the human stories’: What keeps our Gazan reporter going

RESPONSIBILITY

Fulfilling a duty to act from high motives, with due consideration for the care of oneself and others.

How fall of Assad showcases the Biden-Trump policy divide in the Mideast

Record drought and blazes? The US Northeast awakens to new wildfire risks.

What’s engaging these high schoolers? Classes about the election.

In a gun-friendly state, parental liability looms following school shooting

Podcast: Why We Wrote This

On a music festival stage, our writer found folk’s deepest-diving scholar

Podcast: Why We Wrote This

Drug decriminalization: A shift from side-taking to solutions

SAFETY

The belonging and freedom from fear that come with peace and trust. Safety strengthens as it expands, not harming one at the expense of another.

Assad’s fall has rewards for Israel. It’s focused on the risks.

The Explainer

Boston broke a record last year for fewest homicides. It’s on track to do it again.

Points of Progress

Saving lives with reduced pollution, fewer pesticides, and less worker exploitation

When Hezbollah rockets are incoming, and you can’t reach the shelter

In Israel-Hezbollah war, a rising cry from Lebanese: Why were we bombed?

Under deadly Israeli siege, north Gaza residents face terrifying ultimatum

TRANSFORMATION

A change driven by an honest desire to improve, which gives fresh strength and purpose.

TRUST

Hope and confidence in a relationship that has demonstrated mutual respect.