  The portrayal of crowd accidents by the media can influence public
understanding and emotional response, shaping societal perceptions and
potentially impacting safety measures and preparedness strategies. This paper
critically examines the portrayal of crowd accidents in news coverage by
analyzing the texts of 372 media reports of crowd accidents spanning 26 diverse
news sources from 1900 to 2019. We investigate how media representations of
crowd accidents vary across time and geographical origins. Our methodology
combines lexical analysis to unveil prevailing terminologies and sentiment
analysis to discern the emotional tenor of the reports. The findings reveal the
prevalence of the term "stampede" over "panic" in media descriptions of crowd
accidents. Notably, divergent patterns are observable when comparing Western
versus South Asian media (notably India and Pakistan), unveiling a
cross-cultural dimension. Moreover, the analysis detects a gradual transition
from "crowd stampede" to "crowd crush" in media and Wikipedia narratives in
recent years, suggesting evolving lexical sensitivities. Sentiment analysis
uncovers a consistent association with fear-related language, indicative of
media's propensity towards sensationalism. This fear-infused narrative has
intensified over time. The study underscores the potential impact of language
and sentiment in shaping public perspectives on crowd accidents, revealing a
pressing need for responsible and balanced reporting that moves beyond
sensationalism and promotes a nuanced understanding. This will be crucial for
increasing public awareness and preparedness against such accidents.
