What are Currents?
Currents are the trends and patterns bubbling beneath the surface of daily headlines – the underlying forces shaping our world that often go unnoticed in the 24/7 news cycle. While most media focuses on the “what” and “when” of breaking news, Currents help us understand the crucial “why” and “how” behind major global developments.
How Currents Work
Traditional news coverage typically starts when a crisis hits – when the metaphorical tsunami wave makes landfall. Currents flip this model. By tracking patterns across geographies and time, Currents allow us to:
- Identify emerging trends before they become apparent
- Connect seemingly unrelated events across different regions
- Provide context that’s often missing from breaking news
- Generate surprising insights that disrupt conventional narratives
- Create journalism that remains relevant long after publication
Our Current Currents
We track eight major Currents that shape global power dynamics:
- Disinformation: How truth is under attack as our information systems splinter
- Oligarchy: How the super-rich are changing the world for the rest of us
- Authoritarian Tech: How technology has captured every aspect of our lives, from intimacy to geopolitics
- Climate Crisis: Why, despite mounting evidence, we’re increasingly turning away from climate warnings
- Surveillance & Control: How modern police states owe more to Silicon Valley than Stalin
- Polarization: How identity and belief have been weaponized in the 21st century
- Armed Conflict: How digital technology is transforming modern warfare
- Rewriting History: How those in power shape our future by weaponizing the past
Why Currents Matter
Currents have repeatedly proven their value in helping us stay ahead of major global developments. Our coverage of disinformation campaigns, for instance, helped us understand Russia’s invasion of Ukraine long before it happened. By tracking patterns in how authoritarian tactics spread globally, we can better understand and predict similar developments in different contexts.
The Impact of Currents
This framework enables us to:
- Produce proactive rather than reactive journalism
- Identify stories others miss
- Connect local developments to global trends
- Create ever-green content that provides lasting value
- Build a deeper understanding of how power operates in our world
- Help audiences see the connections between seemingly disparate events
As one reader noted: “Coda is the only newsroom I know of that was able to connect the dots between Russian homophobic laws, Brazilian populism, and China’s wolf warrior diplomacy.”
In an age of information overload, Currents provide a framework for understanding not just what’s happening in the world, but why it matters and where it might lead us next.