UN Adopts Resolution to Correct Global Map Distortions

The United Nations has approved a resolution to update international mapping standards, aiming to correct the Mercator projection’s historical distortion of Africa’s size. The measure faces opposition from the United States but marks a significant shift in global cartographic guidelines.

4 Sept, 14:31 — 4 Sept, 18:11

Post Share

Why this matters

The Mercator projection, created in 1569 for maritime navigation, has been used globally in education and media, systematically shrinking equatorial regions like Africa and inflating polar areas like Europe and North America. Changing the official UN map challenges decades of entrenched visual bias that subtly influences perceptions of global power, development needs, and geopolitical importance.

Key entitiesTogo African Union United Nations General Assembly United States France

The Story

What 17 sources agree on, dispute, and miss

What sources agree on

UN General Assembly voted to adopt the resolution
Resolution sponsored by Togo with full African Union backing
Vote passed with 164 nations in favor
United States cast the sole opposing vote

Key claims3 agreed · 2 unverified

✓

UN General Assembly adopted a resolution to update global map projections

agreed·Premium Timesberlingskenational-uaestar-kenyamyjoyonline+12

✓

Togo sponsored the resolution with unified African Union support

agreed·Premium TimesBBCmyjoyonlineobservador

✓

The United States was the only country to vote against the measure

agreed·BBCnational-uae

The resolution advocates replacing the 16th-century Mercator projection with the Equal Earth projection

unverified·protothema-en

France co-sponsored the resolution alongside Togo

unverified·le-figaro

Where they diverge

Framing of the resolution's purpose

Premium Timesindex-hriefimerida

Historical and geopolitical correction addressing colonial-era bias

protothema-enBBCnos

Technical cartographic update improving geographic accuracy

Coverage gaps

Name of the proposed replacement projection (Equal Earth)

Reportedprotothema-en

MissingBBCCNNnational-uae+1

Coverage matrix(17 sources)

1–10 of 17

	BBC	CNN	nos	berlingske	le-figaro	de-volkskrant	index-hr	politiken	observador	iefimerida
Framing of the resolution's purpose
Name of the proposed replacement projection (Equal Earth)

Covered Divergent Not mentioned

The Story

Analyzing sources…

Source Diversity

Excellent (92/100)

17 sources33/33

Spectrum spread— 4/5 buckets covered25/33

Far L1

Far Left (1)

CNN

Left6

Left (6)

Premium TimesiefimeridaBBCindex-hrde-volkskrantpolitiken

Center5

Center (5)

star-kenyamyjoyonlinenosel-universal-englishklix-ba

Right5

Right (5)

berlingskenational-uaeobservadorle-figaroprotothema-en

Far R

Geographic diversity— 14 regions34/34

Denmark2Netherlands2Greece2Nigeria1UAE1Kenya1Ghana1Mexico1UK1Portugal1Croatia1France1US1Bosnia1

Political spectrum

LeftCenterRight

cnn

iefimerida

index-hr

de-volkskrant

politiken

premium-times

bbc

star-kenya

myjoyonline

nos

el-universal-english

klix-ba

protothema-en

national-uae

observador

berlingske

le-figaro

Outlet rating This story

SourceOutletiGeneral editorial lean of the outletStoryiHow they covered this specific storyToneFactuality

CNNcenter-leftleftsensationalMostly Factualsensationalizes visual impact shift

iefimeridacenter-leftcenter-leftoptimistic—historical redress narrative focus

index-hr

Coverage leans: center-left

Coverage leans center-left due to prominent framing of the vote as a corrective measure against historical and colonial distortions, amplified by several left-leaning outlets and the #CorrectTheMap campaign narrative.

Sources

Showing 7 of 17 sources

BBCHigh1h ago

UN votes to adopt new world map to reflect Africa's true size

The Togo-sponsored resolution was backed by 164 nations - the US the only nation to vote against it.

Read full article →

CNNMostly Factual4h ago

UN votes to adopt new map that makes our world look very different - CNN

UN votes to adopt new map that makes our world look very different CNN

Read full article →

national-uaeMixed1h ago

US opposes UN adoption of map showing Africa’s true size

By Adla Massoud

Read full article →

Premium TimesMostly Factual51m ago

UN votes to adopt new world map that shows true size of Africa

The resolution is part of the #CorrectTheMap campaign led by Togo and backed by all 55 African Union member states. The post UN votes to adopt new world map that shows true size of Africa appeared first on Premium Times Nigeria.

By Beloved John

Read full article →

star-kenyaMixed1h ago

UN votes to adopt new world map to reflect Africa's true size - the-star.co.ke

UN votes to adopt new world map to reflect Africa's true size the-star.co.ke

Read full article →

protothema-enMixed4h ago

UN urged to replace world map accused of shrinking Africa

Togo is leading a campaign, backed by the African Union, urging the United Nations to adopt the Equal Earth projection over the centuries-old Mercator map, which depicts the African continent as barely larger than Greenland The post UN urged to replace world map accused of shrinking Africa appeared first on ProtoThema English.

By Αλεξία Αμβράζη

Read full article →

myjoyonlineMixed1h ago

UN approves resolution in support of map that shows Africa’s true size

The United Nations on ‌Friday voted for a shift away from the 16th-century Mercator global map towards one more accurately reflecting countries' true size, a resolution sponsored by African states to counter perceptions that the continent is peripheral.

By Kenneth Darko

Read full article →

Coverage Timeline

First report: klix-ba · 4 Sept, 06:41|Full coverage: 17 · 12h|Window: 12h

Left-leaningCenterRight-leaning

klix-ba4 Sept, 06:41First to report

Kolika je zapravo Afrika? UN glasa o ukidanju karte koja je vijekovima umanjivala ovaj kontinent

4h later

politiken4 Sept, 10:51

FN stemmer om nyt verdenskort med Afrikas sande størrelse

4h later

protothema-en4 Sept, 14:31

UN urged to replace world map accused of shrinking Africa

CNN4 Sept, 14:55

UN votes to adopt new map that makes our world look very different - CNN

1h later

le-figaro4 Sept, 16:07

La France soutient une réforme de la cartographie mondiale plus représentative, notamment pour l’Afrique

de-volkskrant4 Sept, 16:21

VN stemt vandaag over waarheidsgetrouwe wereldkaart: Afrika moet er veel groter op

index-hr4 Sept, 17:07

Πράσινο «φως» από τον ΟΗΕ για την αλλαγή του παγκόσμιου χάρτη και την κατάργηση της μερκατορικής μόρφης -Πώς θα φαίνονται οι χώρες

el-universal-english4 Sept, 17:38

ONU va por un nuevo mapa mundial más cercano a la realidad; adopta reforma de cartografía global

nos4 Sept, 17:44

VN stemt voor nieuwe wereldkaart met grotere weergave van Afrika

myjoyonline4 Sept, 17:54

UN approves resolution in support of map that shows Africa’s true size

star-kenya4 Sept, 17:55

UN votes to adopt new world map to reflect Africa's true size - the-star.co.ke

national-uae4 Sept, 17:55

US opposes UN adoption of map showing Africa’s true size

berlingske4 Sept, 17:57

FN stemmer for at vedtage nyt verdenskort – Afrika vokser

Premium Times4 Sept, 18:11Latest update

UN votes to adopt new world map that shows true size of Africa

Story evolution

Coverage evolved from speculative previews focused on visual distortion to definitive reporting on diplomatic alignment, ultimately settling into analysis of the broader decolonial mapping campaign.

Pre-Vote AnticipationSept 4, 06:41–10:51 UTC

Outlets preview the upcoming vote, emphasizing the Greenland-Africa size comparison and historical context.

Vote Passage & Diplomatic AlignmentSept 4, 14:31–17:55 UTC

Major outlets confirm adoption, highlight the 164-1 vote split, and isolate US opposition.

Campaign Context & Implementation DiscussionSept 4, 17:57–18:11 UTC

Sources contextualize the #CorrectTheMap movement, French co-sponsorship, and long-term geographic reform goals.

UN Adopts Resolution to Correct Global Map Distortions

Why this matters

The Story

What sources agree on

Key claims3 agreed · 2 unverified

Where they diverge

Coverage gaps

Coverage matrix(17 sources)

The Story

Source Diversity

Source Diversity

Political spectrum

Sources

UN votes to adopt new world map to reflect Africa's true size

UN votes to adopt new map that makes our world look very different - CNN

US opposes UN adoption of map showing Africa’s true size

UN votes to adopt new world map that shows true size of Africa

UN votes to adopt new world map to reflect Africa's true size - the-star.co.ke

UN urged to replace world map accused of shrinking Africa

UN approves resolution in support of map that shows Africa’s true size

Coverage Timeline

Kolika je zapravo Afrika? UN glasa o ukidanju karte koja je vijekovima umanjivala ovaj kontinent

FN stemmer om nyt verdenskort med Afrikas sande størrelse

UN urged to replace world map accused of shrinking Africa

UN votes to adopt new map that makes our world look very different - CNN

La France soutient une réforme de la cartographie mondiale plus représentative, notamment pour l’Afrique

VN stemt vandaag over waarheidsgetrouwe wereldkaart: Afrika moet er veel groter op

UN izglasao promjenu karte svijeta

ONU vota proposta para alterar mapa do mundo

UN votes to adopt new world map to reflect Africa's true size

Πράσινο «φως» από τον ΟΗΕ για την αλλαγή του παγκόσμιου χάρτη και την κατάργηση της μερκατορικής μόρφης -Πώς θα φαίνονται οι χώρες

ONU va por un nuevo mapa mundial más cercano a la realidad; adopta reforma de cartografía global

VN stemt voor nieuwe wereldkaart met grotere weergave van Afrika

UN approves resolution in support of map that shows Africa’s true size

UN votes to adopt new world map to reflect Africa's true size - the-star.co.ke

US opposes UN adoption of map showing Africa’s true size

FN stemmer for at vedtage nyt verdenskort – Afrika vokser

UN votes to adopt new world map that shows true size of Africa

Story evolution

Related Stories

Mistrial Declared in Murder Trial of Mother Accused of Killing Three Children

Baltic States Condemn Russia After Suspected Drone Attack in Germany

Norway Seizes Russian Ship in Arctic Over Ukrainian Energy Claim

Lindsay Clancy Murder Trial Ends in Hung Jury

Why this matters

The Story

What sources agree on

Key claims3 agreed · 2 unverified

Where they diverge

Coverage gaps

Coverage matrix(17 sources)

Story evolution

Political spectrum