How SESAMm Structures ESG Controversies

SESAMm clusters articles into events (what happened) and cases (how it evolves over time) rather than treating each article independently. This structure allows users to move from isolated media mentions to material ESG signals, supporting trend analysis, escalation detection, and historical tracking.

Article

An individual news or source document. Within a cluster of similar documents, one article is selected as the main article. The criteria for the main article take into account factors such as negativity, source reliability, comprehensiveness, and relevance to a particular topic or event.

Event

A collection of articles referring to the same incident or development, always linked to a single Case and a single entity. The defining principle is that each distinct incident or development corresponds to its own Event. One incident is one Event, and a new development will become one new Event. The primary driver for grouping articles is whether they reflect the same underlying incident or development. Time proximity plays a supporting role: articles far apart in time are likely to reflect separate developments and will generally be split into distinct Events. For example, a strike in 2022 and a similar strike in 2024 would be captured as separate Events, as they represent distinct developments rather than a continuation of the same incident.

Case

A longer-term ESG controversy that aggregates multiple related Events over time. A Case reflects the full trajectory of an issue, potentially spanning months or years (e.g. allegations, investigations, legal proceedings, settlements). For example, an oil spill would first generate an Event capturing the initial pollution and its environmental impact, followed by a second Event when authorities launch an investigation, and a third when legal proceedings conclude in a settlement. All three Events belong to the same Case - together, they tell the complete story of the controversy, from the incident itself through to its resolution.