Hasn't releasing a scary press release once a year basically been its raison d'etre since it began? It's a metaphor, its not meant to be some mega-accurate measure.
But it's clearly not accurate even with respect to itself. The world is closer to nuclear annihiliation now than in any year since 1953, including multiple proxy wars between the US and USSR along with the Cuban Missile Crisis? I don't see any plausible way to believe that.
