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Abdul El-Sayed addresses past criticism of Obama before joint campaign

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 7 outlets across the spectrum.

10 articles in total, 3 of them opinion. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias

A bearded man in a dark blazer looks off-camera during an indoor interview.
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Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed told NBC’s Meet the Press that his past criticism of former President Barack Obama reflected his youth and anger. Asked whether he still saw Obama’s presidency as a failure, he likened second-guessing Obama to second-guessing a parent, according to reports of the interview. In a 2012 essay, El-Sayed had criticized Obama’s presidency as a failure, reports say. Obama is set to campaign with El-Sayed in Detroit in the coming weeks, according to reports.

Headline and summary written by Mantle’s AI from the coverage below, under published rules. How this works

What happened

Key points

Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.

  1. El-Sayed said on NBC’s Meet the Press that his past criticism of Obama reflected his youth and anger.

    Reported byLeft3Center1Right1Far Right2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    NBC News, The Washington Post, TheGrio
    Center
    The Hill
    Right
    Washington Examiner
    Far Right
    The Daily Wire, The Daily Caller

  2. El-Sayed criticized Obama’s presidency as a failure in a 2012 essay.

    Reported byLeft1Far Right2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Washington Post
    Far Right
    The Daily Wire, RedState

  3. Obama is set to campaign with El-Sayed in Detroit in the coming weeks.

    Reported byLeft1Right1Far Right4See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    NBC News
    Right
    Washington Examiner
    Far Right
    The Daily Wire, The Daily Caller, Townhall, RedState

What is contested

Where accounts differ

Points the coverage does not agree on, and who says what.

  • El-Sayed’s past criticism of Obama reflected youth and anger rather than a lasting view of Obama’s presidency.

    El-Sayed says his past criticism reflected his youth and anger. Townhall, The Daily Wire and RedState describe his campaigning with Obama as a contradiction of his earlier calls of Obama a failure.

How each side tells it

Compare views

All sides report that Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed told NBC his past criticism of Obama reflected his youth and anger. Left and center headlines show him addressing or walking back the criticism; right outlets stress his earlier call of Obama a failure and treat the explanation as spin.

  • the left

    3 outlets

    Left-side headlines report El-Sayed addressing or walking back his past criticism of Obama, often quoting his own explanation that he was younger and angry.

    Abdul El-Sayed addresses past criticism of Obama: 'I was younger’ and ‘angry’
    NBC NewsLeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    1 outlet

    The Hill’s headline reports El-Sayed addressing his past criticism of Obama and his remark that Democrats stand on the shoulders of giants.

    El-Sayed addresses past Obama criticism, says Democrats now 'stand on the shoulders of giants'
    The HillCenterAll center headlines

  • the right

    3 outlets · 2 opinion

    Right-side headlines frame the event as a contradiction: Far Right outlets stress his earlier calls of Obama a failure and treat his explanation as spin, while the Washington Examiner reports his youth explanation.

    El-Sayed Compares Obama To His Father After Loaded verb“Complaining About”Complaining frames El-Sayed’s criticism as a petty grievance rather than a political critique, which goes beyond the facts reported.More neutral: CriticizingDisagree with this highlight? ‘His Failures’
    The Daily WireFar RightAll right-leaning headlines

The words they chose

Language to notice

Words that carry a judgement beyond the facts. Tap a highlighted word anywhere on the page to see why.

  • Left1

    walks back

  • Center0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Right10

    Complaining Aboutblamedrolled backseemingly hated

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded verb

    Complaining AboutMore neutral: Criticizing

    Complaining frames El-Sayed’s criticism as a petty grievance rather than a political critique, which goes beyond the facts reported.

    El-Sayed Compares Obama To His Father After Complaining About ‘His Failures’

    Used byThe Daily Wire (Far Right)

  • Loaded verb

    blamedMore neutral: attributed

    Blamed implies fault for the criticism, a judgement beyond the reported statement that he attributed it to his age and anger.

    Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul el Sayed on Sunday blamed his past critiques of former President Barack Obama on his “younger” and “angry” self…

    Used byWashington Examiner (Right)

  • Loaded verb

    walks backMore neutral: revisits

    “Walks back” casts a change in position as a retreat, which judges his motive; a neutral wording describes the same reporting.

    Abdul El-Sayed walks back Obama criticism ahead of their campaign event

    Used byThe Washington Post (Left)

  • Loaded verb

    rolled backMore neutral: revised

    “Rolled back” describes a reversal in loaded terms; a neutral wording states the change without judging it.

    The Democratic nominee for an open Michigan Senate seat, Abdul El-Sayed, rolled back his previous criticisms of former President Barack Obama during a Sunday interview…

    Used byThe Daily Caller (Far Right)

Show 7 more phrasesShow fewer

  • Loaded modifier

    seemingly hatedMore neutral: had criticized

    Asserts an emotion toward Obama that the article does not document.

    …Democrat Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed is now campaigning with the man he once seemingly hated: Barack Obama.

    Used byTownhall (Far Right)

  • Loaded modifier

    appears to be newly foundMore neutral: now supports

    Implies the current support is insincere without evidence for that claim.

    El-Sayed’s love for Obama appears to be newly found.

    Used byTownhall (Far Right)

  • Loaded modifier

    problematic campaignMore neutral: campaign

    The label pre-judges the campaign as flawed before the facts are weighed.

    …candidate Abdul El-Sayed is asking former President Barack Obama to help his problematic campaign.

    Used byRedState (Far Right)

  • Sensational language

    this is pretty funnyMore neutral: The shift is notable

    The outlet adds its own judgement that the situation is amusing.

    Now, this is pretty funny, as we reported, since El-Sayed has ripped into Obama in the past for what he…

    Used byRedState (Far Right)

  • Loaded verb

    ripped intoMore neutral: criticized

    The phrase adds force beyond the fact that El-Sayed criticized Obama.

    Now, this is pretty funny, as we reported, since El-Sayed has ripped into Obama in the past for what he thinks were his failures when he was in office.

    Used byRedState (Far Right)

  • Sensational language

    HilariousMore neutral: El-Sayed Addresses Prior Remarks About Obama

    The adjective judges the story as entertaining rather than reporting what El-Sayed said.

    Hilarious: El-Sayed Desperately Spins Prior Remarks About Obama, As Former President Cuts Ad…

    Used byRedState (Far Right)

  • Loaded verb

    Desperately SpinsMore neutral: Explains

    The verb and adverb assert a motive and judge his explanation as insincere without evidence.

    Hilarious: El-Sayed Desperately Spins Prior Remarks About Obama, As Former President Cuts Ad for Him

    Used byRedState (Far Right)

See the full language guide

See for yourself

Side by side

What each side leads with and what it leaves out. Open a side to read its headlines.

From the left

3 outlets

Leads with

  • His youth and anger as explanation
  • Addressing past criticism directly
  • Joint campaign with Obama
See the 3 headlines from the leftHide the headlines

From the center

1 outlet

Leads with

  • Democrats building on Obama’s legacy
  • His explanation of past remarks
See the headline from the centerHide the headlines
  • The HillCenter

    El-Sayed addresses past Obama criticism, says Democrats now 'stand on the shoulders of giants'

    Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed (D) on Sunday addressed past criticism he made about former President Obama and said that he and other Democratic candidates "stand on the shoulders of giants" like the former president. …

    Read at The Hill (opens in a new tab)

From the right

3 outlets · 2 opinion

Leads with

  • His earlier calls of Obama a failure
  • Campaigning alongside Obama as a contradiction
  • His explanation as spin
See the 5 headlines from the rightHide the headlines
  • The Daily CallerFar Right

    ‘Think Of My Dad’: Abdul El-Sayed Defends Campaigning With Obama After Criticizing Him During Presidency

    ‘we’re going to push on in different ways than his administration led’

    Read at The Daily Caller (opens in a new tab)
  • Washington ExaminerRight

    El Sayed attributes past criticism of Obama to ‘younger’ and ‘angry’ self

    Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul el Sayed on Sunday Loaded verb“blamed”Blamed implies fault for the criticism, a judgement beyond the reported statement that he attributed it to his age and anger.More neutral: attributedDisagree with this highlight? his past critiques of former President Barack Obama on his “younger” and “angry” self as the two are set to campaign together ahead of the midterm elections. …

    Read at Washington Examiner (opens in a new tab)
  • The Daily WireFar Right

    El-Sayed Compares Obama To His Father After Loaded verb“Complaining About”Complaining frames El-Sayed’s criticism as a petty grievance rather than a political critique, which goes beyond the facts reported.More neutral: CriticizingDisagree with this highlight? ‘His Failures’

    Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed likened his past criticism of former President Barack Obama to second-guessing a parent during a Meet the Press interview Sunday, weeks before the two are set to campaign together in Detroit. …

    Read at The Daily Wire (opens in a new tab)
  • RedStateFar RightOpinion

    Sensational language“Hilarious”The adjective judges the story as entertaining rather than reporting what El-Sayed said.More neutral: El-Sayed Addresses Prior Remarks About ObamaDisagree with this highlight?: El-Sayed Loaded verb“Desperately Spins”The verb and adverb assert a motive and judge his explanation as insincere without evidence.More neutral: ExplainsDisagree with this highlight? Prior Remarks About Obama, As Former President Cuts Ad for Him

    Democrat Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed is asking former President Barack Obama to help his Loaded modifier“problematic campaign”The label pre-judges the campaign as flawed before the facts are weighed.More neutral: campaignDisagree with this highlight?.

    Read at RedState (opens in a new tab)
  • TownhallFar RightOpinion

    Abdul El-Sayed Once Called Obama a Failure. Now He’s Campaigning at His Side.

    Separated by a razor-thin margin, Democrat Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed is now campaigning with the man he once Loaded modifier“seemingly hated”Asserts an emotion toward Obama that the article does not document.More neutral: had criticizedDisagree with this highlight?: Barack Obama.

    Read at Townhall (opens in a new tab)

Articles you open from here build My Mix, a private picture of how your reading spreads across the spectrum, kept on this device. What is My Mix?

The left is Far Left and Left together. The right is Right and Far Right together. Every outlet keeps its own five-point rating.

Who reported it when

How the coverage built up

  • Left

    First to report

    NBC News, Oct 11, 6:26 AM EDT

  • Center

    9 hr 47 min later

    Its first report, Oct 11, 4:13 PM EDT

  • Right

    47 min later

    Its first report, Oct 11, 7:13 AM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. NBC NewsLeftOct 11, 6:26 AM EDT
  2. The Daily WireFar RightOct 11, 7:13 AM EDT
  3. Washington ExaminerRightOct 11, 11:57 AM EDT
  4. The HillCenterOct 11, 4:13 PM EDT
  5. The Washington PostLeftOct 11, 5:04 PM EDT
  6. The Daily CallerFar RightOct 11, 5:13 PM EDT
  7. TheGrioLeftOct 12, 10:22 AM EDT

Times are the ones the outlets published in their own feeds, in Eastern time. Opinion is left out.

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