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Aide to U.S. Ambassador Huckabee Accused of Suppressing Embassy Reports on Israel

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 5 outlets across the spectrum.

6 articles in total, 1 of them opinion. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias

Man in dark suit and red tie stands before two Israeli flags against dark background.
Image via The HillHow images are chosenReport this image

According to The New York Times, which cited interviews with officials and internal documents, David Milstein, a senior aide to U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, suppressed or altered embassy reports critical of the Israeli government. The reports included, according to the Times, an embassy report on the killings of nine American citizens in the West Bank by Israeli settlers and security forces. At least 30 lawmakers had asked the State Department for updates on investigations into the killings. The Times also reported that embassy cables fell from several a week to only a few a month after Milstein required communications from the embassy's Palestinian affairs section to go through him. Accounts of why he acted differ.

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. The New York Times reported that David Milstein, an aide to Ambassador Mike Huckabee, suppressed or altered embassy reports critical of the Israeli government, citing officials and documents.

    Reported byFar Left2Left1Center1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    The New Republic, Truthout
    Left
    The New York Times
    Center
    The Hill
    Far Right
    The Daily Caller

  2. Embassy reporting on the killings of nine American citizens in the West Bank was reportedly suppressed, with the killings attributed to Israeli settlers and security forces.

    Reported byFar Left2Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    The New Republic, Truthout
    Far Right
    The Daily Caller

  3. Embassy cables reportedly fell from several a week to a few a month after Milstein required communications from the Palestinian affairs section to go through him, the Times said.

    One outletThe New Republic· Far Left

  4. At least 30 lawmakers asked the State Department for information on the killings of Americans.

    Reported byFar Left1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    Truthout
    Far Right
    The Daily Caller

  5. Milstein is reported to be the stepson of Fox News host Mark Levin.

    One outletThe Daily Caller· Far Right

What is contested

Where accounts differ

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

  • Milstein suppressed or altered embassy reports in order to favor the Israeli government.

    The New Republic, Truthout and The Daily Caller describe the aim as shielding or favoring Israel, while The Hill attributes the suppression to the Times and three officials without describing a motive, and the Times reports officials' accounts of information being skewed toward a favorable portrayal of the Netanyahu government.

  • Who carried out the killings of nine American citizens in the West Bank.

    The New Republic and Truthout describe the killings as Israel killing Americans, while the Times and The Daily Caller attribute them to Israeli settlers and security forces.

How each side tells it

Compare views

  • the left

    2 outlets · 1 opinion

    The New York Times headline asks how a diplomat suppressed and altered reports, while The New Republic and Truthout foreground the killings of Americans, with The New Republic calling it a Trump official hiding a damning report on Israel killing Americans.

    Trump Official Loaded verb“Hides”Hides implies deliberate concealment with intent, which the reporting describes only as an allegation.More neutral: withholdsDisagree with this highlight? Sensational language“Damning”Damning is a verdict on the report's content that the headline states before any reader has seen it.More neutral: internalDisagree with this highlight? Report on Absolutist framing“Israel Killing Americans”The headline attributes the killings to Israel as a state, while the supplied reporting describes killings by settlers and security forces.More neutral: killings of Americans in the West BankDisagree with this highlight?
    The New RepublicFar LeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    1 outlet

    The Hill's headline states the allegation in neutral wording and attributes it to a report, with its excerpt naming three U.S. officials cited by the Times as the basis.

    Huckabee aide suppressed US embassy reports critical of Israeli government: Report
    The HillCenterAll center headlines

  • the right

    2 outlets

    The Daily Caller headline says the aide downplayed murders of American citizens to make Israel look better, stating a motive as fact in the same way the far-left outlets' running cover framing does, and its excerpt adds Milstein's family tie to a Fox News host.

    Mike Huckabee Should Resign
    The American ConservativeRightAll 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.

  • Left8

    running cover forHidesDamningIsrael Killing Americans

  • Center0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Right3

    DownplayedMurdersTo Make Israel Look Better

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded verb

    running cover forMore neutral: reported to have suppressed reports

    Running cover for implies a deliberate protective purpose that the reporting attributes to unnamed sources rather than establishes.

    Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, was running cover for the Israeli government, suppressing reports critical of Israeli actions, The New…

    Used byThe New Republic (Far Left)

  • Loaded verb

    HidesMore neutral: withholds

    Hides implies deliberate concealment with intent, which the reporting describes only as an allegation.

    Trump Official Hides Damning Report on Israel Killing Americans

    Used byThe New Republic (Far Left)

  • Sensational language

    DamningMore neutral: internal

    Damning is a verdict on the report's content that the headline states before any reader has seen it.

    Trump Official Hides Damning Report on Israel Killing Americans

    Used byThe New Republic (Far Left)

  • Absolutist framing

    Israel Killing AmericansMore neutral: killings of Americans in the West Bank

    The headline attributes the killings to Israel as a state, while the supplied reporting describes killings by settlers and security forces.

    Trump Official Hides Damning Report on Israel Killing Americans

    Used byThe New Republic (Far Left)

Show 7 more phrasesShow fewer

  • Loaded verb

    DownplayedMore neutral: suppressed

    Downplayed adds an intent to minimize that the reporting describes as suppression.

    REPORT: Top Huckabee Aide Downplayed Murders Of American Citizens To Make Israel Look Better

    Used byThe Daily Caller (Far Right)

  • Sensational language

    MurdersMore neutral: killings

    Murders is a legal characterization of intent, while other coverage uses the more neutral term killings.

    REPORT: Top Huckabee Aide Downplayed Murders Of American Citizens To Make Israel Look Better

    Used byThe Daily Caller (Far Right)

  • Absolutist framing

    To Make Israel Look BetterMore neutral: in reports that favored Israel

    The headline states a motive as established fact, while the reporting describes it as an allegation.

    REPORT: Top Huckabee Aide Downplayed Murders Of American Citizens To Make Israel Look Better

    Used byThe Daily Caller (Far Right)

  • Sensational language

    wielded enormous powerMore neutral: has had a large role

    The phrase dramatizes the aide's influence with an unsupported degree of power that the sources do not quantify.

    David Milstein, top aide to Ambassador Mike Huckabee, has wielded enormous power in US-Israel policy decisions.

    Used byTruthout (Far Left)

  • Loaded modifier

    pro-Israel extremistMore neutral: strongly pro-Israel official

    Extremist is a label that pre-judges the aide before any evidence about his views is presented.

    Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, David Milstein — a pro-Israel extremist who has quietly taken over a huge breadth of U.S.

    Used byTruthout (Far Left)

  • Loaded verb

    quietly taken overMore neutral: has a large role in

    Quietly taken over implies secret seizure of control, a characterization not established by the reporting.

    …to Israel Mike Huckabee, David Milstein — a pro-Israel extremist who has quietly taken over a huge breadth of U.S.

    Used byTruthout (Far Left)

  • Absolutist framing

    genocidal stateMore neutral: Israeli government

    Genocidal presents a contested characterization of the Israeli government as settled fact in the outlet's own voice.

    policy decisions on the genocidal state.

    Used byTruthout (Far Left)

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

2 outlets · 1 opinion

Leads with

  • suppressed embassy reports on killings of Americans
  • Congress kept from investigating
  • Milstein as shielding the Israeli government

Leaves out

  • Milstein's family tie to Fox News host Mark Levin

Reported by other sides, not found in this side’s coverage.

See the 3 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
  • The New RepublicFar Left

    Trump Official Loaded verb“Hides”Hides implies deliberate concealment with intent, which the reporting describes only as an allegation.More neutral: withholdsDisagree with this highlight? Sensational language“Damning”Damning is a verdict on the report's content that the headline states before any reader has seen it.More neutral: internalDisagree with this highlight? Report on Absolutist framing“Israel Killing Americans”The headline attributes the killings to Israel as a state, while the supplied reporting describes killings by settlers and security forces.More neutral: killings of Americans in the West BankDisagree with this highlight?

    American diplomats are supposed to represent the interests of the U.S. above everything else. David Milstein, an aide to U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, was Loaded verb“running cover for”Running cover for implies a deliberate protective purpose that the reporting attributes to unnamed sources rather than establishes.More neutral: reported to have suppressed reportsDisagree with this highlight? the Israeli government, suppressing reports critical of Israeli actions, The New York Times …

    Read at The New Republic (opens in a new tab)
  • The New York TimesLeft

    How a U.S. Diplomat Suppressed and Altered Reports Critical of Israel

    A top aide to Ambassador Mike Huckabee skewed information to portray the Netanyahu government in a favorable light, according to multiple officials and documents obtained by The Times.

    Read at The New York Times (opens in a new tab)
  • TruthoutFar LeftOpinion

    US Embassy Aide Suppressed Report on Israeli Killings of Americans in West Bank

    David Milstein, top aide to Ambassador Mike Huckabee, has Sensational language“wielded enormous power”The phrase dramatizes the aide's influence with an unsupported degree of power that the sources do not quantify.More neutral: has had a large roleDisagree with this highlight? in US-Israel policy decisions.

    Read at Truthout (opens in a new tab)

From the center

1 outlet

Leads with

  • three U.S. officials cited by the Times
  • suppression of a memo critical of an Israeli decision
  • Milstein as a senior adviser to Huckabee

Leaves out

  • killings of nine American citizens

Reported by other sides, not found in this side’s coverage.

See the headline from the centerHide the headlines
  • The HillCenter

    Huckabee aide suppressed US embassy reports critical of Israeli government: Report

    A top aide to the U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee allegedly suppressed an embassy report that was critical of the Israeli government, according to the New York Times, which cited three U.S. officials who work with the aide. …

    Read at The Hill (opens in a new tab)

From the right

2 outlets

Leads with

  • downplayed murders of American citizens
  • motive of making Israel look better
  • Milstein's family tie to Fox host Mark Levin
See the 2 headlines from the rightHide the headlines
  • The American ConservativeRight

    Mike Huckabee Should Resign

    The Milstein scandal shows the ambassador undercutting American policy and the express wishes of the president.

    Read at The American Conservative (opens in a new tab)
  • The Daily CallerFar Right

    REPORT: Top Huckabee Aide Loaded verb“Downplayed”Downplayed adds an intent to minimize that the reporting describes as suppression.More neutral: suppressedDisagree with this highlight? Sensational language“Murders”Murders is a legal characterization of intent, while other coverage uses the more neutral term killings.More neutral: killingsDisagree with this highlight? Of American Citizens Absolutist framing“To Make Israel Look Better”The headline states a motive as established fact, while the reporting describes it as an allegation.More neutral: in reports that favored IsraelDisagree with this highlight?

    A top aide to U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee allegedly suppressed a detailed embassy report into the killings of nine Americans in the West Bank, according to a report Thursday. …

    Read at The Daily Caller (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

    The New York Times, Oct 8, 5:00 AM EDT

  • Center

    14 hr 47 min later

    Its first report, Oct 8, 7:46 PM EDT

  • Right

    6 hr 14 min later

    Its first report, Oct 8, 11:14 AM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. The New York TimesLeftOct 8, 5:00 AM EDT
  2. The New RepublicFar LeftOct 8, 10:45 AM EDT
  3. The Daily CallerFar RightOct 8, 11:14 AM EDT
  4. The HillCenterOct 8, 7:46 PM EDT
  5. The American ConservativeRightOct 10, 12:03 AM EDT

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

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