Culture & SocietyBreaking
Anonymous artists install statue of Trump rubbing bare foot on National Mall
By Mantle News
Coverage spectrum
Covered by 3 outlets, all left-leaning.
3 articles in total. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias
The New Republic, The Daily Beast and the Los Angeles Times report that a statue of President Donald Trump, seated on a pedestal and rubbing a bare foot, has been erected on the National Mall. The outlets say an anonymous art group, named as Secret Handshake by The Daily Beast and the Los Angeles Times, put it up. The statue, titled “The Foot Soldier,” and its plaque refer to Trump’s bone spurs diagnosis in 1968, which led to a medical exemption from Vietnam War service. The Los Angeles Times reports it will stay on display through Veterans Day. Accounts differ on the material: The New Republic calls it bronze, while the other two describe it as gold.
Headline and summary written by Mantle’s AI from the coverage below, under published rules. Editors read every story. How this works
What happened
Key points
Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.
An anonymous art group erected a statue of Trump on the National Mall, seated on a pedestal and rubbing a bare foot.
One side only: the leftReported byFar Left2Left1See the outletsHide the outlets
- Far Left
- The New Republic, The Daily Beast
- Left
- Los Angeles Times
The statue is titled “The Foot Soldier”, and its plaque refers to Trump’s bone spurs diagnosis that led to a medical exemption from Vietnam War service.
One side only: the leftReported byFar Left1Left1See the outletsHide the outlets
- Far Left
- The New Republic
- Left
- Los Angeles Times
The group behind the statue is named as Secret Handshake.
One side only: the leftReported byFar Left1Left1See the outletsHide the outlets
- Far Left
- The Daily Beast
- Left
- Los Angeles Times
The statue was erected a week after the midterm elections and will remain on display through Veterans Day.
One outletLos Angeles Times· Left
What is contested
Where accounts differ
Questions the coverage answers differently, and who says what.
Is the statue made of gold?
The Daily Beast and the Los Angeles Times describe it as golden or gold, while The New Republic describes it as bronze.
How each side tells it
Compare views
All three outlets report that an anonymous art group erected a statue of Trump rubbing a bare foot on the National Mall, framing it as mockery of his bone spurs deferment, with the Far Left outlets using the sharpest language.
the left
3 outlets
Headlines present the statue as mocking Trump’s draft deferment, and the Far Left outlets go further, with The Daily Beast calling it a humiliation and a dig.
Statue mocking Trump's 'draft-dodging' bone spurs appears on National Mall
Los Angeles TimesLeftAll left-leaning headlines the center
No coverage yet
No center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
the right
No coverage yet
No right-leaning outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
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
draft-dodgingtauntinghumiliatingHumiliated
Center
Has not covered this story.
Right
Has not covered this story.
In the outlets’ own words
Loaded modifier
draft-dodgingMore neutral: draft deferment
The label presents Trump’s deferment as draft evasion as settled fact.
President Donald Trump’s draft-dodging past was put on blast on Monday with a giant gold statue in his front yard.
Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)The New Republic (Far Left)
Loaded verb
tauntingMore neutral: depicting
Taunting attributes hostile intent to the artists, which the description does not establish.
…Handshake, an anonymous group of artists responsible for a series of sculptures taunting the 80-year-old president during his second administration, has erected another…
Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)
Loaded modifier
humiliatingMore neutral: a monument to Trump
Humiliating judges the effect of the monument on Trump as fact.
…the 80-year-old president during his second administration, has erected another humiliating monument to Trump on the National Mall.
Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)
Loaded verb
HumiliatedMore neutral: Golden statue of Trump appears on National Mall
Humiliated states an effect on Trump as fact in the outlet’s own voice, which the coverage does not establish.
Trump Humiliated by Golden Dig at His ‘Bone Spurs’
Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)
Show 4 more phrasesShow fewer
Sensational language
Golden DigMore neutral: gold statue
Dig is slang for an insult and adds a judgement about the statue’s intent.
Trump Humiliated by Golden Dig at His ‘Bone Spurs’
Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)
Loaded modifier
mediocrityMore neutral: Another statue commemorating Donald Trump
Calling Trump mediocre is a judgement of his ability written in the outlet’s own voice.
Another statue commemorating Donald Trump’s mediocrity has appeared in Washington, this time mocking the moment he evaded the Vietnam War…
Used byThe New Republic (Far Left)
Loaded verb
evadedMore neutral: received a medical exemption from
Evaded implies an unlawful avoidance of service, where the coverage describes a medical exemption.
…Donald Trump’s mediocrity has appeared in Washington, this time mocking the moment he evaded the Vietnam War draft with a timely diagnosis of bone spurs.
Used byThe New Republic (Far Left)
Loaded modifier
timelyMore neutral: a diagnosis of
Timely insinuates the diagnosis was convenient, an implication the article does not support with evidence.
…in Washington, this time mocking the moment he evaded the Vietnam War draft with a timely diagnosis of bone spurs.
Used byThe New Republic (Far Left)
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 outletsLeads with
- the statue’s mockery of Trump’s bone spurs
- the anonymous artists’ protest
- Trump’s draft-era record
See the 3 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
- The New RepublicFar Left
Statue Mocking Trump’s Loaded modifier“Draft Dodging”The phrase presents Trump’s medical deferment as draft evasion as settled fact, which the coverage does not establish.More neutral: draft defermentDisagree with this highlight? Pops Up After Election Defeat
Another statue commemorating Donald Trump’s Loaded modifier“mediocrity”Calling Trump mediocre is a judgement of his ability written in the outlet’s own voice.More neutral: Another statue commemorating Donald TrumpDisagree with this highlight? has appeared in Washington, this time mocking the moment he Loaded verb“evaded”Evaded implies an unlawful avoidance of service, where the coverage describes a medical exemption.More neutral: received a medical exemption fromDisagree with this highlight? the Vietnam War draft with a Loaded modifier“timely”Timely insinuates the diagnosis was convenient, an implication the article does not support with evidence.More neutral: a diagnosis ofDisagree with this highlight? diagnosis of bone spurs. …
- The Daily BeastFar Left
Trump Loaded verb“Humiliated”Humiliated states an effect on Trump as fact in the outlet’s own voice, which the coverage does not establish.More neutral: Golden statue of Trump appears on National MallDisagree with this highlight? by Sensational language“Golden Dig”Dig is slang for an insult and adds a judgement about the statue’s intent.More neutral: gold statueDisagree with this highlight? at His ‘Bone Spurs’
President Donald Trump’s Loaded modifier“draft-dodging”The label presents Trump’s deferment as draft evasion as settled fact.More neutral: draft defermentDisagree with this highlight? past was put on blast on Monday with a giant gold statue in his front yard. The Secret Handshake, an anonymous group of artists responsible for a series of sculptures Loaded verb“taunting”Taunting attributes hostile intent to the artists, which the description does not establish.More neutral: depictingDisagree with this highlight? the 80-year-old president during his second administration, has …
Statue mocking Trump's 'draft-dodging' bone spurs appears on National Mall
The anonymous satirical art group Secret Handshake erected a giant statue on the National Mall mocking Trump's 'draft-dodging' bone spurs a week after the midterm elections.
From the center
0 outletsNo center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
From the right
0 outletsNo right-leaning outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
The stories you read build My Mix, a private picture of which sides cover the stories you choose, 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
Los Angeles Times, Nov 9, 3:39 PM EST
Center
No report yet
From the outlets Mantle follows
Right
No report yet
From the outlets Mantle follows
See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
- Los Angeles TimesLeftNov 9, 3:39 PM EST
- The Daily BeastFar LeftNov 9, 4:57 PM EST
- The New RepublicFar LeftNov 9, 5:08 PM EST
Times are the ones the outlets published in their own feeds, in Eastern time. Opinion is left out.
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