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California high-speed rail CEO Ian Choudri resigns; Joe Stephenshaw named interim

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 3 outlets, mostly right-leaning (67%).

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

A bald man in a suit speaks at a podium before American and California flags.
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The New York Times, the New York Post and The Center Square report that Ian Choudri, chief executive of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, has resigned. The Center Square says he cited personal and family reasons. The New York Times says the exit followed state investigators’ questions about $600,000 in agency spending. The New York Post and The Center Square report that the board named state Finance Director Joe Stephenshaw interim CEO. The Center Square says the board had earlier restricted Choudri’s spending power after an inspector general report on questionable travel expenses. RedState, in an opinion piece, describes the project as a litany of disasters and cites expense 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. Ian Choudri resigned as chief executive of the California High-Speed Rail Authority.

    Reported byLeft1Right2Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The New York Times
    Right
    New York Post, The Center Square
    Far Right
    RedState

  2. Choudri cited personal and family reasons for resigning.

    One outletThe Center Square· Right

  3. Weeks before the resignation, state investigators questioned $600,000 in agency spending.

    One outletThe New York Times· Left

  4. The rail board restricted Choudri’s spending power after an inspector general report on questionable travel expenses.

    One outletThe Center Square· Right

  5. The board named state Finance Director Joe Stephenshaw interim CEO.

    One side only: the rightReported byRight2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Right
    New York Post, The Center Square

What is contested

Where accounts differ

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

  • The total cost of the California bullet train project.

    The New York Post gives a $231 billion figure, while The Center Square says the project is expected to ultimately cost taxpayers $126.2 billion.

  • The reason Choudri resigned.

    The Center Square reports he cited personal and family reasons; The New York Times links the exit to state investigators’ questions about spending; RedState describes it as amid a travel scandal.

How each side tells it

Compare views

Every side present reports that Ian Choudri resigned as head of California’s high-speed rail authority. The New York Times ties the exit to questions about $600,000 in spending, while right-side outlets stress its suddenness and call the project doomed or scandal-ridden.

  • the left

    1 outlet

    The New York Times headline frames the resignation around questions about spending, tying the chief’s departure to scrutiny by state investigators.

    California’s High-Speed Rail Chief Quits Amid Questions About Spending
    The New York 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

    2 outlets · 1 opinion

    Right-side headlines stress suddenness and scandal: the New York Post calls the project doomed, while the far-right RedState opinion piece names a travel scandal and The Center Square reports the resignation plainly.

    CEO of California’s Loaded modifier“doomed”Calls the project doomed before the facts establish its outcome.More neutral: $231B bullet train projectDisagree with this highlight? $231B bullet train project Loaded verb“suddenly quits”Quits adds a judgement of manner and suddenly adds drama; the event is a resignation.More neutral: resignsDisagree with this highlight?
    New York PostRightAll 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.

  • Left0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Center

    Has not covered this story.

  • Right8

    never-ending and massively expensivedoomedsuddenly quitslitany of disasters

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded modifier

    never-ending and massively expensiveMore neutral: long-running $231 billion

    Judges the project's duration and cost in the outlet's own voice rather than stating the figures.

    …resigned on Wednesday after a stint marred in scandal surrounding the never-ending and massively expensive project, according to CalMatters.

    Used byNew York Post (Right)

  • Loaded modifier

    doomedMore neutral: $231B bullet train project

    Calls the project doomed before the facts establish its outcome.

    CEO of California’s doomed $231B bullet train project suddenly quits

    Used byNew York Post (Right)

  • Loaded verb

    suddenly quitsMore neutral: resigns

    Quits adds a judgement of manner and suddenly adds drama; the event is a resignation.

    CEO of California’s doomed $231B bullet train project suddenly quits

    Used byNew York Post (Right)

  • Sensational language

    litany of disastersMore neutral: a series of delays and setbacks

    Characterizes the project as a series of disasters without listing them.

    California's high speed rail project has been a litany of disasters.

    Used byRedState (Far Right)

Show 4 more phrasesShow fewer

  • Delegitimizing label

    boondoggleMore neutral: costly project

    Calls a publicly funded project a waste without evidence in the text.

    The groundbreaking for this boondoggle was in 2015, and in the 11 years since, not one passenger has been moved one inch.

    Used byRedState (Far Right)

  • Sensational language

    living high on the hogMore neutral: spent on travel and expenses

    Asserts lavish personal spending by officials in the outlet's own voice, with no figures given.

    But the people in charge of the project have been living high on the hog, as we have documented, via various expense report shenanigans, among other…

    Used byRedState (Far Right)

  • Sensational language

    expense report shenanigansMore neutral: questionable expense reports

    Uses a mocking term for expense reports instead of describing them.

    …have been living high on the hog, as we have documented, via various expense report shenanigans, among other things.

    Used byRedState (Far Right)

  • Loaded modifier

    beleagueredMore neutral: long-delayed

    The adjective pre-judges the state of the project before the facts are weighed.

    Gavin Newsom advisor in charge of the state’s beleaguered bullet train project after its former boss, Ian Choudri, submitted his resignation…

    Used byNew York Post (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

1 outlet

Leads with

  • questions about spending
  • state investigators’ scrutiny
  • $600,000 in agency spending
See the headline from the leftHide the headlines

From the center

0 outlets

No center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

From the right

2 outlets · 1 opinion

Leads with

  • abrupt, sudden departure
  • a project described as doomed
  • travel and spending scandal

Leaves out

  • state investigators’ questions about $600,000 in spending

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

See the 3 headlines from the rightHide the headlines

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

    2 hr 49 min later

    Its first report, Oct 29, 1:47 PM EDT

  • Center

    No report yet

    From the outlets Mantle follows

  • Right

    First to report

    New York Post, Oct 29, 10:58 AM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. New York PostRightOct 29, 10:58 AM EDT
  2. The New York TimesLeftOct 29, 1:47 PM EDT
  3. The Center SquareRightOct 29, 5:20 PM EDT

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

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