Skip to content

Culture & SocietyFeature

Danny Trejo says he is not pro-ICE amid backlash over Daily Wire film Pawn Shop

By

Coverage spectrum

Covered by 5 outlets, mostly left-leaning (60%).

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

Actor Danny Trejo, 82, has a role in Pawn Shop, a film produced by Ben Shapiro’s Daily Wire. In an Oct. 9 Instagram post, Trejo wrote that he is “not pro ice” and is pro-immigrant, according to NBC News. His son Gilbert Trejo says his father had never heard of Shapiro and did not learn Shapiro was involved until about two weeks into shooting, according to HuffPost, The Washington Times and NBC News. The Daily Beast and NBC News describe the film as pro-ICE, and The Daily Beast reports that it depicts immigration officers in Minneapolis. The Hill reports that production resumed in Livingston, Mont., on Monday after local residents complained about the project.

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. Danny Trejo has a role in Pawn Shop, a film produced by Ben Shapiro’s Daily Wire.

    Reported byFar Left2Left1Center1Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    HuffPost, The Daily Beast
    Left
    NBC News
    Center
    The Hill
    Right
    The Washington Times

  2. In an Oct. 9 Instagram post, Trejo wrote that he is “not pro ice” and pro-immigrant, and that he is an actor whose job is to tell a story.

    Reported byLeft1Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    NBC News
    Center
    The Hill

  3. Trejo’s son Gilbert says his father had never heard of Ben Shapiro and did not know Shapiro was involved until about two weeks into shooting.

    Reported byFar Left2Left1Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    HuffPost, The Daily Beast
    Left
    NBC News
    Right
    The Washington Times

  4. The Daily Beast and NBC News describe the film as pro-ICE.

    One side only: the leftReported byFar Left1Left1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    The Daily Beast
    Left
    NBC News

  5. The Daily Beast reports that the film depicts immigration officers in Minneapolis saving lives.

    One outletThe Daily Beast· Far Left

Show 2 more pointsShow fewer points

  1. Production resumed in Livingston, Mont., on Monday after local residents complained about the project, according to The Hill.

    One outletThe Hill· Center

  2. According to HuffPost, the film has drawn protests over a scene allegedly recreating the fatal shooting of Renée Good.

    One outletHuffPost· Far Left

What is contested

Where accounts differ

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

  • The film is pro-ICE.

    The Daily Beast and HuffPost describe the film as pro-ICE; Trejo says in his Instagram post that he is “not pro ice” and that his job is to tell a story.

  • Trejo knew Ben Shapiro was involved when he took the role.

    Gilbert Trejo says his father had never heard of Shapiro and learned of his involvement about two weeks into shooting; NBC News notes that Trejo’s post did not say whether he knew who produced the film.

How each side tells it

Compare views

All three sides report that Danny Trejo is in Pawn Shop, a Daily Wire film, and that the film has drawn backlash. The left stresses the son’s claim that he was duped and calls the film pro-ICE, while the center leads with Trejo’s denial and the right leads with the son’s account that he never heard of Shapiro.

  • the left

    3 outlets

    Far Left headlines call the film pro-ICE and say Trejo was duped or pleads ignorance, while the Left NBC headline leads with Trejo’s own statement that he is not pro-ICE.

    Danny Trejo's Son Accuses Daily Wire Of Loaded verb“Duping”The verb “duping” asserts deception as fact in the outlet’s own headline, while the underlying claim is an allegation made by the actor’s son.More neutral: Says Daily Wire misled the actorDisagree with this highlight? Actor Into Pro-ICE Movie
    HuffPostFar LeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    1 outlet

    The Hill headline leads with Trejo’s own denial that he is pro-ICE and places the story within backlash over the Daily Wire project.

    Danny Trejo says he's 'not pro-ICE' amid backlash over Daily Wire 'Pawn Shop' movie
    The HillCenterAll center headlines

  • the right

    1 outlet

    The Washington Times headline presents the story through Trejo’s son, saying the actor is ‘handcuffed’ to a Ben Shapiro film and centering the claim that he never heard of Shapiro.

    Danny Trejo's son says actor is 'Sensational language“handcuffed”A figurative word that presents the actor as trapped; it is the son’s word, so the outlet is reporting it rather than using it in its own voice.More neutral: stuck inThese are Gilbert Trejo’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight?' to Ben Shapiro film
    The Washington TimesRightAll 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.

  • Left5

    DupingunhingedMAGA fanaticPleads Ignorance

  • Center0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Right0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded verb

    DupingMore neutral: Says Daily Wire misled the actor

    The verb “duping” asserts deception as fact in the outlet’s own headline, while the underlying claim is an allegation made by the actor’s son.

    Danny Trejo's Son Accuses Daily Wire Of Duping Actor Into Pro-ICE Movie

    Used byHuffPost (Far Left)

  • Sensational language

    unhingedMore neutral: new

    The word is an unsupported judgement of the film and adds drama rather than describing the project.

    …franchises including Spy Kids and Machete , stars in Shapiro’s Pawn Shop, the latest unhinged media project from the MAGA fanatic.

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

  • Loaded modifier

    MAGA fanaticMore neutral: conservative commentator

    The label attaches a loaded political characterization to Ben Shapiro rather than describing his role in the film.

    …Machete , stars in Shapiro’s Pawn Shop, the latest unhinged media project from the MAGA fanatic.

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

  • Loaded verb

    Pleads IgnoranceMore neutral: Says He Did Not Know

    “Pleads” frames the actor’s claimed lack of knowledge as a defensive plea, which the report does not establish.

    Latino Icon, 82, Pleads Ignorance on Role in Pro-ICE Movie

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

Show 1 more phrasesShow fewer

  • Vague attribution

    what’s been described asMore neutral: a film that the Daily Beast and HuffPost describe as pro-ICE

    Attributes the description of the film as pro-ICE to unnamed people.

    Now Trejo is catching flack for taking part in what’s been described as a pro-ICE movie that is being produced by conservative media outfit The Daily…

    Used byNBC News (Left)

Words quoted from someone else (1)Hide the quoted words

Loaded words that outlets reported someone else saying. They show what was said, not how the outlet chose to say it.

  • Sensational language

    Quoted

    handcuffedMore neutral: stuck in

    A figurative word that presents the actor as trapped; it is the son’s word, so the outlet is reporting it rather than using it in its own voice.

    Danny Trejo's son says actor is 'handcuffed' to Ben Shapiro film

    Quoted byThe Washington Times (Right)

    These are Gilbert Trejo’s words. The outlets are reporting them.

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

  • Trejo’s son’s claim that he was duped
  • the film as pro-ICE
  • Ben Shapiro and the Daily Wire

Leaves out

  • production resuming in Livingston after local complaints

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

See the 3 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
  • NBC NewsLeft

    Danny Trejo says he is ‘not pro-ICE’ after being cast in movie from Ben Shapiro’s company

    For decades, Hollywood actor Danny Trejo’s bread and butter was playing gangsters, prison inmates and other assorted criminals.

    Read at NBC News (opens in a new tab)
  • The Daily BeastFar Left

    Latino Icon, 82, Loaded verb“Pleads Ignorance”“Pleads” frames the actor’s claimed lack of knowledge as a defensive plea, which the report does not establish.More neutral: Says He Did Not KnowDisagree with this highlight? on Role in Pro-ICE Movie

    Danny Trejo is stuck acting in Ben Shapiro’s pro-ICE movie , his son claims, having known nothing about the MAGA political commentator before signing on to his production company’s project. …

    Read at The Daily Beast (opens in a new tab)
  • HuffPostFar Left

    Danny Trejo's Son Accuses Daily Wire Of Loaded verb“Duping”The verb “duping” asserts deception as fact in the outlet’s own headline, while the underlying claim is an allegation made by the actor’s son.More neutral: Says Daily Wire misled the actorDisagree with this highlight? Actor Into Pro-ICE Movie

    The film has already drawn protests for a scene allegedly recreating the fatal shooting of Renée Good.

    Read at HuffPost (opens in a new tab)

From the center

1 outlet

Leads with

  • Trejo’s denial that he backs ICE
  • backlash over the Daily Wire project
  • local complaints in Livingston, Mont.

Leaves out

  • the son’s claim that Trejo did not know Shapiro was involved

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

See the headline from the centerHide the headlines
  • The HillCenter

    Danny Trejo says he's 'not pro-ICE' amid backlash over Daily Wire 'Pawn Shop' movie

    Actor and Los Angeles businessman Danny Trejo said he does not back Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as he faces backlash for signing on to perform in the film "Pawn Shop," which is produced by conservative commentator Ben Shapiro's Daily Wire. …

    Read at The Hill (opens in a new tab)

From the right

1 outlet

Leads with

  • Trejo’s son’s account
  • the actor being stuck in a Shapiro-backed film
  • heavy criticism of the film
See the headline from the rightHide the headlines
  • The Washington TimesRight

    Danny Trejo's son says actor is 'Sensational language“handcuffed”A figurative word that presents the actor as trapped; it is the son’s word, so the outlet is reporting it rather than using it in its own voice.More neutral: stuck inThese are Gilbert Trejo’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight?' to Ben Shapiro film

    Danny Trejo's son says the veteran actor is stuck in a Ben Shapiro-backed movie that has drawn heavy criticism, claiming his father had never heard of the conservative commentator when he took the role.

    Read at The Washington Times (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

    4 hr 34 min later

    Its first report, Oct 12, 7:41 PM EDT

  • Center

    First to report

    The Hill, Oct 12, 3:06 PM EDT

  • Right

    2 days 1 hr later

    Its first report, Oct 14, 4:56 PM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. The HillCenterOct 12, 3:06 PM EDT
  2. HuffPostFar LeftOct 12, 7:41 PM EDT
  3. The Daily BeastFar LeftOct 13, 10:53 AM EDT
  4. The Washington TimesRightOct 14, 4:56 PM EDT
  5. NBC NewsLeftOct 15, 1:08 PM EDT

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

Read next

Help someone else find the truth beneath the surface

Most people see one side of a story. Share this one, so they can see how every side is telling it and decide for themselves.

Email it

Seen a mistake? Tell us what is wrong with this page