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Democrat Sebastian Matta, 19, elected Maricopa County Superior Court clerk

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Coverage spectrum

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

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

Line of people waiting outside a single-story building on a sunny day with palm trees.
Image via The Daily CallerHow images are chosenReport this image

Democrat Sebastian Matta, 19, an Arizona State University student, was elected clerk of the Superior Court in Maricopa County in Tuesday’s election, defeating former Republican state lawmaker Jeff Dial. The Daily Caller, citing results posted by the county, reports Matta won 53.3 percent of the vote. Newsweek reports that Democrats also won control of the House and Senate. The Daily Mail reports Matta is a college sophomore with virtually no professional experience, and that the office processes about 15,000 documents and nearly $500,000 in transactions a day. The Daily Mail reports that critics questioned whether he is ready for the job, while supporters hailed him as part of a new generation in politics.

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.

  1. Sebastian Matta, a Democrat, was elected Maricopa County Superior Court clerk in Tuesday’s election.

    Reported byCenter1Right1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Center
    Newsweek
    Right
    Daily Mail
    Far Right
    The Daily Caller

  2. Matta, 19, defeated former Republican state lawmaker Jeff Dial.

    Reported byCenter1Right1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Center
    Newsweek
    Right
    Daily Mail
    Far Right
    The Daily Caller

  3. According to results posted by the county, Matta won 53.3 percent of the vote.

    One outletThe Daily Caller· Far Right

  4. The Daily Mail reports Matta is a college sophomore with virtually no professional experience.

    One outletDaily Mail· Right

  5. The Daily Mail reports the office processes about 15,000 documents and nearly $500,000 in transactions each day.

    One outletDaily Mail· Right

  6. Newsweek reports that Democrats also won control of the House and Senate.

    One outletNewsweek· Center

How each side tells it

Compare views

All three outlets report that 19-year-old Democrat Sebastian Matta was elected Maricopa County Superior Court clerk over Republican Jeff Dial. Newsweek frames the win within a Democratic surge and profiles Matta, while right-side outlets stress his age, limited experience and the criticism of it.

  • the left

    No coverage yet

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

  • the center

    1 outlet

    Newsweek’s headline leads with a profile of the teen and frames the race as part of a Democratic surge across the map.

    Who Is Sebastian Matta? Teen Wins Clerk Race in Arizona as Democrats Surge
    NewsweekCenterAll center headlines

  • the right

    2 outlets

    Right-side headlines lead with Matta’s age and lack of experience; the Daily Mail adds public outcry, while the Far Right Daily Caller frames the race around election integrity.

    Sensational language“Outcry”Asserts public outrage at a scale the article does not document, citing only a few social media comments.More neutral: Criticism ofDisagree with this highlight? as Arizona teen who Loaded modifier“only completed high school last year”The word only frames the candidate’s age as a deficiency, where the same fact can be stated without judgement.More neutral: who finished high school last yearDisagree with this highlight? is elected to lead major court office that handles $500k of transactions each day: 'I'm not just any 19-year-old'
    Daily MailRightAll 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.

  • Left

    Has not covered this story.

  • Center1

    stinging rebuke

  • Right4

    blue tsunamiElection Integrity DebateOutcryonly completed high school last year

In the outlets’ own words

  • Sensational language

    blue tsunamiMore neutral: Democratic wave

    A dramatic metaphor for the Democratic vote that goes further than the other outlets’ wording and is not needed to report the result.

    A 19-year-old Democrat was swept into office during Tuesday’s blue tsunami to become Clerk of the Superior Court for Maricopa County, Arizona — which received…

    Used byThe Daily Caller (Far Right)

  • Partisan shorthand

    Election Integrity DebateMore neutral: At Center Of 2020 Voting Dispute

    Election integrity is a term one side uses for its position on voting rules; the county dispute can be described without it.

    19-Year-Old Democrat Defeats Republican In County At Center Of Election Integrity Debate

    Used byThe Daily Caller (Far Right)

  • Sensational language

    OutcryMore neutral: Criticism of

    Asserts public outrage at a scale the article does not document, citing only a few social media comments.

    Outcry as Arizona teen who only completed high school last year is elected to lead major…

    Used byDaily Mail (Right)

  • Loaded modifier

    only completed high school last yearMore neutral: who finished high school last year

    The word only frames the candidate’s age as a deficiency, where the same fact can be stated without judgement.

    Outcry as Arizona teen who only completed high school last year is elected to lead major court office that handles $500k of…

    Used byDaily Mail (Right)

Show 1 more phrasesShow fewer

  • Sensational language

    stinging rebukeMore neutral: voters chose Democrats in the election

    Characterizes the vote as a rebuke of Trump, a judgement the election results alone do not state.

    …saw Democrats win control of both the House and Senate, as voters sent a stinging rebuke of President Donald Trump and his party.

    Used byNewsweek (Center)

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

0 outlets

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

From the center

1 outlet

Leads with

  • Matta’s age and personal profile
  • Democratic gains nationwide
  • Matta’s own confidence in the job
See the headline from the centerHide the headlines
  • NewsweekCenter

    Who Is Sebastian Matta? Teen Wins Clerk Race in Arizona as Democrats Surge

    A 19-year-old Arizona State University rode the Democratic blue wave into the clerkship for the Superior Court in Maricopa County.

    Read at Newsweek (opens in a new tab)

From the right

2 outlets

Leads with

  • Matta’s age and limited experience
  • Public outcry and online criticism
  • Election integrity debate in Maricopa County
  • Office’s daily workload and transactions
See the 2 headlines from the rightHide the headlines
  • Daily MailRight

    Sensational language“Outcry”Asserts public outrage at a scale the article does not document, citing only a few social media comments.More neutral: Criticism ofDisagree with this highlight? as Arizona teen who Loaded modifier“only completed high school last year”The word only frames the candidate’s age as a deficiency, where the same fact can be stated without judgement.More neutral: who finished high school last yearDisagree with this highlight? is elected to lead major court office that handles $500k of transactions each day: 'I'm not just any 19-year-old'

    The Democratic Arizona State University sophomore defeated Jeff Dial, a former Republican state senator and representative, who also served in the army reserve.

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

    19-Year-Old Democrat Defeats Republican In County At Center Of Partisan shorthand“Election Integrity Debate”Election integrity is a term one side uses for its position on voting rules; the county dispute can be described without it.More neutral: At Center Of 2020 Voting DisputeDisagree with this highlight?

    acting in four theater productions … experience

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

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

    No report yet

    From the outlets Mantle follows

  • Center

    1 day 2 hr later

    Its first report, Nov 6, 7:55 PM EST

  • Right

    First to report

    The Daily Caller, Nov 5, 5:27 PM EST

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. The Daily CallerFar RightNov 5, 5:27 PM EST
  2. Daily MailRightNov 6, 11:34 AM EST
  3. NewsweekCenterNov 6, 7:55 PM EST

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

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