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ICE officer in fatal Maine shooting wrote anti-immigrant emails, NYT reports

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 6 outlets, mostly left-leaning (83%).

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

Framed memorial photo of smiling men and a child, with a printed name plaque and flowers.
Image via The New RepublicHow images are chosenReport this image

The New York Times, The Boston Globe, United Press International and The Daily Beast report that David Brouillette, 38, an ICE officer, fatally shot Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, 25, a Colombian-born motorist, during a traffic stop in Biddeford, Maine, on July 13. The Times, citing emails it obtained, says Brouillette wrote in a 2021 exchange that his sister’s Colombian-born partner should return to his “third world” country. The sister, Elizabeth Emen, shared the emails, and a family representative confirmed them. The Times reports, according to people familiar with his hiring, that he was fast-tracked through vetting despite a troubled history. Brouillette’s ex-wife and daughter told the Times he said he fired the shots. The Department of Homeland Security has not confirmed his role, and the shooting remains under investigation.

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. David Brouillette, an ICE officer, fatally shot Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, a Colombian-born motorist, during a traffic stop in Biddeford, Maine, on July 13.

    Reported byFar Left4Left1Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    The Boston Globe, The New Republic, The Daily Beast, Raw Story
    Left
    The New York Times
    Center
    United Press International

  2. The New York Times obtained 2021 emails in which Brouillette called his sister’s Colombian-born partner a “non citizen” who should return to his “third world” country.

    Reported byFar Left2Left1Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    The Boston Globe, The Daily Beast
    Left
    The New York Times
    Center
    United Press International

  3. According to people familiar with his hiring, the Times reports Brouillette was fast-tracked through vetting despite a troubled history.

    One outletRaw Story· Far Left

  4. The sister, Elizabeth Emen, shared the emails, and a friend and a family representative confirmed them.

    One outletThe Boston Globe· Far Left

  5. Brouillette’s ex-wife and daughter told the Times he said he fired the shots.

    One outletRaw Story· Far Left

  6. The Department of Homeland Security has not confirmed Brouillette’s role in the shooting, which remains under investigation.

    One side only: the leftReported byFar Left1Left1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    Raw Story
    Left
    The New York Times

How each side tells it

Compare views

Every side reports that the New York Times obtained 2021 emails in which ICE officer David Brouillette disparaged his sister’s Colombian partner, and that he fatally shot a Colombian-born motorist in Maine. The left stresses the emails’ racism and his fast-tracked hiring, while the center presents the emails as a documented history of anti-immigrant hostility.

  • the left

    5 outlets

    Left headlines lead with the emails and the officer’s views; the Far Left outlets add words such as killer and racist, while the Times and Globe stick closer to anti-immigrant hatred.

    ICE officer involved in Maine shooting expressed hatred of immigrants
    The Boston GlobeFar LeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    1 outlet

    The single center headline reports a new report of anti-immigrant hostility and attributes the emails to the New York Times rather than stating them in its own voice.

    Report: ICE officer who killed man in Maine had lengthy history of hatred
    United Press InternationalCenterAll center headlines

  • 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

    spewedvile emailsvileKiller ICE Agent’s

  • Center0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Right

    Has not covered this story.

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded verb

    spewedMore neutral: wrote

    The verb presents the emails as a violent outpouring rather than neutrally describing what was written.

    An ICE agent who fatally shot a Colombian migrant in Maine had previously spewed racist abuse about his sister’s Colombian partner in a series of vile emails.

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

  • Sensational language

    vile emailsMore neutral: racist emails

    The adjective adds a moral judgement beyond the reported content of the emails.

    …previously spewed racist abuse about his sister’s Colombian partner in a series of vile emails.

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

  • Sensational language

    vileMore neutral: (omit) and quote or describe

    Moral verdict in the reporter's voice.

    …had previously spewed racist abuse about his sister’s Colombian partner in a series of vile emails.

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

  • Dehumanizing label

    Killer ICE Agent’sMore neutral: ICE agent’s

    The label calls him a killer before the investigation has established the facts of the shooting.

    Killer ICE Agent’s Horrific Racist Emails Exposed by His Own Sister

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

Show 4 more phrasesShow fewer

  • Sensational language

    HorrificMore neutral: Racist Emails Exposed

    The adjective adds a judgement of horror beyond the content of the emails.

    Killer ICE Agent’s Horrific Racist Emails Exposed by His Own Sister

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

  • Loaded verb

    rantedMore neutral: said or spoke

    Dismisses the content by characterizing the delivery.

    Four years before he joined ICE, David Brouillette ranted against his sister over her relationship with a 37-year-old Colombian PhD student,…

    Used byThe New Republic (Far Left)

  • Sensational language

    Super RacistMore neutral: Made Racist Remarks

    The intensifier adds drama beyond the reported remarks, which the description describes without it.

    ICE Agent Who Killed Immigrant Is Super Racist, His Family Reveals

    Used byThe New Republic (Far Left)

  • Loaded verb

    rantMore neutral: said or spoke

    Dismisses the content by characterizing the delivery.

    Trump agent’s ‘dead to me’ rant exposes ‘compelling’ motive in shooting: ex-prosecutor

    Used byRaw Story (Far Left)

Words quoted from someone else (4)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.

  • Hateful rhetoric

    Quoted

    non citizen assMore neutral: said the man should leave the country

    The words reduce the man to a contemptible category by his birthplace, and the outlet quotes them in full.

    Attacks or dehumanizes a person or a group because of who they are: their race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation or disability.

    “He can takes his non citizen ass back to his country and enjoy his third world luxuries,” Brouillette wrote in an…

    Quoted byThe Boston Globe (Far Left)

    These are David Brouillette’s words. The outlets are reporting them.

  • Dehumanizing label

    Quoted

    non citizenMore neutral: a Colombian-born man

    The term labels a man by his birthplace and calls him a foreigner because of it, as quoted from the emails.

    and with whom she shared two children—a “non citizen” who should return to his “third world” country in a 2021 exchange obtained by The…

    Quoted byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

    These are David Brouillette’s words. The outlets are reporting them.

  • Dehumanizing label

    Quoted

    third worldMore neutral: home country

    The term calls a man’s country inferior and attacks him through his origin, as quoted from the emails.

    and with whom she shared two children—a “non citizen” who should return to his “third world” country in a 2021 exchange obtained by The New York Times.

    Quoted byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

    These are David Brouillette’s words. The outlets are reporting them.

  • Dehumanizing label

    Quoted

    third world luxuriesMore neutral: said the man should leave the country

    The phrase uses a demeaning label for a country to mock a man through his origin.

    “He can takes his non citizen ass back to his country and enjoy his third world luxuries,” Brouillette wrote in an email thread riddled with typos, a copy of which was…

    Quoted byThe Boston Globe (Far Left)

    These are David Brouillette’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

5 outlets

Leads with

  • the officer’s racist or anti-immigrant emails
  • fast-tracked hiring despite red flags
  • the sister’s account of the emails
See the 6 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
  • Raw StoryFar Left

    Trump agent’s ‘dead to me’ Loaded verb“rant”Dismisses the content by characterizing the delivery.More neutral: said, spoke, postedDisagree with this highlight? exposes ‘compelling’ motive in shooting: ex-prosecutor

    A former federal prosecutor said newly surfaced emails from a Trump immigration agent point to a motive in a deadly shooting . Joyce Vance, a former U.S. …

    Read at Raw Story (opens in a new tab)
    1 more from Raw Story
  • The Boston GlobeFar Left

    ICE officer involved in Maine shooting expressed hatred of immigrants

    “He can takes his Hateful rhetoric“non citizen ass”The words reduce the man to a contemptible category by his birthplace, and the outlet quotes them in full.Attacks or dehumanizes a person or a group because of who they are: their race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation or disability.More neutral: said the man should leave the countryThese are David Brouillette’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight? back to his country and enjoy his Dehumanizing label“third world luxuries”The phrase uses a demeaning label for a country to mock a man through his origin.More neutral: said the man should leave the countryThese are David Brouillette’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight?,” Brouillette wrote in an email thread riddled with typos, a copy of which was shared with The New York Times. …

    Read at The Boston Globe (opens in a new tab)
  • The New RepublicFar Left

    ICE Agent Who Killed Immigrant Is Sensational language“Super Racist”The intensifier adds drama beyond the reported remarks, which the description describes without it.More neutral: Made Racist RemarksDisagree with this highlight?, His Family Reveals

    The Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, agent who fatally shot a Colombian man in Maine earlier this year had a history of making vehemently racist remarks. …

    Read at The New Republic (opens in a new tab)
  • The Daily BeastFar Left

    Dehumanizing label“Killer ICE Agent’s”The label calls him a killer before the investigation has established the facts of the shooting.More neutral: ICE agent’sDisagree with this highlight? Sensational language“Horrific”The adjective adds a judgement of horror beyond the content of the emails.More neutral: Racist Emails ExposedDisagree with this highlight? Racist Emails Exposed by His Own Sister

    An ICE agent who fatally shot a Colombian migrant in Maine had previously Loaded verb“spewed”The verb presents the emails as a violent outpouring rather than neutrally describing what was written.More neutral: wroteDisagree with this highlight? racist abuse about his sister’s Colombian partner in a series of Sensational language“vile emails”The adjective adds a moral judgement beyond the reported content of the emails.More neutral: racist emailsDisagree with this highlight?. …

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

    Red Flags

    We look into the history of the ICE officer who fatally shot a Colombian migrant in Maine.

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

    ICE Officer Involved in Maine Shooting Expressed Anti-Immigrant Hatred

    The agent talked of foreign bloodlines, denounced noncitizens and more, according to emails obtained by The Times. His fatal shooting of a Colombian-born motorist in July remains under investigation.

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

From the center

1 outlet

Leads with

  • the emails as a documented history
  • the victim’s Colombian migrant status
  • the Times report
See the headline from the centerHide the headlines

From the right

0 outlets

No 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

    The New York Times, Nov 11, 5:00 AM EST

  • Center

    13 hr 18 min later

    Its first report, Nov 11, 6:18 PM EST

  • Right

    No report yet

    From the outlets Mantle follows

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. The New York TimesLeftNov 11, 5:00 AM EST
  2. Raw StoryFar LeftNov 11, 9:36 AM EST
  3. The Daily BeastFar LeftNov 11, 10:03 AM EST
  4. The New RepublicFar LeftNov 11, 12:15 PM EST
  5. The Boston GlobeFar LeftNov 11, 4:01 PM EST
  6. United Press InternationalCenterNov 11, 6:18 PM EST

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

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