Macau sentences former lawmaker Au Kam San to 12.5 years in first national security case

Coverage spectrum

Covered by 3 outlets, mostly center (67%).

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

Image via Deutsche WelleHow images are chosen Report this image

Bloomberg, BBC and Deutsche Welle report that a court in Macau sentenced Au Kam San, a former pro-democracy lawmaker and campaigner, to 12 years and six months in prison on Friday. It is the first national security case in the Chinese gambling hub, under a law that came into effect in 2009. According to the outlets, Au was convicted of subversion against the political power of the state, among other offences, after a closed-door trial. Prosecutors accused him of collecting and disseminating political information with external hostile organisations. Au, 69, was detained in July 2025. His wife, Virginia Cheang, condemned the ruling as a groundless persecution.

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The coverage spectrum counts the outlets covering a story at each of five points. A short or missing segment means that part of the spectrum is mostly quiet.

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Highlights mark words that carry a judgement. Tap one to see why, and what a neutral writer would say. Here it is “criticizes”.

The 5-point spectrum

Far Left
Voices that strongly advocate for progressive policies and systemic change.
Left
Mainstream liberal perspectives focusing on social equality and regulation.
Center
Sources that prioritize neutral reporting and balanced viewpoints.
Right
Mainstream conservative perspectives focusing on market freedom and tradition.
Far Right
Voices that strongly advocate for conservative values and limited government.

How we measure bias

What happened

Key points

Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.

A Macau court sentenced former pro-democracy lawmaker Au Kam San to 12 years and six months in prison.
Reported byLeft1Center2See the outletsHide the outlets
Left
Bloomberg
Center
BBC News, Deutsche Welle
The case is the first national security case in Macau.
Reported byLeft1Center2See the outletsHide the outlets
Left
Bloomberg
Center
BBC News, Deutsche Welle
Au, 69, was convicted of subversion against the political power of the state, among other offences.
One side only: the centerReported byCenter2See the outletsHide the outlets
Center
BBC News, Deutsche Welle
The trial was held behind closed doors under a law revised this year to allow such trials.
One outletBBC News· Center
Prosecutors accused Au of assisting external hostile organisations by collecting and disseminating political information.
One side only: the centerReported byCenter2See the outletsHide the outlets
Center
BBC News, Deutsche Welle

Show 2 more pointsShow fewer points

Virginia Cheang, Au’s wife, said the case was a groundless persecution.
One outletBBC News· Center
Au was detained in July 2025.
One side only: the centerReported byCenter2See the outletsHide the outlets
Center
BBC News, Deutsche Welle

How each side tells it

Compare views

All three outlets report that a Macau court sentenced former pro-democracy lawmaker Au Kam San to 12 years and six months in the city’s first national security case. The left-side outlet, Bloomberg, puts the exact sentence in its headline, while the center outlets lead with the first case and the subversion conviction.

the left
1 outlet
Only one left-side outlet, Bloomberg, appears here; its headline gives the exact 12.5-year term and calls the case Macau’s first state security case.
Macau Jails Ex-Lawmaker 12.5 Years in First State Security Case
BloombergLeftAll left-leaning headlines
the center
2 outlets
Both center headlines lead with Au’s conviction and the first national security case, with the BBC naming him a pro-democracy campaigner and DW calling him a former lawmaker.
Macau jails pro-democracy campaigner in city's first national security case
BBC NewsCenterAll 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.

Left0
No loaded words in its own voice.
Center0
No loaded words in its own voice.
Right
Has not covered this story.

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.

Delegitimizing label
Quoted
groundless persecutionMore neutral: a case she says is unfounded
Calls the prosecution persecution without evidence, a judgement about the case that the article reports as the wife’s view.
His wife Virginia Cheang condemned the ruling, calling the case a "groundless persecution designed to humiliate Au".
Quoted byBBC News (Center)
These are Virginia Cheang’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

1 outlet

Leads with

exact length of the sentence
first state security case
former pro-democracy lawmaker

See the headline from the leftHide the headlines

BloombergLeft
Macau Jails Ex-Lawmaker 12.5 Years in First State Security Case
A former pro-democracy lawmaker in Macau has been sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison in the Chinese gambling hub’s first national security case.
57 min agoRead at Bloomberg (opens in a new tab)

From the center

2 outlets

Leads with

Au’s pro-democracy record
first national security case
closed-door trial and subversion conviction
wife’s denial of the charges

See the 2 headlines from the centerHide the headlines

BBC NewsCenter
Macau jails pro-democracy campaigner in city's first national security case
Au Kam San was sentenced to 12 years and six months' jail for "subversion against the political power of the state".
43 min agoRead at BBC News (opens in a new tab)
Deutsche WelleCenter
Ex-lawmaker jailed in Macau's first national security trial
Pro-democracy former lawmaker Au Kam San was found guilty of "subversion against the political power of the State." He was handed a prison sentence of 12-and-a-half years.
2 hr agoRead at Deutsche Welle (opens in a new tab)

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
1 hr 38 min later
Its first report, Nov 6, 1:31 AM EST
Center
First to report
Deutsche Welle, Nov 5, 11:54 PM EST
Right
No report yet
From the outlets Mantle follows

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order

Deutsche WelleCenterNov 5, 11:54 PM EST
BloombergLeftNov 6, 1:31 AM EST
BBC NewsCenterNov 6, 1:46 AM EST

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

Macau sentences former lawmaker Au Kam San to 12.5 years in first national security case

Coverage spectrum

Key points

Compare views

the left

the center

the right

Language to notice

Side by side

From the left

Macau Jails Ex-Lawmaker 12.5 Years in First State Security Case

From the center

Macau jails pro-democracy campaigner in city's first national security case

Ex-lawmaker jailed in Macau's first national security trial

From the right

How the coverage built up

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