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Pentagon reportedly used internet searches to block some officers’ promotions

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 4 outlets, all left-leaning.

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

Man in navy suit with striped tie and arms crossed, standing before green foliage.
Image via MS NOWHow images are chosenReport this image

The Independent, MS NOW, Raw Story and The Daily Beast report, citing anonymous military officials, that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s office used internet searches on senior officers to hold back their promotions. The outlets say staff printed the results into paper files that officers could not see, and that the searches flagged support for DEI, encouragement of COVID-19 vaccines and speaking at an International Women’s Day panel. They say most affected officers were women or people of color. Raw Story reports that the process may have violated federal law. A Pentagon spokesperson told The Independent that the department remains “committed to ensuring that all advancement is merit-based.”

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. Anonymous military officials say Hegseth’s office used internet searches on senior officers to decide their promotions.

    One side only: the leftReported byFar Left3Left1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    The Daily Beast, Raw Story, MS NOW
    Left
    The Independent

  2. The searches reportedly flagged support for DEI, encouragement of COVID-19 vaccines, and speaking at an International Women’s Day panel.

    One side only: the leftReported byFar Left2Left1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    The Daily Beast, MS NOW
    Left
    The Independent

  3. Pentagon staff reportedly printed the search results into paper files that officers could not see.

    One side only: the leftReported byFar Left2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    Raw Story, MS NOW

  4. Reports say most of the officers affected were women or people of color.

    One side only: the leftReported byFar Left2Left1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    The Daily Beast, Raw Story
    Left
    The Independent

  5. Raw Story reports that the process may have violated federal law.

    One outletRaw Story· Far Left

  6. A Pentagon spokesperson said the department remains committed to merit-based advancement.

    One outletThe Independent· Left

How each side tells it

Compare views

All four outlets, rated Left or Far Left, report that Hegseth’s office used internet searches on officers’ activities to block promotions, framing it as discrimination against women and people of color, with a Pentagon merit-based response in one article.

  • the left

    4 outlets

    Far Left outlets lead with the alleged criteria and emotive words like explosive and secret, while the Left-rated Independent leads with the DEI and vaccine criteria and adds the Pentagon’s merit-based response.

    Hegseth denied promotions to military members who promoted DEI and the Covid vaccine: report
    The IndependentLeftAll 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

    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.

  • Left5

    short-circuitednewly invented criteriapetty criteriaPentagon Pete

  • Center

    Has not covered this story.

  • Right

    Has not covered this story.

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded verb

    short-circuitedMore neutral: bypassed

    The verb asserts that a merit process was broken, a judgement the officials’ account does not establish on its own.

    Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth short-circuited a merit-based process for promoting senior officers and instead relied on newly…

    Used byMS NOW (Far Left)

  • Loaded modifier

    newly invented criteriaMore neutral: new criteria

    Calling the criteria invented implies they were fabricated, a claim beyond what the sources report.

    …a merit-based process for promoting senior officers and instead relied on newly invented criteria that disproportionately removed from advancement women and people of color…

    Used byMS NOW (Far Left)

  • Loaded modifier

    petty criteriaMore neutral: criteria

    Calling the criteria petty is a judgement the reported facts do not establish.

    Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth used an arcane set of petty criteria to deny military promotions to women and minorities, it has been revealed.

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

  • Loaded modifier

    Pentagon PeteMore neutral: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth

    A mocking nickname attached to the defense secretary pre-judges him rather than naming him by his title.

    Pentagon Pete Hit With Explosive Leak as Knives Come Out

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

Show 1 more phrasesShow fewer

  • Sensational language

    Explosive LeakMore neutral: New report

    The adjective manufactures drama about a report whose impact is not yet established.

    Pentagon Pete Hit With Explosive Leak as Knives Come Out

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

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

4 outlets

Leads with

  • alleged DEI, vaccine and women’s-panel criteria
  • women and people of color affected
  • secret paper files kept by the office
  • possible violation of federal law
See the 4 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
  • The IndependentLeft

    Hegseth denied promotions to military members who promoted DEI and the Covid vaccine: report

    A Pentagon spokesperson said that the department remains ‘committed to ensuring that all advancement is merit-based’

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

    Loaded modifier“Pentagon Pete”A mocking nickname attached to the defense secretary pre-judges him rather than naming him by his title.More neutral: Defense Secretary Pete HegsethDisagree with this highlight? Hit With Sensational language“Explosive Leak”The adjective manufactures drama about a report whose impact is not yet established.More neutral: New reportDisagree with this highlight? as Knives Come Out

    Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth used an arcane set of Loaded modifier“petty criteria”Calling the criteria petty is a judgement the reported facts do not establish.More neutral: criteriaDisagree with this highlight? to deny military promotions to women and minorities, it has been revealed. …

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

    Secret files kept by Hegseth’s office could spell big legal trouble for him: insider

    Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s office kept secret paper files of internet search printouts and used them to block the promotions of senior Navy officers, most of them women and people of color, and that process may have violated federal law, according to a new report.

    Read at Raw Story (opens in a new tab)
  • MS NOWFar Left

    ‘You gotta be kidding me’: Hegseth used these four things to decide on senior officer promotions

    A senior official exclusively told MS NOW how decorated military officers with decades of experience were withheld from promotion after Pentagon staff printed out internet searches showing they had attended official events like promoting COVID-19 vaccinations or marking …

    Read at MS NOW (opens in a new tab)

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

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

    MS NOW, Nov 9, 5:00 AM EST

  • Center

    No report yet

    From the outlets Mantle follows

  • Right

    No report yet

    From the outlets Mantle follows

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. MS NOWFar LeftNov 9, 5:00 AM EST
  2. Raw StoryFar LeftNov 9, 6:25 AM EST
  3. The Daily BeastFar LeftNov 9, 9:08 AM EST
  4. The IndependentLeftNov 9, 11:14 AM EST

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

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