Skip to content

Culture & SocietyDeveloping

Pope Leo XIV Criticizes France's Legalization of Assisted Dying During Lourdes Visit

By

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

During a visit to Lourdes, France, Pope Leo XIV addressed healthcare workers and a large crowd, criticizing the legalization of medically assisted suicide as immoral. Speaking in French, he said such practices represent “false compassion” and that “what is legal is not necessarily moral.” He urged medical professionals to focus on caring for the suffering rather than “eliminating” them, and said no one has the right to decide when a life should end. Assisted suicide is legal in France and several other Western countries. Separately, the pope also met with French clergy sexual abuse survivors, who said afterward that he listened attentively and appeared well informed about their experiences.

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. Pope Leo XIV visited Lourdes, France, and addressed healthcare workers and crowds during his trip.

    Reported byLeftRight

  2. He criticized the legalization of medically assisted suicide as immoral, calling it “false compassion.”

    Reported byLeftRight

  3. He said “what is legal is not necessarily moral” regarding assisted dying.

    Reported byRight

  4. Assisted suicide is legal in France and other Western countries.

    Reported byRight

  5. The pope met separately with French clergy sexual abuse survivors, who said he listened and was informed.

    Reported byRight

How each side tells it

Compare views

  • the left

    1 outlet

    The single left-side outlet frames the story around the pope directly criticizing France's assisted-dying law as immoral, without covering the abuse-survivors meeting.

    Pope Leo, on visit to France, Loaded verb“slams”‘Slams’ is a dramatic, judgment-laden verb used in place of a neutral description like ‘criticizes.’More neutral: criticizesDisagree with this highlight? country's legalization of assisted dying as immoral
    CBS NewsLeftAll 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

    2 outlets

    Right-side outlets both lead with the pope's condemnation of assisted suicide as “false compassion,” with one outlet also giving separate coverage to his meeting with abuse survivors.

    French clergy abuse survivors praise meeting with Pope Leo XIV, say he listened, was informed
    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.

  • Left1

    slams

  • Center

    Has not covered this story.

  • Right1

    condemned

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded verb

    condemnedMore neutral: criticized

    Describes the pope's remarks with a strong judgmental verb rather than a neutral term like ‘criticized’ or ‘spoke against.’

    Pope Leo XIV condemned the legalization of medically assisted death as immoral "false compassion,"…

    Used byThe Washington Times (Right)

  • Loaded verb

    slamsMore neutral: criticizes

    ‘Slams’ is a dramatic, judgment-laden verb used in place of a neutral description like ‘criticizes.’

    Pope Leo, on visit to France, slams country's legalization of assisted dying as immoral

    Used byCBS News (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

1 outlet

Leads with

  • criticism of France's legalization of assisted dying
  • immoral characterization

Leaves out

  • meeting with French clergy abuse survivors
  • specific quote about legality not equaling morality

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

See the headline from the leftHide the headlines
  • CBS NewsLeft

    Pope Leo, on visit to France, Loaded verb“slams”‘Slams’ is a dramatic, judgment-laden verb used in place of a neutral description like ‘criticizes.’More neutral: criticizesDisagree with this highlight? country's legalization of assisted dying as immoral

    Pope Leo criticized France's legalization of assisted dying during his trip to the country over the weekend. CBS News' Chris Livesay reports.

    Read at CBS News (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

2 outlets

Leads with

  • religious teaching on sanctity of life
  • healthcare vocation to care not eliminate
  • meeting with abuse survivors
See the 2 headlines from the rightHide the headlines
  • The Washington TimesRight

    French clergy abuse survivors praise meeting with Pope Leo XIV, say he listened, was informed

    Pope Leo XIV Loaded verb“condemned”Describes the pope's remarks with a strong judgmental verb rather than a neutral term like ‘criticized’ or ‘spoke against.’More neutral: criticizedDisagree with this highlight? the legalization of medically assisted death as immoral "false compassion," reaffirming Catholic teaching on the sanctity of life during a visit to Lourdes, the French shrine associated with miraculous healings.

    Read at The Washington Times (opens in a new tab)
  • New York PostRightFox News report

    Pope Leo calls out ‘false compassion’ of medically assisted suicide during French hospital visit

    The pope told healthcare workers that 'what is legal is not necessarily moral' when it comes to causing death.

    Read at New York Post (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

    9 hr 25 min later

    Its first report, Sep 28, 2:13 PM EDT

  • Center

    No report yet

    From the outlets Mantle follows

  • Right

    First to report

    New York Post, Sep 28, 4:48 AM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. New York PostRightSep 28, 4:48 AM EDT
  2. The Washington TimesRightSep 28, 6:59 AM EDT
  3. CBS NewsLeftSep 28, 2:13 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