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Spain holds first general strike in 14 years over housing costs and wages

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 19 outlets across the spectrum.

27 articles in total, 1 of them opinion. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias

Crowd of workers in red vests and red union flags gathered in a train station concourse
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Spanish unions called a 24-hour nationwide general strike on Wednesday, November 11, over housing costs and wages, the first in 14 years. Unions said four million workers took part, according to CNN. Authorities estimated about 120,000 people marched in Madrid, and Al Jazeera reports more than 50,000 rallied in Barcelona. Clashes broke out in Madrid and Barcelona. In Barcelona, protesters set fires and threw fireworks at police, Fox News reports. Police reported at least 73 arrests nationwide, according to Al Jazeera. Shops closed and public transport stalled across the country, the Washington Times reports. The strike comes less than three weeks before a snap national election on November 29, Deutsche Welle reports.

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. Spain held its first nationwide general strike in 14 years on Wednesday, over housing costs and wages.

    Across the spectrumReported byLeft5Center5Right1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    Al Jazeera English, CNN, The New York Times, The Guardian, NPR
    Center
    Sky News, Deutsche Welle, BBC News, United Press International, CNBC
    Right
    The Washington Times
    Far Right
    Fox News

  2. Unions said four million workers took part in the strike.

    One outletCNN· Left

  3. Authorities estimated about 120,000 people marched through Madrid.

    One outletAl Jazeera English· Left

  4. Clashes broke out in Madrid and Barcelona, and in Barcelona protesters set fires and threw fireworks at police.

    Reported byLeft1Center1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    Al Jazeera English
    Center
    Sky News
    Far Right
    Fox News

  5. Police reported at least 73 arrests nationwide by Wednesday evening.

    One outletAl Jazeera English· Left

  6. A snap national election is set for November 29.

    One outletDeutsche Welle· Center

How each side tells it

Compare views

All sides report that Spain held its first nationwide general strike in 14 years over housing costs and wages, with clashes and fires in Madrid and Barcelona. Left and center outlets stress the scale and the housing crisis, while right-side coverage leads with the violence and chaos.

  • the left

    8 outlets · 1 opinion

    Left headlines lead with the strike's scale and the housing crisis; Al Jazeera's headline centers on clashes, and descriptions note the far right could win the election.

    Workers in Spain Stage a General Strike for the First Time in 14 Years
    The New York TimesLeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    8 outlets

    Center headlines mix plain event reporting with clash-focused framing: Sky and CNBC lead with fiery clashes or paralysis, while BBC, UPI and DW stress disruption and the housing crisis.

    General strike over wages, housing and high prices underway in Spain
    United Press InternationalCenterAll center headlines

  • the right

    3 outlets

    Fox News, rated Far Right, leads with violence and chaos in Barcelona, while the Washington Times, rated Right, reports the strike plainly as a housing-cost protest before the election.

    Fiery Sensational language“chaos”The word chaos adds drama beyond the reported clashes, fires and vandalism, which can be described without it.More neutral: disorderDisagree with this highlight? erupts across Spain as protesters clash with police during massive nationwide strike
    Fox NewsFar RightAll 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.

  • Left3

    militant class-based movementcatapultcatapulted into power

  • Center2

    paralyze Spainunbearably high rents

  • Right2

    Unruly protesterschaos

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded modifier

    militant class-based movementMore neutral: organized, class-based movement

    The label militant pre-judges the protest movement as aggressive rather than describing its organization or aims.

    …Juvenil Socialista discusses how these protests have cohered a militant class-based movement for more sweeping change.

    Used byJacobin (Far Left)

  • Loaded verb

    catapultMore neutral: bring

    The verb dramatizes a forecast of an election outcome that other outlets describe more plainly as bringing a party to power.

    Less than three weeks before a national election that could catapult the far right to power, Spain's workers are striking on Wednesday to demand that the…

    Used byNPR (Left)

  • Sensational language

    paralyze SpainMore neutral: disrupt Spain

    “Paralyze” exaggerates the effect of a strike that other outlets describe as disrupting transport and business.

    General strikes to paralyze Spain as protestors clash with police ahead of election campaign

    Used byCNBC (Center)

  • Loaded verb

    catapulted into powerMore neutral: come to power

    The verb “catapulted” dramatizes how the far right might gain power, where “come to power” states the same possibility without drama.

    …soaring housing prices before an election in which the far right could be catapulted into power.

    Used byThe Guardian (Left)

Show 3 more phrasesShow fewer

  • Loaded modifier

    Unruly protestersMore neutral: Protesters

    The word unruly passes judgement on the protesters before describing their specific acts.

    Unruly protesters set fires, smashed storefronts and launched fireworks at riot police across…

    Used byFox News (Far Right)

  • Sensational language

    chaosMore neutral: disorder

    The word chaos adds drama beyond the reported clashes, fires and vandalism, which can be described without it.

    Fiery chaos erupts across Spain as protesters clash with police during massive nationwide strike

    Used byFox News (Far Right)

  • Sensational language

    unbearably high rentsMore neutral: high rents

    The adjective unbearably is a judgement about rent levels that the article does not attribute to anyone.

    The massive turnout came in response to housing shortages and unbearably high rents.

    Used byDeutsche Welle (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

8 outlets · 1 opinion

Leads with

  • scale of worker participation
  • rising rents and stagnant wages
  • far right could win the November election
  • police clashes with protesters
See the 9 headlines from the leftHide the headlines

From the center

8 outlets

Leads with

  • clashes and unrest in cities
  • widespread economic disruption
  • housing crisis and wages
  • election weeks away
See the 8 headlines from the centerHide the headlines

From the right

3 outlets

Leads with

  • violence and fires in Barcelona
  • shops closed and transport stalled
  • housing costs ahead of the election

Leaves out

  • police arrest totals reported by Al Jazeera
  • the government's Madrid crowd estimate

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

See the 3 headlines from the rightHide the headlines
  • Breitbart NewsFar Right

    Watch: Violent Riots in Barcelona and Madrid After Day of General Strike

    The "general strike" day in Spain ended Wednesday with chaotic riots and clashes between violent protesters and law enforcement agents in Madrid and Barcelona, leading to dozens detained and several police officers injured.

    Read at Breitbart News (opens in a new tab)
  • Fox NewsFar Right

    Fiery Sensational language“chaos”The word chaos adds drama beyond the reported clashes, fires and vandalism, which can be described without it.More neutral: disorderDisagree with this highlight? erupts across Spain as protesters clash with police during massive nationwide strike

    Spain's first general strike in 14 years turned violent in Barcelona as protesters set fires and launched fireworks at riot police on Paseo de Gracia.

    Read at Fox News (opens in a new tab)
  • The Washington TimesRight

    Spanish workers strike over housing costs ahead of national election

    Millions of Spanish workers went on strike Wednesday to protest housing costs, shutting down stores and stalling public transportation in the nation's first general walkout in 14 years.

    Read at The Washington Times (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

    First to report

    Al Jazeera English, Nov 10, 1:07 PM EST

  • Center

    14 hr 22 min later

    Its first report, Nov 11, 3:29 AM EST

  • Right

    22 hr later

    Its first report, Nov 11, 11:10 AM EST

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. Al Jazeera EnglishLeftNov 10, 1:07 PM EST
  2. The Boston GlobeFar LeftNov 10, 11:34 PM EST
  3. BloombergLeftNov 11, 2:45 AM EST
  4. France 24CenterNov 11, 3:29 AM EST
  5. Deutsche WelleCenterNov 11, 4:11 AM EST
  6. NPRLeftNov 11, 4:54 AM EST
  7. Financial TimesCenterNov 11, 5:40 AM EST
  8. SemaforCenterNov 11, 7:00 AM EST
  9. CNBCCenterNov 11, 7:39 AM EST
  10. The GuardianLeftNov 11, 8:54 AM EST
  11. United Press InternationalCenterNov 11, 8:58 AM EST
  12. BBC NewsCenterNov 11, 9:06 AM EST
  13. The New York TimesLeftNov 11, 10:54 AM EST
  14. The Washington TimesRightNov 11, 11:10 AM EST
  15. CNNLeftNov 11, 4:03 PM EST
  16. Fox NewsFar RightNov 11, 4:46 PM EST
  17. Sky NewsCenterNov 11, 9:41 PM EST
  18. TIMELeftNov 12, 5:30 AM EST
  19. Breitbart NewsFar RightNov 12, 5:53 AM EST

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

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