Business & MarketsBreaking
22 state financial officers write to Moody’s, Fitch and S&P on ESG policies
By Mantle News
Coverage spectrum
Covered by 4 outlets, all right-leaning.
5 articles in total, 1 of them opinion. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias
Just the News, The New York Post, RedState, The Center Square and The Western Journal report that 22 state financial officers, representing 17 states, have written to Moody’s, Fitch Ratings and S&P Global Ratings about environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies in credit ratings. The letter was also sent to SEC Chairman Paul Atkins. The officers say the agencies’ ESG predictions harm state credit ratings and pension holdings, and allege that the agencies give higher rankings to Chinese companies. The Western Journal reports that the agencies did not respond to requests for comment before publication.
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.
22 state financial officers wrote to Moody’s, Fitch Ratings and S&P Global Ratings about the role of ESG policies in state credit ratings.
One side only: the rightReported byRight2Far Right2See the outletsHide the outlets
- Right
- New York Post, The Center Square
- Far Right
- RedState, The Western Journal
The officers say the agencies’ use of ESG predictions harms state credit ratings and pension holdings.
One outletThe Western Journal· Far Right
The officers allege that the agencies give higher rankings to Chinese companies.
One side only: the rightReported byRight1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
- Right
- New York Post
- Far Right
- Just the News
The letter was also sent to SEC Chairman Paul Atkins.
One outletThe Western Journal· Far Right
The agencies did not respond to requests for comment before publication.
One outletThe Western Journal· Far Right
What is contested
Where accounts differ
Points the coverage does not agree on, and who says what.
The rating agencies give higher rankings to Chinese companies because of ESG policies.
The New York Post headline states this as fact. The officers present it as an allegation. The Western Journal reports that the agencies did not respond to requests for comment.
How each side tells it
Compare views
The right-side outlets present the letter as a challenge to climate and ESG policies that they say favor Chinese companies and cost taxpayers, with the Western Journal casting it as punishing oil-friendly states.
the left
No coverage yet
No left-leaning outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
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
4 outlets · 1 opinion
Headlines frame the letter as a challenge to ESG ratings alleging higher rankings for Chinese companies; the Far Right outlets add that agencies punish oil-friendly states or fuel climate alarmism.
State treasurers press Moody’s, Fitch and S&P on ‘ESG’ guidance that gives higher rankings to Chinese companies, downgrades US biz
New York PostRightAll 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.
Left
Has not covered this story.
Center
Has not covered this story.
Right5
bizarrelypolitical betsClimate AlarmismPunishing
In the outlets’ own words
Sensational language
bizarrelyMore neutral: leading to higher rankings
The adverb adds the outlet’s own judgement that the outcome is strange, beyond the reported facts.
…and Standard & Poor’s that allegedly rely on outdated climate change policies — bizarrely leading to higher rankings for Chinese businesses while US companies get downgraded,…
Used byNew York Post (Right)
Loaded modifier
political betsMore neutral: investments in an energy transition
Calling climate-related investments political bets attaches a motive and a verdict to them without evidence in the text.
Wall Street's biggest credit rating agencies spent years making political bets on an energy transition that never arrived, and taxpayers in at least 17 states…
Used byRedState (Far Right)
Partisan shorthand
Climate AlarmismMore neutral: Climate Concerns
The label names climate concern in terms that contain the author’s conclusion that it is alarmist.
Climate Alarmism Comes Back to Bite Wall Street As States Challenge ESG Ratings
Used byRedState (Far Right)
Loaded verb
PunishingMore neutral: Affecting
Implies the agencies intend to penalize states, a motive the coverage does not establish.
State Treasurers Stand Up to the Big 3 Rating Agencies for Punishing Oil-Friendly States with Green-Activist ESG
Used byThe Western Journal (Far Right)
Show 1 more phrasesShow fewer
Loaded modifier
Green-Activist ESGMore neutral: ESG
Labels ESG policy with a political identity that presumes its purpose.
…Stand Up to the Big 3 Rating Agencies for Punishing Oil-Friendly States with Green-Activist ESG
Used byThe Western Journal (Far Right)
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
0 outletsNo left-leaning outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
From the center
0 outletsNo center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
From the right
4 outlets · 1 opinionLeads with
- ESG and climate policy in credit ratings
- alleged favoritism toward Chinese companies
- costs to taxpayers and pensions
See the 5 headlines from the rightHide the headlines
- The Western JournalFar Right
State Treasurers Stand Up to the Big 3 Rating Agencies for Loaded verb“Punishing”Implies the agencies intend to penalize states, a motive the coverage does not establish.More neutral: AffectingDisagree with this highlight? Oil-Friendly States with Loaded modifier“Green-Activist ESG”Labels ESG policy with a political identity that presumes its purpose.More neutral: ESGDisagree with this highlight?
Twenty-two state financial officers demanded answers Wednesday from America’s largest credit rating agencies over allegedly flawed environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies they warn could threaten taxpayer money, public pensions
- The Center SquareRight
Financial officers warn rating agencies about using ESG in state credit ratings
(The Center Square) – Twenty-two financial officers from across the U.S. wrote to the nation’s top rating agencies – Moody’s, Fitch, and S&P – asking them to explain the influence ESG policies have had on states’ credit ratings, with the…
- New York PostRight
State treasurers press Moody’s, Fitch and S&P on ‘ESG’ guidance that gives higher rankings to Chinese companies, downgrades US biz
Twenty-two state financial officers are demanding answers from top credit rating agencies including Moody’s, Fitch and S&P that allegedly still use outdated climate change and DEI policies, The Post has learned.
- Just the NewsFar Right
State treasurers allege top credit rating agencies give higher rankings to Chinese companies
The state financial officers point out that China produces more emissions than any other country in the world, making the ratings "nonsensical by any objective standard."
Partisan shorthand“Climate Alarmism”The label names climate concern in terms that contain the author’s conclusion that it is alarmist.More neutral: Climate ConcernsDisagree with this highlight? Comes Back to Bite Wall Street As States Challenge ESG Ratings
Wall Street's biggest credit rating agencies spent years making Loaded modifier“political bets”Calling climate-related investments political bets attaches a motive and a verdict to them without evidence in the text.More neutral: investments in an energy transitionDisagree with this highlight? on an energy transition that never arrived, and taxpayers in at least 17 states are the ones left holding the bill. Now, twenty-two state financial officers are demanding answers.
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
No report yet
From the outlets Mantle follows
Center
No report yet
From the outlets Mantle follows
Right
First to report
New York Post, Oct 14, 6:00 AM EDT
See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
- New York PostRightOct 14, 6:00 AM EDT
- The Center SquareRightOct 15, 5:44 PM EDT
- The Western JournalFar RightOct 16, 9:30 PM EDT
Times are the ones the outlets published in their own feeds, in Eastern time. Opinion is left out. Just the News gave only a date, so it is not placed.
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