Skip to content

Culture & SocietyFeature

President Trump and first lady Melania Trump host Halloween trick-or-treating at the White House

By

Coverage spectrum

Covered by 8 outlets, mostly right-leaning (75%).

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

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump hosted a Halloween celebration for trick-or-treaters at the White House on Thursday, October 29. Right-leaning outlets report that the event was held on the South Lawn, that Air Force One flew over the event, and that the Trumps handed out commemorative candy to children in costumes. One of them reports 6,000 guests; another says thousands attended. The Associated Press, carried by PBS NewsHour, and The Independent also report the Trumps handing out candy. Washington Examiner reports that construction on the White House state ballroom was under way at the same time. The event is described as an annual tradition.

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. Donald Trump and Melania Trump handed out candy to trick-or-treaters at the White House Halloween event on Thursday, October 29.

    Reported byLeft1Center1Right4Far Right2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Independent
    Center
    PBS NewsHour
    Right
    The Washington Times, Daily Mail, New York Post, Washington Examiner
    Far Right
    The Epoch Times, One America News

  2. The event was held on the White House South Lawn.

    One side only: the rightReported byRight2Far Right2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Right
    New York Post, Washington Examiner
    Far Right
    The Epoch Times, One America News

  3. Air Force One flew over the event, with reports of two flyovers.

    One side only: the rightReported byRight3Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Right
    Daily Mail, New York Post, Washington Examiner
    Far Right
    The Epoch Times

  4. Thousands of guests attended, with one report giving a figure of 6,000.

    One side only: the rightReported byRight1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Right
    New York Post
    Far Right
    One America News

  5. Construction on the White House state ballroom was under way during the event.

    One outletWashington Examiner· Right

How each side tells it

Compare views

All three sides report that Trump and Melania Trump handed out candy to trick-or-treaters at the White House on Halloween. The right emphasizes the flyover, the crowd and the family-centered spectacle, while the left headline compares the event to a past Minions moment and the center's AP report is plain.

  • the left

    1 outlet

    The Independent's headline frames the event through a comparison with a past Minions costume moment and the timing after the last rally before the midterms, in a light, comparative tone rather than a straight event report.

    Donald Trump avoids another Loaded modifier“infamous”Calling the earlier candy moment infamous passes a negative judgement on it that the reported facts do not establish.More neutral: another Minions candy momentDisagree with this highlight? Minions moment at White House Halloween event following last rally before midterms
    The IndependentLeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    1 outlet

    The center's only coverage is an Associated Press report carried by PBS NewsHour; its headline is a plain WATCH video title stating that the Trumps hosted a Halloween celebration.

    WATCH: Trumps host Halloween celebration at the White House
    PBS NewsHourCenterAll center headlines

  • the right

    6 outlets

    Headlines are upbeat and spectacle-led, centering the Trumps and details such as the Air Force One flyover, costumes and crowd size; the far-end outlets read more like event listings.

    Trump and Melania surprise trick-or-treaters with Air Force One flyover at White House Halloween celebration
    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.

  • Left2

    plopped it on their headinfamous

  • Center0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Right0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded verb

    plopped it on their headMore neutral: placed it on their head

    The verb plopped is casual and mocking, adding a judgement about how the candy was placed that a plain description would not carry.

    …for some sweets, but instead of putting the candy bar in the child’s bag, he plopped it on their head.

    Used byThe Independent (Left)

  • Loaded modifier

    infamousMore neutral: another Minions candy moment

    Calling the earlier candy moment infamous passes a negative judgement on it that the reported facts do not establish.

    Donald Trump avoids another infamous Minions moment at White House Halloween event following last rally before midterms

    Used byThe Independent (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

  • a past Minions moment
  • timing after the last midterm rally
  • candy in bags rather than on his head

Leaves out

  • Air Force One flyover
  • the South Lawn crowd size

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

See the headline from the leftHide the headlines
  • The IndependentLeft

    Donald Trump avoids another Loaded modifier“infamous”Calling the earlier candy moment infamous passes a negative judgement on it that the reported facts do not establish.More neutral: another Minions candy momentDisagree with this highlight? Minions moment at White House Halloween event following last rally before midterms

    Trump and Melania greeted Trick-or-Treaters and put candy in their bags — instead of on their heads like the president did in previous years while hosting the White House Halloween event

    Read at The Independent (opens in a new tab)

From the center

1 outlet

Leads with

  • candy handed to costumed children
  • the event as an annual celebration

Leaves out

  • Air Force One flyover
  • the 6,000-guest count

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

See the headline from the centerHide the headlines
  • PBS NewsHourCenterAssociated Press report

    WATCH: Trumps host Halloween celebration at the White House

    President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump handed out candy to hundreds of costumed kids outside the White House residence at Thursday's annual Halloween celebration.

    Read at PBS NewsHour (opens in a new tab)

From the right

6 outlets

Leads with

  • the Trumps' personal participation
  • the Air Force One flyover
  • crowd size and families
  • costumes and spectacle
See the 6 headlines from the rightHide the headlines

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

    2 hr 25 min later

    Its first report, Oct 29, 8:02 PM EDT

  • Center

    2 hr 17 min later

    Its first report, Oct 29, 7:53 PM EDT

  • Right

    First to report

    The Epoch Times, Oct 29, 5:37 PM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. The Epoch TimesFar RightOct 29, 5:37 PM EDT
  2. The Washington TimesRightOct 29, 6:40 PM EDT
  3. Daily MailRightOct 29, 6:41 PM EDT
  4. New York PostRightOct 29, 7:19 PM EDT
  5. One America NewsFar RightOct 29, 7:36 PM EDT
  6. Washington ExaminerRightOct 29, 7:41 PM EDT
  7. PBS NewsHourCenterOct 29, 7:53 PM EDT
  8. The IndependentLeftOct 29, 8:02 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