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Trump praises Sen. Jon Husted’s physique at a rally; Husted jokes about it

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 5 outlets across the spectrum.

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

President Donald Trump praised the physique of Republican Senator Jon Husted at a campaign rally on Saturday, according to the Daily Mail and the Daily Beast, which quote him saying, “I never did that with a man before.” The New York Times, and HuffPost with an Associated Press report, say that in the midterm campaign’s final stretch Trump has repeatedly praised the looks of male candidates. The Washington Times reports that Husted referred to Trump’s comments in a joke on Sunday, noting the president’s praise of his muscular physique.

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. Trump praised the physique of Republican Senator Jon Husted at a rally on Saturday.

    Reported byFar Left1Right2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    The Daily Beast
    Right
    Daily Mail, The Washington Times

  2. Trump said, “I never did that with a man before,” in remarks about Husted’s body.

    Reported byFar Left1Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    The Daily Beast
    Right
    Daily Mail

  3. Husted referred to Trump’s remarks in a joke on Sunday.

    One outletThe Washington Times· Right

  4. In the campaign’s final stretch, Trump has repeatedly praised the looks of male candidates, according to reporting.

    One side only: the leftReported byFar Left1Left1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    HuffPost
    Left
    The New York Times

How each side tells it

Compare views

Every side present reports that Trump praised the physique of Republican Senator Jon Husted at a rally. The left presents the remarks as part of a wider pattern of Trump praising men’s bodies, while the right centers Husted’s joking reply.

  • the left

    2 outlets · 1 opinion

    Headlines frame the remarks as Trump’s compulsive fixation on male bodies, with the Daily Beast opinion piece mocking it and HuffPost’s Associated Press-sourced headline keeping a lighter tone.

    In Midterm Campaign’s Final Stretch, Trump Can’t Stop Praising Men’s Bodies
    The New York TimesLeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    1 outlet

    Mantle’s analysis has no note on this side yet. One of its headlines is shown.

  • the right

    2 outlets

    Headlines split: the Daily Mail frames the remarks as Trump gushing and unable to stop, while the Washington Times centers on Husted’s joking reply and the president’s praise of his physique.

    Sen. Jon Husted jokes about Trump's remarks on his football-player physique at Ohio event
    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.

  • Left4

    bizarrecroonedCringe DefenseThirst for Men

  • Center0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Right2

    gushedgushing

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded verb

    gushedMore neutral: praised

    The verb presents the president’s remarks as an excessive, emotional display rather than describing what he said.

    …the White House and setting tongues wagging on the Hill President Donald Trump gushed over Senator Jon Husted’s backside for the second time this month, telling a crowd of…

    Used byDaily Mail (Right)

  • Loaded verb

    gushingMore neutral: praising

    The verb presents the president’s remarks as an excessive, emotional display rather than describing what he said.

    Trump can't stop himself from gushing over male senator's body: 'I've never done this with a man before'

    Used byDaily Mail (Right)

  • Sensational language

    bizarreMore neutral: unusual

    The adjective passes judgement on the explanation rather than describing what was said.

    CNN’s resident Trump defender Scott Jennings has provided a bizarre explanation for the president’s fixation on the male physique.

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

  • Loaded verb

    croonedMore neutral: said

    The verb adds a romantic tone to the president’s remarks that the reported words do not carry.

    Speaking admiringly of Ohio senator Jon Husted, 59, Trump crooned: “He came up, and he was talking very nicely, and I stood right over here, and I…

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

Show 2 more phrasesShow fewer

  • Sensational language

    Cringe DefenseMore neutral: Defense

    The word is a mocking judgement of the defense rather than a description of its content.

    Scott Jennings Gives Cringe Defense of Trump’s Thirst for Men

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

  • Sensational language

    Thirst for MenMore neutral: interest in men’s physical appearance

    The phrase reduces the president’s praise of men’s appearance to a sexual craving, a judgement the coverage does not establish.

    Scott Jennings Gives Cringe Defense of Trump’s Thirst for Men

    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

2 outlets · 1 opinion

Leads with

  • Trump’s repeated praise of male candidates’ bodies
  • Trump’s quoted remarks about Husted
  • The campaign’s final stretch
See the 3 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
  • HuffPostFar LeftAssociated Press report

    Trump's New Pitch For Republican Candidates — They're Really Good Looking

    President Donald Trump has a new pitch for Republican candidates: they’re easy on the eyes.

    Read at HuffPost (opens in a new tab)

    Also published by PBS NewsHour. It counts once.

  • The New York TimesLeft

    In Midterm Campaign’s Final Stretch, Trump Can’t Stop Praising Men’s Bodies

    As he stumps for midterm candidates, the president has been especially eager to talk about the physical appearance of some men.

    Read at The New York Times (opens in a new tab)
  • The Daily BeastFar LeftOpinion

    Scott Jennings Gives Sensational language“Cringe Defense”The word is a mocking judgement of the defense rather than a description of its content.More neutral: DefenseDisagree with this highlight? of Trump’s Sensational language“Thirst for Men”The phrase reduces the president’s praise of men’s appearance to a sexual craving, a judgement the coverage does not establish.More neutral: interest in men’s physical appearanceDisagree with this highlight?

    CNN’s resident Trump defender Scott Jennings has provided a Sensational language“bizarre”The adjective passes judgement on the explanation rather than describing what was said.More neutral: unusualDisagree with this highlight? explanation for the president’s fixation on the male physique. Hosting a panel on State of the Union Sunday, Dana Bash played a montage of clips from 80-year-old Trump’s Saturday rally at Northern Kentucky …

    Read at The Daily Beast (opens in a new tab)

From the center

1 outlet
See the headline from the centerHide the headlines

From the right

2 outlets

Leads with

  • Husted’s joking reply
  • Trump’s laudatory comments on Husted’s physique
  • Trump’s own quoted words
See the 2 headlines from the rightHide the headlines

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

    2 hr 13 min later

    Its first report, Oct 17, 6:51 PM EDT

  • Center

    1 day 19 hr later

    Its first report, Oct 19, 12:01 PM EDT

  • Right

    First to report

    Daily Mail, Oct 17, 4:38 PM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. Daily MailRightOct 17, 4:38 PM EDT
  2. The New York TimesLeftOct 17, 6:51 PM EDT
  3. HuffPostFar LeftOct 18, 6:13 PM EDT
  4. The Washington TimesRightOct 19, 9:40 AM EDT
  5. PBS NewsHourCenterOct 19, 12:01 PM EDT

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

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