Skip to content

Government & PolicyBreaking

Trump signs proclamation naming Oval Office and Cabinet Room national landmarks

By

Coverage spectrum

Covered by 8 outlets across the spectrum.

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

Interior of the Oval Office showing yellow sofas, armchairs, portraits, and a curved wall.
Image via CNNHow images are chosenReport this image

President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on Thursday designating the Oval Office and the Cabinet Room as national landmarks, which he said would prevent future changes to the rooms. Trump said the document would be sent to Congress for ratification. CNN reports the signing came two days after Republicans’ midterm losses. The AP reports that Trump has made numerous design changes since returning to office, including gold accents and portraits in the Oval Office. The New York Post says the fate of his gilded remodel is still up in the air.

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. Trump signed a proclamation on Thursday designating the Oval Office and Cabinet Room as national landmarks.

    Reported byLeft2Center1Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    CNN, The Independent
    Center
    PBS NewsHour
    Right
    New York Post

  2. Trump said the designation would prevent future changes to the rooms.

    Reported byLeft2Center1Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    CNN, The Independent
    Center
    PBS NewsHour
    Right
    New York Post

  3. Trump said the document would be sent to Congress for ratification.

    One outletCNN· Left

  4. Republicans lost ground in midterm elections on Tuesday, two days before the signing.

    One outletCNN· Left

  5. Trump has made numerous design changes to rooms since returning to office, including gold accents and portraits in the Oval Office.

    Reported byLeft2Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    CNN, The Independent
    Center
    PBS NewsHour

How each side tells it

Compare views

All sides report that Trump signed a proclamation on Thursday naming the Oval Office and Cabinet Room national landmarks to block future changes. The main difference is emphasis: left and center headlines centre the signing and Trump’s stated aim, while the New York Post focuses on whether his gilded remodel will survive.

  • the left

    3 outlets

    Left-side headlines present the signing as Trump’s attempt to block future changes, and The Independent stresses the gold-covered Oval Office.

    Trump tries to prevent anyone from changing his Loaded modifier“gold-covered”Saying the office is covered in gold stresses the extent of the decor and pre-judges the renovation as excessive.More neutral: gold-accentedDisagree with this highlight? Oval Office by declaring it a landmark
    The IndependentLeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    3 outlets

    The center coverage is an Associated Press report carried by PBS NewsHour, headlined as a signing with the aim attributed to Trump.

    Trump signs proclamation he says will prevent future changes to Oval Office and Cabinet Room
    PBS NewsHourCenterAll center headlines

  • the right

    3 outlets

    The right-side coverage is one New York Post headline that reports the signing and asks whether the gilded remodel will survive, using a playful reference to a “square”.

    Trump signs EO to keep Oval Office from becoming a square — but fate of prez’s Loaded modifier“gilded”Calling the renovation gilded implies excess and pre-judges the remodel before its merits are discussed.More neutral: gold-trimmedDisagree with this highlight? remodel up in the air
    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

    gold-coveredstunning midterm losses

  • Center0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Right1

    gilded

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded modifier

    gold-coveredMore neutral: gold-accented

    Saying the office is covered in gold stresses the extent of the decor and pre-judges the renovation as excessive.

    Trump tries to prevent anyone from changing his gold-covered Oval Office by declaring it a landmark

    Used byThe Independent (Left)

  • Loaded modifier

    gildedMore neutral: gold-trimmed

    Calling the renovation gilded implies excess and pre-judges the remodel before its merits are discussed.

    Trump signs EO to keep Oval Office from becoming a square — but fate of prez’s gilded remodel up in the air

    Used byNew York Post (Right)

  • Sensational language

    stunning midterm lossesMore neutral: midterm losses

    The adjective “stunning” adds drama beyond the reported fact that Republicans lost ground in the midterm elections.

    The signing ceremony, which came on the heels of Republicans’ stunning midterm losses on Tuesday, was his third event of the week related to his construction or…

    Used byCNN (Left)

Words quoted from someone else (1)Hide the quoted words

Loaded words that outlets reported someone else saying. They show what was said, not how the outlet chose to say it.

  • Loaded modifier

    Quoted

    stupid peopleMore neutral: people who might demolish the rooms

    Trump’s insult of people who might demolish the rooms pre-judges them as foolish without evidence.

    ‘It will not be allowed to be touched by anybody, destroyed, ripped down by stupid people,’ Trump said

    Quoted byThe Independent (Left)

    These are Donald Trump’s words. The outlets are reporting them.

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

3 outlets

Leads with

  • Trump’s stated aim of blocking changes
  • the gold-covered Oval Office
  • the signing as a Trump declaration
See the 3 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
  • CNNLeft

    Trump says he’s declaring Oval Office and Cabinet Room national landmarks to prevent future changes

    President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on Thursday that he said would designate the White House’s Oval Office and Cabinet Room as national landmarks — a move he said would protect the two West Wing spaces from future changes. …

    Read at CNN (opens in a new tab)
  • The IndependentLeft

    Trump tries to prevent anyone from changing his Loaded modifier“gold-covered”Saying the office is covered in gold stresses the extent of the decor and pre-judges the renovation as excessive.More neutral: gold-accentedDisagree with this highlight? Oval Office by declaring it a landmark

    ‘It will not be allowed to be touched by anybody, destroyed, ripped down by Loaded modifier“stupid people”Trump’s insult of people who might demolish the rooms pre-judges them as foolish without evidence.More neutral: people who might demolish the roomsThese are Donald Trump’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight?,’ Trump said

    Read at The Independent (opens in a new tab)
  • The Boston GlobeFar LeftAssociated Press report

    Trump signs proclamation he says will prevent future changes to the Oval Office and Cabinet Room

    The Boston Globe published a report that is shown in full at PBS NewsHour. The headline is the one The Boston Globe gave it.

    Read at The Boston Globe (opens in a new tab)

From the center

3 outlets

Leads with

  • the signing of the proclamation
  • Trump’s stated aim of preventing changes
  • numerous design changes, including gold accents and portraits
See the 3 headlines from the centerHide the headlines
  • The HillCenter

    Trump signs proclamation making Oval Office, Cabinet Room national monument

    President Trump signed a proclamation on Thursday making the Oval Office and Cabinet Room in the White House a national monument. Trump noted Congress would have to ratify the proclamation, and that “no major modifications” would be able to be made to the rooms without approval …

    Read at The Hill (opens in a new tab)
    1 more from The Hill
  • PBS NewsHourCenterAssociated Press report

    Trump signs proclamation he says will prevent future changes to Oval Office and Cabinet Room

    Since returning to the White House, Trump has overseen numerous design changes to various rooms, including the Oval Office, where he has filled the wall space with portraits, a copy of the Declaration of Independence and numerous golden accents.

    Read at PBS NewsHour (opens in a new tab)

    Also published by The Boston Globe. It counts once.

  • NewsweekCenter

    Donald Trump Moves to Make His Oval Office Makeover Permanent

    Trump says his proclamation will protect his Oval Office and Cabinet Room redesigns from being altered by future presidents.

    Read at Newsweek (opens in a new tab)

From the right

3 outlets

Leads with

  • the uncertain fate of the remodel
  • the order’s protection of the rooms
  • the gilded Oval Office
See the 3 headlines from the rightHide the headlines
  • TownhallFar Right

    Trump Turns Oval Office Into a National Landmark

    President Donald Trump took executive action on Thursday to designate the Oval Office and the Cabinet Room of the White House as historic landmarks through the Antiquities Act, he announced during a signing ceremony."I view the White House as a very important symbol of our …

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

    Trump declares Oval Office a National Monument to protect renovations

    President Trump on Thursday declared the Oval Office a national monument, a move that protects his extensive renovations to the historic room from being undone by his successors.

    Read at The Washington Times (opens in a new tab)
  • New York PostRight

    Trump signs EO to keep Oval Office from becoming a square — but fate of prez’s Loaded modifier“gilded”Calling the renovation gilded implies excess and pre-judges the remodel before its merits are discussed.More neutral: gold-trimmedDisagree with this highlight? remodel up in the air

    With his new order, the two rooms “won’t be able to be taken down, destroyed, touched, or anything else.”

    Read at New York Post (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

    The Independent, Nov 5, 4:18 PM EST

  • Center

    21 min later

    Its first report, Nov 5, 4:40 PM EST

  • Right

    42 min later

    Its first report, Nov 5, 5:00 PM EST

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. The IndependentLeftNov 5, 4:18 PM EST
  2. NewsweekCenterNov 5, 4:40 PM EST
  3. PBS NewsHourCenterNov 5, 4:48 PM EST
  4. New York PostRightNov 5, 5:00 PM EST
  5. The Washington TimesRightNov 5, 5:08 PM EST
  6. The Boston GlobeFar LeftNov 5, 5:11 PM EST
  7. CNNLeftNov 5, 5:12 PM EST
  8. TownhallFar RightNov 5, 5:15 PM EST
  9. The HillCenterNov 5, 5:32 PM EST

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
Embed

Show this story’s coverage card on your own site, blog or class page. It has the headline, who is covering it and a link back here, and it tracks nobody. See the card

Seen a mistake? Tell us what is wrong with this page