Two Iranian men convicted in London of spying on journalists for Iran

Coverage spectrum

Covered by 10 outlets across the spectrum.

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

Image via Al Jazeera EnglishHow images are chosen Report this image

A London jury at Woolwich Crown Court on Thursday found Mostafa Sepahvand and Farhad Javadi Manesh guilty of engaging in conduct likely to assist Iranian intelligence. British prosecutors said the two surveilled journalists and other critics of the Iranian government, including reporters for a Persian-language television station in London. Reports also say one of the men was convicted of planning a violent attack against those targeted. The verdicts follow the prosecution’s case that the men acted on behalf of Iran’s intelligence services.

Headline and summary written by Mantle’s AI from the coverage below, under published rules. Editors read every story. How this works

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The coverage spectrum counts the outlets covering a story at each of five points. A short or missing segment means that part of the spectrum is mostly quiet.

Governor Loaded verb“slams”It adds drama to what was said. The governor criticized the lawmakers; “slams” makes it sound like a fight.More neutral: criticizes lawmakers over budget delay

Highlights mark words that carry a judgement. Tap one to see why, and what a neutral writer would say. Here it is “criticizes”.

The 5-point spectrum

Far Left
Voices that strongly advocate for progressive policies and systemic change.
Left
Mainstream liberal perspectives focusing on social equality and regulation.
Center
Sources that prioritize neutral reporting and balanced viewpoints.
Right
Mainstream conservative perspectives focusing on market freedom and tradition.
Far Right
Voices that strongly advocate for conservative values and limited government.

How we measure bias

What happened

Key points

Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.

A London jury found two Iranian men guilty of conduct likely to assist Iranian intelligence.
Across the spectrumReported byLeft3Center4Right1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
Left
Al Jazeera English, The Guardian, Bloomberg
Center
United Press International, Deutsche Welle, BBC News, Sky News
Right
The Washington Times
Far Right
Fox News
Prosecutors said the men surveilled journalists and critics of the Iranian government.
Reported byLeft1Center2Right1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
Left
The Guardian
Center
United Press International, Deutsche Welle
Right
The Washington Times
Far Right
Fox News
One of the men was reportedly convicted of planning a violent attack.
Reported byLeft2Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
Left
Al Jazeera English, The Guardian
Center
Deutsche Welle
The journalists targeted worked for a Persian-language broadcaster in London.
Reported byCenter1Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
Center
Deutsche Welle
Right
The Washington Times
Fox News reports that France accuses the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of cyberattacks.
One outletFox News· Far Right

How each side tells it

Compare views

All sides report that two Iranian men were found guilty in London of spying for Iran, targeting journalists. Left and center coverage stresses the threat to reporters, and some outlets cite a planned violent attack, while right coverage places the case within a wider pattern of Iranian operations abroad.

the left
3 outlets
Left headlines lead with the verdict and the threat to journalists; the Guardian quotes a plan to “eliminate” them and Bloomberg frames it as a shift in sabotage threat.
Two men found guilty over Iranian attempts to ‘eliminate’ UK-based journalists
The GuardianLeftAll left-leaning headlines
the center
4 outlets
Center headlines state the guilty verdicts and the targeting of journalists plainly; Sky instead stresses that the men entered Britain illegally, a detail no other side headlines.
Two men found guilty of spying for Iran over plan to target UK-based journalists
BBC NewsCenterAll center headlines
the right
3 outlets
Right headlines place the case within Iran’s wider overseas operations: Fox News ties it to cyberattacks and sleeper cells, while the Washington Times runs an AP report with a plain verdict headline.
Iran's shadow operations stretch across Europe as Sensational language“chilling”“Chilling” adds an emotional reaction that the verdicts themselves do not state.More neutral: spy convictionsDisagree with this highlight? spy convictions Loaded verb“expose Tehran's reach”“Expose” implies that the convictions revealed something previously hidden, which the verdicts alone do not establish.More neutral: show Tehran's reachDisagree with this highlight?
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.

Left0
No loaded words in its own voice.
Center0
No loaded words in its own voice.
Right4
raising alarmchillingexpose Tehran's reachso-called

In the outlets’ own words

Sensational language
raising alarmMore neutral: a series of cases involving Iranian operations beyond the Middle East
“Raising alarm” characterizes the reaction to the cases in the outlet’s own voice rather than reporting it.
…on journalists and critics of Tehran, the latest development in a series of cases raising alarm over Iranian operations beyond the Middle East, as France accuses the Islamic…
Used byFox News (Far Right)
Sensational language
chillingMore neutral: spy convictions
“Chilling” adds an emotional reaction that the verdicts themselves do not state.
Iran's shadow operations stretch across Europe as chilling spy convictions expose Tehran's reach
Used byFox News (Far Right)
Loaded verb
expose Tehran's reachMore neutral: show Tehran's reach
“Expose” implies that the convictions revealed something previously hidden, which the verdicts alone do not establish.
Iran's shadow operations stretch across Europe as chilling spy convictions expose Tehran's reach
Used byFox News (Far Right)
Delegitimizing label
so-calledMore neutral: (omit)
Sneer quotes in word form.
Two so-called asylum seekers have been convicted of spying and planning an attack in Britain for…
Used byBreitbart News (Far Right)

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

the verdict on Iranian intelligence
threat to journalists
plan to eliminate reporters

See the 3 headlines from the leftHide the headlines

Al Jazeera EnglishLeft
Iranian men guilty of spying on British journalists
Two Iranian men were convicted under Britain's National Security Act for spying on dissident journalists.
18 hr agoRead at Al Jazeera English (opens in a new tab)
1 more from Al Jazeera English
- UK court finds two Iranian men guilty of spying for Iran
The GuardianLeft
Two men found guilty over Iranian attempts to ‘eliminate’ UK-based journalists
Mostafa Sepahvand and Farhad Javadi Manesh carried out surveillance in an effort to inflict violence on three people Two men of Iranian origin who were hired through social media as part of a plan to “eliminate” journalists in the UK have been found guilty of engaging in conduct …
1 day agoRead at The Guardian (opens in a new tab)
BloombergLeft
Iran Plot Against UK-Based Reporter Marks Shift in Sabotage Threat
Two Iranian nationals were found guilty of engaging in conduct likely to assist Iran’s intelligence agency, in the latest case involving foreign spy services ordering surveillance and sabotage in Britain.
1 day agoRead at Bloomberg (opens in a new tab)

From the center

4 outlets

Leads with

guilty verdicts for spying
journalists as targets
illegal entry into Britain

See the 4 headlines from the centerHide the headlines

United Press InternationalCenter
Two Iranian men convicted of spying on journalists, lawyer in Britain
Two Iranian men were convicted Thursday of spying on journalists and a lawyer in Britain on behalf of Iranian intelligence, British prosecutors said.
21 hr agoRead at United Press International (opens in a new tab)
Deutsche WelleCenter
UK court convicts 2 Iranian men of spying on journalists
A London court has found two Iranian citizens guilty of surveilling reporters for a Persian-language television station critical of Iran's goverment. One was also convicted of planning a violent attack against them.
23 hr agoRead at Deutsche Welle (opens in a new tab)
BBC NewsCenter
Two men found guilty of spying for Iran over plan to target UK-based journalists
Mostafa Sepahvand and Farhad Javadi Manesh are convicted of engaging in conduct likely to assist Iranian intelligence.
1 day agoRead at BBC News (opens in a new tab)
Sky NewsCenter
Two Iranians convicted of spying for their country after entering Britain illegally
Two Iranian nationals who arrived in the UK illegally have been found guilty of spying for their country in the first case of its kind.
1 day agoRead at Sky News (opens in a new tab)

From the right

3 outlets

Leads with

Iran’s wider overseas network
cyberattacks and sleeper cells
spying on journalists and critics

See the 3 headlines from the rightHide the headlines

Breitbart NewsFar Right
'National Security Threat': Boat Migrant Convicted of Spying for Iran
Two Delegitimizing label“so-called”Sneer quotes in word form.More neutral: (omit)Disagree with this highlight? asylum seekers have been convicted of spying and planning an attack in Britain for Iranian intelligence.
19 hr agoRead at Breitbart News (opens in a new tab)
Fox NewsFar Right
Iran's shadow operations stretch across Europe as Sensational language“chilling”“Chilling” adds an emotional reaction that the verdicts themselves do not state.More neutral: spy convictionsDisagree with this highlight? spy convictions Loaded verb“expose Tehran's reach”“Expose” implies that the convictions revealed something previously hidden, which the verdicts alone do not establish.More neutral: show Tehran's reachDisagree with this highlight?
Two Iranian men convicted of spying in Britain as France accuses the IRGC of cyberattacks and UAE officials warn of Iranian sleeper cells abroad.
23 hr agoRead at Fox News (opens in a new tab)
The Washington TimesRightAssociated Press report
London court finds 2 Iranian men guilty of spying for Iran
Two Iranian men who spied on journalists working for a Persian-language broadcaster in London were found guilty Thursday of spying for Iran.
1 day agoRead 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
30 min later
Its first report, Nov 12, 7:05 AM EST
Center
First to report
Sky News, Nov 12, 6:36 AM EST
Right
2 hr 49 min later
Its first report, Nov 12, 9:24 AM EST

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order

Sky NewsCenterNov 12, 6:36 AM EST
BBC NewsCenterNov 12, 7:00 AM EST
BloombergLeftNov 12, 7:05 AM EST
The GuardianLeftNov 12, 9:07 AM EST
The Washington TimesRightNov 12, 9:24 AM EST
Fox NewsFar RightNov 12, 10:10 AM EST
Al Jazeera EnglishLeftNov 12, 10:15 AM EST
Deutsche WelleCenterNov 12, 10:23 AM EST
United Press InternationalCenterNov 12, 12:08 PM EST
Breitbart NewsFar RightNov 12, 1:47 PM EST

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

Two Iranian men convicted in London of spying on journalists for Iran

Coverage spectrum

Key points

Compare views

the left

the center

the right

Language to notice

In the outlets’ own words

Side by side

From the left

Iranian men guilty of spying on British journalists

Two men found guilty over Iranian attempts to ‘eliminate’ UK-based journalists

Iran Plot Against UK-Based Reporter Marks Shift in Sabotage Threat

From the center

Two Iranian men convicted of spying on journalists, lawyer in Britain

UK court convicts 2 Iranian men of spying on journalists

Two men found guilty of spying for Iran over plan to target UK-based journalists

Two Iranians convicted of spying for their country after entering Britain illegally

From the right

'National Security Threat': Boat Migrant Convicted of Spying for Iran

London court finds 2 Iranian men guilty of spying for Iran

How the coverage built up

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