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Man injured during ICE arrest in Long Beach, California, officials and family say

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 7 outlets, mostly left-leaning (72%).

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

Protesters with signs reading 'STOP ICE TERROR NOW' and 'Raids' at a street demonstration.
Image via The New York TimesHow images are chosenReport this image

Ricardo Gonzalez, whom his family describes as a US citizen, was injured during an operation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Long Beach, California, on October 17, according to officials. The Long Beach police said ICE had asked them for backup and found a bleeding, handcuffed man, who was taken to hospital. Democratic Rep. Robert Garcia said agents broke the arm of a US citizen. Video of the arrest shows a man screaming in pain as agents pin him down. The Department of Homeland Security said agents were making a targeted arrest of an at-large criminal, that anti-ICE agitators impeded officers and damaged vehicles, and that officers used the minimum force needed.

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. A man was injured during an ICE operation in Long Beach, California, on October 17, according to officials.

    Reported byLeft1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Guardian
    Far Right
    The Western Journal

  2. Rep. Robert Garcia said ICE agents broke the arm of a US citizen.

    Reported byLeft2Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Guardian, ABC News
    Center
    The Hill

  3. The man’s family said he is a US citizen who was hospitalized after being detained by ICE.

    One outletThe New York Times· Left

  4. Long Beach police said ICE had called them for backup and found a bleeding, handcuffed man.

    One outletThe New York Times· Left

  5. Video of the arrest shows a man screaming in pain as ICE agents pin him down.

    One side only: the leftReported byLeft2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    Al Jazeera English, NBC News

  6. The Department of Homeland Security said agents were making a targeted arrest, that anti-ICE agitators impeded officers, and that officers used the minimum force.

    One outletThe Western Journal· Far Right

What is contested

Where accounts differ

Points the coverage does not agree on, and who says what.

  • ICE agents broke the arm of Ricardo Gonzalez, a US citizen, during the arrest.

    Rep. Robert Garcia, the family and outlets on the left say agents broke his arm; DHS says officers used the minimum force and followed their training. The supplied coverage contains no record that establishes how the injury occurred.

  • The man was a bystander resident rather than someone involved in the disturbance.

    CNN described him as a resident of Long Beach; DHS said anti-ICE agitators attempted to impede operations and threaten officers. The DHS statement as quoted does not say whether the man was one of them.

How each side tells it

Compare views

All sides report that ICE agents detained a man in Long Beach, California, on October 17 and that he was injured. Left and center coverage focuses on the lawmaker's claim that agents broke his arm and on arrest video; the Western Journal leads with DHS's account that agitators impeded officers.

  • the left

    5 outlets

    Headlines lead with the injury and the citizenship claim, framing the arrest as violent and citing officials, family and Democratic lawmakers, with video as evidence.

    Man claims arm broken in Sensational language“violent”Calling the arrest violent in the outlet's own voice states a contested characterization as fact before the agents' account is weighed.More neutral: ICE arrestDisagree with this highlight? ICE arrest
    Al Jazeera EnglishLeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    1 outlet

    The Hill's headline attributes the claim that officers broke the arm to a Democratic lawmaker, presenting it as his statement.

    Democratic lawmaker says ICE officers broke US citizen's arm
    The HillCenterAll center headlines

  • the right

    1 outlet

    The Far Right Western Journal's headline frames the story as a dispute over wording, calling the man a 'rioter' and presenting DHS's rebuttal of CNN as the news; no other right-side outlet was supplied.

    ICE Loaded verb“Fires Back”Combat framing for a reply.More neutral: responded, repliedDisagree with this highlight? After CNN Portrays Aggressive 'Rioter' as a Loaded modifier“Mere 'Resident'”The word mere dismisses CNN's description of the man as a resident, presenting the wording as minimizing before the facts are established.More neutral: described as a residentDisagree with this highlight? of California: 'Attempted to Impede'
    The Western JournalFar 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.

  • Left1

    violent

  • Center0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Right2

    Fires BackMere 'Resident'

In the outlets’ own words

  • Sensational language

    violentMore neutral: ICE arrest

    Calling the arrest violent in the outlet's own voice states a contested characterization as fact before the agents' account is weighed.

    Man claims arm broken in violent ICE arrest

    Used byAl Jazeera English (Left)

  • Loaded verb

    Fires BackMore neutral: responded or replied

    Combat framing for a reply.

    ICE Fires Back After CNN Portrays Aggressive 'Rioter' as a Mere 'Resident' of California:…

    Used byThe Western Journal (Far Right)

  • Loaded modifier

    Mere 'Resident'More neutral: described as a resident

    The word mere dismisses CNN's description of the man as a resident, presenting the wording as minimizing before the facts are established.

    ICE Fires Back After CNN Portrays Aggressive 'Rioter' as a Mere 'Resident' of California: 'Attempted to Impede'

    Used byThe Western Journal (Far Right)

Words quoted from someone else (4)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.

  • Sensational language

    Quoted

    brutal attackMore neutral: physical encounter

    The phrase is a strong judgement about the agents’ conduct that goes beyond the reported injury and video, and it is presented as a congressman’s characterization.

    …agents broke the arm of a US citizen in what a Democratic congressman said was a “brutal attack” during a confrontation with protesters in California.

    Quoted byThe Guardian (Left)

    These are Democratic congressman’s words. The outlets are reporting them.

  • Sensational language

    Quoted

    incredibly disturbingMore neutral: concerning

    The phrase is an emotional judgement of the incident, and it is presented as a congressman’s opinion rather than as a reported fact.

    Robert Garcia, whose district includes Long Beach, called the incident "incredibly disturbing" and said the man is a U.S.

    Quoted byABC News (Left)

    These are Rep. Robert Garcia’s words. The outlets are reporting them.

  • Sensational language

    Quoted

    brutally attackedMore neutral: attacked

    The intensifier adds a judgement about the force used that the reported facts do not establish, although it is the lawmaker’s words.

    “ICE agents brutally attacked and broke the arm of a North Long Beach resident and U.S.

    Quoted byThe Hill (Center)

    These are Robert Garcia’s words. The outlets are reporting them.

  • Sensational language

    Quoted

    horrificMore neutral: disturbing

    The adjective characterizes the videos with strong emotional language rather than describing their content.

    The videos are horrific and should concern not just our community but the country,” Garcia said in a...

    Quoted byThe Hill (Center)

    These are Robert Garcia’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

5 outlets

Leads with

  • injured US citizen
  • violent arrest video
  • Democratic lawmaker's criticism
  • family's account

Leaves out

  • DHS account of the operation

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

See the 5 headlines from the leftHide the headlines

From the center

1 outlet

Leads with

  • Democratic lawmaker's statement
  • officers breaking the arm
See the headline from the centerHide the headlines
  • The HillCenter

    Democratic lawmaker says ICE officers broke US citizen's arm

    Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) said that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers broke an American citizen’s arm over the weekend. “ICE agents Sensational language“brutally attacked”The intensifier adds a judgement about the force used that the reported facts do not establish, although it is the lawmaker’s words.More neutral: attackedThese are Robert Garcia’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight? and broke the arm of a North Long Beach resident and U.S. citizen. …

    Read at The Hill (opens in a new tab)

From the right

1 outlet

Leads with

  • DHS rebuttal of CNN
  • man as rioter
  • agitators impeding officers
  • minimum force used

Leaves out

  • Arrest video showing the man's injury

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

See the headline from the rightHide the headlines
  • The Western JournalFar Right

    ICE Loaded verb“Fires Back”Combat framing for a reply.More neutral: responded, repliedDisagree with this highlight? After CNN Portrays Aggressive 'Rioter' as a Loaded modifier“Mere 'Resident'”The word mere dismisses CNN's description of the man as a resident, presenting the wording as minimizing before the facts are established.More neutral: described as a residentDisagree with this highlight? of California: 'Attempted to Impede'

    The Department of Homeland Security pushed back Tuesday after CNN described a man injured during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation in Long Beach, California, as a “resident.” CNN posted

    Read at The Western Journal (opens in a new tab)

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

    First to report

    The Guardian, Oct 19, 9:28 AM EDT

  • Center

    13 hr 30 min later

    Its first report, Oct 19, 10:58 PM EDT

  • Right

    1 day 6 hr later

    Its first report, Oct 20, 3:41 PM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. The GuardianLeftOct 19, 9:28 AM EDT
  2. The New York TimesLeftOct 19, 2:40 PM EDT
  3. ABC NewsLeftOct 19, 9:11 PM EDT
  4. Al Jazeera EnglishLeftOct 19, 10:41 PM EDT
  5. The HillCenterOct 19, 10:58 PM EDT
  6. NBC NewsLeftOct 20, 12:26 AM EDT
  7. The Western JournalFar RightOct 20, 3:41 PM EDT

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

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