Skip to content

Politics

White House communications director floats Nicki Minaj for press secretary post

By

Coverage spectrum

Covered by 3 outlets, mostly left-leaning (67%).

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

Smiling woman in checkered beige suit descending aircraft stairs, with presidential seal on fuselage.
Image via The IndependentHow images are chosenReport this image

Communications director Steven Cheung posted on X that the White House may have found a new press secretary, Nicki Minaj, according to HuffPost and the Daily Mail. The Daily Mail reports that California Governor Gavin Newsom replied “We can only pray.” HuffPost says it was unclear whether Cheung was serious. The Independent reports that prediction markets gave Minaj a 4 percent chance of the job on Tuesday morning. The Daily Mail reports that Trump and Minaj joked about the job at a rally in Michigan over the weekend.

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. Communications director Steven Cheung posted on X that the White House may have found a new press secretary in Nicki Minaj.

    Reported byFar Left1Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    HuffPost
    Right
    Daily Mail

  2. California Governor Gavin Newsom responded on social media with “We can only pray.”

    Reported byFar Left1Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    HuffPost
    Right
    Daily Mail

  3. Minaj flew with Trump to a rally in Port Huron, Michigan, over the weekend, where Trump joked about her replacing Katie Zacharia.

    Reported byFar Left1Left1Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    Salon
    Left
    The Independent
    Right
    Daily Mail

  4. Katie Zacharia was White House press secretary for five days before she was fired.

    One side only: the leftReported byFar Left1Left1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    HuffPost
    Left
    The Independent

  5. Prediction markets Kalshi and Polymarket gave Minaj 4 percent and 2 percent chances of getting the job on Tuesday morning.

    One outletThe Independent· Left

How each side tells it

Compare views

All sides present report that Steven Cheung floated Nicki Minaj for the press secretary job and that Gavin Newsom answered “We can only pray.” The left coverage treats the idea mainly as a joke at the administration’s expense, while the Daily Mail centers on Newsom’s reaction.

  • the left

    2 outlets · 1 opinion

    Left headlines treat the idea as a joke at the administration’s expense, with HuffPost and The Independent stressing the teasing and betting odds, and Salon a celebrity feud.

    Trump World Floats Nicki Minaj For Press Secretary, And One Loaded modifier“MAGA Enemy”Labels Newsom by his opposition to the president rather than by his office, adding a partisan tag.More neutral: California governorDisagree with this highlight? Is All For It
    HuffPostFar LeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    No coverage yet

    No center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

  • the right

    1 outlet

    The Daily Mail’s headline, the only right-side coverage supplied, leads with Newsom’s reaction and quotes his words, framing the story around the governor rather than the administration.

    Gavin Newsom weighs in on Nicki Minaj serving as White House press secretary: 'We can only pray'
    Daily MailRightAll 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.

  • Left7

    zingeddisastrous five-day stintMAGA EnemyMAGA turn

  • Center

    Has not covered this story.

  • Right1

    boosted

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded verb

    zingedMore neutral: criticized

    The verb adds a tone of mockery to what was a plain criticism.

    Gavin Newsom and his press office zinged the Trump administration after word it was actually entertaining the possibility of…

    Used byHuffPost (Far Left)

  • Sensational language

    disastrous five-day stintMore neutral: five-day stint

    Calling the tenure disastrous is a judgement the article does not support with the facts it gives.

    …knew the White House was looking for a new press secretary following the disastrous five-day stint of Katie Zacharia, it was hard not to do a double-take when communications…

    Used byHuffPost (Far Left)

  • Loaded modifier

    MAGA EnemyMore neutral: California governor

    Labels Newsom by his opposition to the president rather than by his office, adding a partisan tag.

    Trump World Floats Nicki Minaj For Press Secretary, And One MAGA Enemy Is All For It

    Used byHuffPost (Far Left)

  • Loaded verb

    boostedMore neutral: suggested

    The verb implies active promotion by officials, which goes beyond reporting that they suggested her name.

    …only pray' Nicki Minaj becomes the White House press secretary after Trump officials boosted the Super Bass singer for the job.

    Used byDaily Mail (Right)

Show 4 more phrasesShow fewer

  • Loaded modifier

    MAGA turnMore neutral: support for Trump

    Presents Minaj’s support for Trump as a conversion, a judgement about her that the headline does not establish.

    Nicki Minaj’s MAGA turn has more to do with Cardi B than Trump

    Used bySalon (Far Left)

  • Loaded modifier

    lavishMore neutral: White House lifestyle

    Describes the White House lifestyle with a judgement the article does not support.

    While she has become acquainted with the lavish White House lifestyle with trips aboard Air Force One, rapper Nicki Minaj is still a…

    Used byThe Independent (Left)

  • Sensational language

    measlyMore neutral: 2 percent

    Adds a dismissive judgement to a plain percentage.

    Meanwhile, Polymarket had Minaj at a measly 2 percent chance — down from 8 percent the previous day.

    Used byThe Independent (Left)

  • Vague attribution

    despite the chatterMore neutral: despite the speculation

    Refers to unnamed speculation without saying who is talking.

    Prediction markets have little hope in Nicki Minaj as next press secretary, despite the chatter

    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

2 outlets · 1 opinion

Leads with

  • administration’s teasing
  • Newsom’s reaction
  • prediction-market odds
  • celebrity feud
See the 3 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
  • The IndependentLeft

    Prediction markets have little hope in Nicki Minaj as next press secretary, Vague attribution“despite the chatter”Refers to unnamed speculation without saying who is talking.More neutral: despite the speculationDisagree with this highlight?

    President Trump praised Nicki Minaj’s ass over the weekend, telling a crowd in Michigan: ‘That’s hard to miss’

    Read at The Independent (opens in a new tab)
  • HuffPostFar Left

    Trump World Floats Nicki Minaj For Press Secretary, And One Loaded modifier“MAGA Enemy”Labels Newsom by his opposition to the president rather than by his office, adding a partisan tag.More neutral: California governorDisagree with this highlight? Is All For It

    The president’s least favorite politician in California seemed amused by the possible new addition to the White House.

    Read at HuffPost (opens in a new tab)
  • SalonFar LeftOpinion

    Nicki Minaj’s Loaded modifier“MAGA turn”Presents Minaj’s support for Trump as a conversion, a judgement about her that the headline does not establish.More neutral: support for TrumpDisagree with this highlight? has more to do with Cardi B than Trump

    If Minaj becomes Trump’s press secretary, credit her drive to outdo a bigger New York rapper

    Read at Salon (opens in a new tab)

From the center

0 outlets

No center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

From the right

1 outlet

Leads with

  • Newsom’s reaction
  • Trump and Minaj joking
  • Minaj’s past feud with Newsom
See the headline from the rightHide the headlines
  • Daily MailRight

    Gavin Newsom weighs in on Nicki Minaj serving as White House press secretary: 'We can only pray'

    Both Trump and Minaj joked about her replacing Katie Zacharia at an event in Michigan over the weekend.

    Read at Daily Mail (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

    HuffPost, Oct 26, 8:36 PM EDT

  • Center

    No report yet

    From the outlets Mantle follows

  • Right

    26 min later

    Its first report, Oct 26, 9:02 PM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. HuffPostFar LeftOct 26, 8:36 PM EDT
  2. Daily MailRightOct 26, 9:02 PM EDT
  3. The IndependentLeftOct 27, 2:11 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