Bias •
April 4th, 2023
How Major News Sites Covered Trump's Indictment and Arraignment
Image: AllSides
Former President Donald Trump’s indictment and arraignment were top stories across the political spectrum in the past week. Sensationalism and partisan bias were rampant.
To document this coverage, AllSides collected screenshots of homepages from six news outlets — CNN (Left bias), Fox News (Right bias), The New York Times (Lean Left bias), Huffpost (Left bias), Breitbart (Right bias), and New York Post (Lean Right bias) — shortly after Trump’s indictment, arraignment, and “not guilty” plea.
For context, the charges against Trump are related to hush-money payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels and others ahead of the 2016 U.S. elections. The details of the charges were not immediately clear when news of the indictment broke, but were later revealed to include 34 felony charges related to falsifying business records.
Trump Pleads “Not Guilty”
On Tuesday afternoon, Trump pleaded “not guilty” to 34 felony charges related to business fraud. Shortly thereafter, Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg made a public statement, and the indictment was made public.
AllSides collected screenshots of the homepages of several outlets at around 4:15 p.m. ET, shortly after Trump’s plea.
Story choice on homepages began diverging — focusing on the charges, Bragg’s remarks, and Trump’s “not guilty” plea. However, the sense of importance remained, with dedicated page sections still indicating the unique nature of the event.
Echoing previous coverage, Huffpost and the New York Post opted for comedic wordplay headlines like “ARRAIGN-MAN” and “UN-PREZ-EDENTED,” respectively. Huffpost took a more simplistic approach, simply including the quote, “WOW.”
New York Times (Lean Left bias):
New York Post (Lean Right bias):
Trump’s Surrender & Arraignment
On Tuesday, former President Donald Trump surrendered to authorities at the Manhattan district attorney’s office. News outlets across the spectrum covered the hotly-anticipated story in the hours leading up to Trump’s surrender, often featuring live coverage.
AllSides collected screenshots of the homepages of several outlets at around 2:30 p.m. ET, shortly after Trump arrived at the Manhattan district attorney’s office.
Sensationalism was widespread across the spectrum, complete with bright red all-caps headlines and taglines. As with other high-profile events, CNN (Left bias) featured a special graphic noting “THE ARRAIGNMENT OF DONALD TRUMP.” Fox News, on the other hand, warned of “TENSIONS RUNNING HIGH.”
Meanwhile, Huffpost and the New York Post opted for comedic wordplay headlines like “ARRAIGN-MAN” and “HOLDING COURT.”
Breitbart showed the most overt partisan bias of the sampled outlets — calling the arraignment a “WITCH TRIAL” — but other outlets’ leanings were also on display. On the left, Trump schemed and raged, while on the right, protesters defended Trump, who expressed dismay that this was “happening in America.”
CNN (Left bias):
New York Times (Lean Left bias):
New York Post (Lean Right bias):
Trump’s Indictment
On Thursday, March 30th, the New York Times was the first to report that a Manhattan grand jury indicted former President Donald Trump.
The story spread like wildfire. Within minutes, major news outlets across the country – and around the globe – were reporting on the indictment.
AllSides collected screenshots of the homepages of several outlets at 6pm ET on March 30th, less than one hour after the breaking news came out.
Homepages in sampled outlets frequently displayed large all-caps headlines about the indictment. Huffpost took the sensationalism a step further by including emojis in its top headline.
Breaking from other sampled outlets, which tended to stick to reporting the facts, Breitbart prominently labeled the indictment “THE LONGEST WITCH HUNT.” However, one CNN headline that day said Trump had “long avoided legal consequences in his personal, professional and political lives,” and a New York Times headline said “Democracy” was being “tested.”
New York Times (Lean Left bias):
New York Post (Lean Right bias):
