Docs  /  Framing labels

Framing labels

Every article the system ingests gets tagged with one of six framing labels. The tag describes how the outlet presented the story, not what the story is.

TagWhat it means
neutralFactual, attribution-heavy. Minimal interpretive language.
pro-actionFrames the subject favorably, or supports the decision at issue.
criticalFrames the subject unfavorably, or opposes the decision at issue.
alarmistEmphasizes urgency, threat, or worst-case stakes.
dismissiveEmphasizes overreaction, false alarm, or downplayed stakes.
internationalFramed through a non-US-domestic lens (reserved for international wires)

How tags are assigned

Each article goes through a classification pass that reads the headline, lede, and body and returns the single best-fitting tag plus a short framing_summary explaining the choice. The summary is what appears in the "framing" column on the event detail page and in the framing_summary field of a source object.

Caveats

  • An outlet can have different tags on different stories. neutral on one, critical on the next. The tag describes the article, not the outlet.
  • Tags are not mutually reinforcing with bias position. A right-leaning outlet can file a neutral story; a left-leaning outlet can file a critical one.
  • international is used sparingly. Most international outlets still get a substantive framing tag when their angle warrants it.