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22 sources checked · Left, Center, and Right included · 3h ago

Different Spin

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

1 Left20 Center1 Right
Same story. Different framing. Left, center, and right outlets are covering the same event. Here’s how each side worded it.

DIFFERENT SPIN

HOW EACH SIDE WORDED IT

Left-leaningCenter-leftUnited Airlines flight has near-collision with drone while landing at Newark AirportThe IndependentMostly Factual
flightwhilelanding
Right-leaningNear-Collision at Newark Airport: United Airlines Plane has Close Call with Drone ‘100 Feet Below Us’The Gateway PunditVery Low
planeclosecall
Center baseline · WDSU New Orleans (Hearst)HighDrone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

As of June 27, 2026 at 7:20 PM, this is how Optics News reads the wording differences in this story.

What happened A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.
The headline split The left frames it as "United Airlines flight has near-collision with drone while landing at Newark Airport". The right frames it as "Near-Collision at Newark Airport: United Airlines Plane has Close Call with Drone ‘100 Fe...".
Match confidence High confidence. 22 sources checked, Left/Center/Right all represented. Best read as a clear framing signal — not a fact-check.
Same-event confidenceHigh

22 sources across Left, Center, and Right all describe the same event.

Framing confidenceModerate

65/99 — meaningful wording shift across the spectrum.

WHAT EACH SIDE EMPHASIZED

Left / center-leftUnited Airlines flight has near-collision with drone while landing at Newark Airport

The Independent · Center-left · News report

CenterDrone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

WDSU New Orleans (Hearst) · Center · News report

Right / center-rightNear-Collision at Newark Airport: United Airlines Plane has Close Call with Drone ‘100 Feet Below Us’

The Gateway Pundit · Right · News report

SEE THE HEADLINES

CenterHigh
WDSU New Orleans (Hearst)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
RightVery Low
The Gateway PunditNews report · Jun 27, 7:20 PM

Near-Collision at Newark Airport: United Airlines Plane has Close Call with Drone ‘100 Feet Below Us’

planeclosecallfeet

On Friday, a scary incident unfolded at Newark Airport in New Jersey.

Open source
CenterHigh
KING5 (Tegna, Seattle)News report · Jun 27, 6:30 PM

United flight reports near miss with drone while landing at Newark airport

The crew said the drone came within about 100 feet of the aircraft as it descended.

Open source
CenterHigh
WUSA9 (Tegna, Washington DC)News report · Jun 27, 6:30 PM

United flight reports near miss with drone while landing at Newark airport

The crew said the drone came within about 100 feet of the aircraft as it descended.

Open source
CenterHigh
KARE11 (Tegna, Minneapolis)News report · Jun 27, 6:30 PM

United flight reports near miss with drone while landing at Newark airport

The crew said the drone came within about 100 feet of the aircraft as it descended.

Open source
CenterHigh
WCNC Charlotte (Tegna)News report · Jun 27, 6:30 PM

United flight reports near miss with drone while landing at Newark airport

The crew said the drone came within about 100 feet of the aircraft as it descended.

Open source
Show all 22 sources
CenterHigh
KGW8 (Tegna, Portland OR)News report · Jun 27, 6:30 PM

United flight reports near miss with drone while landing at Newark airport

The crew said the drone came within about 100 feet of the aircraft as it descended.

Open source
Center-leftMostly Factual
The IndependentNews report · Jun 27, 3:56 PM

United Airlines flight has near-collision with drone while landing at Newark Airport

flightwhilelanding

A pilot on a separate flight also reported a drone sighting around the same time

Open source
CenterHigh
WCVB Boston (Hearst)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
WMUR9 (Hearst, Manchester NH)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
WTAE Pittsburgh (Hearst)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
WBAL Baltimore (Hearst)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
KCRA3 Sacramento (Hearst)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
WISN12 Milwaukee (Hearst)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
WLWT Cincinnati (Hearst)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
WGAL8 (Hearst, Lancaster)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
WXII12 (Hearst, Greensboro)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
WYFF4 (Hearst, Greenville)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
WMTW8 (Hearst, Portland ME)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
KMBC9 (Hearst, Kansas City)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
WGAL Susquehanna / KOAT7 (Hearst, Albuquerque)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
CenterHigh
WMUR Hearst WLKY32 (Louisville)News report · Jun 27, 3:37 PM

Drone nearly hits United Airlines plane landing in Newark, pilot says

A United Airlines passenger jet nearly collided with a drone as it was coming in to land in New Jersey, its pilot said.

Open source
Details65/99 Wording Gap · High confidence · 22 sources
65/99 Wording GapHigh confidence22 sources · 3 bias bucketsStable · 22 sources · all three buckets · comparable news formatFormats: News report

SOURCE MAP CHANGES

Jun 27, 3:37 PM: WDSU New Orleans (Hearst) joined the source map.

Jun 27, 3:37 PM: WCVB Boston (Hearst) joined the source map.

Jun 27, 3:37 PM: WMUR9 (Hearst, Manchester NH) joined the source map.

Jun 27, 3:37 PM: WTAE Pittsburgh (Hearst) joined the source map.

Now: Wording Gap is 65/99 and story health is stable · 22 sources · all three buckets · comparable news format.