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Unbearable heat suspected in 25 New Jersey deaths as high temperatures give way to thunderstorms

New Jersey officials said Saturday that they began seeing what they believe are heat-related deaths as early as Thursday with most occurring in the central and northern parts of the state.

2 Left1 Center0 Right
Still watching. Optics is waiting for a cleaner match before calling the split.

STILL WATCHING

As of July 5, 2026 at 8:51 PM, this is how Optics News reads the wording differences in this story.

What happened Unbearable heat suspected in 25 New Jersey deaths as high temperatures give way to thunderstorms.
The headline split The left frames it as "Unbearable heat suspected in 19 New Jersey deaths as high temperatures give way to thunde...". The center frames it as "Unbearable heat suspected in 25 New Jersey deaths as high temperatures give way to thunde...".
Match confidence Medium confidence. 3 sources across 2 bias buckets. Useful framing signal — check the source list before sharing.
Same-event confidenceMedium

3 sources across 2 bias buckets agree on the event.

Framing confidenceModerate

64/99 — meaningful wording shift across the spectrum.

WHAT EACH SIDE EMPHASIZED

Left / center-leftUnbearable heat suspected in 19 New Jersey deaths as high temperatures give way to thunderstorms

PBS NewsHour · Center-left · News report

CenterUnbearable heat suspected in 25 New Jersey deaths as high temperatures give way to thunderstorms

ABC7 New York · Center · News report

Right / center-rightNo matching source in this bucket yet.

Optics keeps watching for pickup.

SEE THE HEADLINES

Center-leftVery High
PBS NewsHourNews report · Jul 5, 6:45 PM

Unbearable heat suspected in 19 New Jersey deaths as high temperatures give way to thunderstorms

New Jersey officials said Saturday that they began seeing what they believe are heat-related deaths as early as Thursday with most occurring in the central and northern parts of the state.

Open source
Center-leftHigh
Los Angeles TimesNews report · Jul 5, 8:51 PM

L.A. County heat advisory: When will high temperatures peak in So Cal?

countyadvisorywhenpeak

The National Weather Service issued a heat advisory, as parts of Los Angeles County could experience temperatures between the 80s and low 100s in valleys and away from the coast.

Open source
CenterMostly Factual
ABC7 New YorkNews report · Jul 5, 8:45 PM

Unbearable heat suspected in 25 New Jersey deaths as high temperatures give way to thunderstorms

unbearablesuspectedjerseydeaths

Several days of scorching temperatures are suspected to have caused at least 25 deaths in New Jersey as a heat dome that had settled above parts of the region gives way to severe storms tha...

Open source
Details64/99 Wording Gap · Medium confidence · 3 sources
64/99 Wording GapMedium confidence3 sources · 2 bias bucketsLive match · 3 sources · 2 buckets · comparable news formatFormats: News report

SOURCE MAP CHANGES

Jul 5, 6:45 PM: PBS NewsHour joined the source map.

Jul 5, 8:45 PM: ABC7 New York joined the source map.

Jul 5, 8:51 PM: Los Angeles Times joined the source map.

Now: Wording Gap is 64/99 and story health is live match · 3 sources · 2 buckets · comparable news format.