Skip to the story
All stories

George W. Bush displays 9/11-themed paintings

Former president exhibits 16 artworks inspired by the 2001 attacks at his presidential library

AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made

Published Updated
George W. Bush displays 9/11-themed paintings

What this story says

  • George W. Bush is exhibiting 16 paintings at his presidential library in Dallas, Texas, inspired by the 9/11 attacks.
  • The collection includes depictions of the moment Bush was informed of the second plane hitting the World Trade Center.
  • Bush wrote a caption for the exhibit stating, “Twenty‑five years ago, the actions of an enemy revealed the spirit of the American people.”
  • The artworks are on display to mark the 25th anniversary of the 2001 attacks.

Who covered it

Left 48%(13)Centre 48%(13)Right 4%(1)

Percentages are shares of the 27 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 3 of the 30 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .

Trust

76/100

Craft

95/100

Hype

28/100

30 sources · methodology

Thin on the right so far

Only 1 of the 27 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.

This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.

Former President George W. Bush is displaying a series of 16 paintings at the George W. Bush Presidential Library in Dallas, Texas. The artworks are themed around the 11 September 2001 attacks and were unveiled to mark the 25th anniversary of the events. Bush wrote a caption for the exhibit, which reads, “Twenty‑five years ago, the actions of an enemy revealed the spirit of the American people.” He added, “May we always honor the precious lives stolen, and may God bless America.”

The collection includes depictions of the moment Bush was told a second plane had struck the World Trade Center, and America was under attack. Other paintings in the series show the dust cloud from the buildings' collapse over New York, an outstretched hand holding a first responder's badge, and an American flag unfurled down a building. Bush took up painting a few years after leaving office in 2009. Previous exhibits have featured portraits of veterans and American immigrants.

Disagreement on exhibit details

HuffPost reports that one painting depicts an outstretched hand cradling the badge of what would seem to be a fallen first responder. CTV News states that one painting shows an outstretched hand cradling the badge of a fallen first responder, and another shows an American flag filling the entire frame while illustrating the Pentagon.

What the coverage left out

None of the left-rated or centre-rated reports mention the total number of people killed in the 9/11 attacks, a figure of 2,977 provided by CTV News.

Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 79 times, most recently on 12 Sept 2026, 23:30, and will add the sides that appear.

How other outlets pictured it

Which photograph to run is each newsroom’s own choice. The leaning beside a name is that outlet’s published rating, not a claim that the pictures divide along it. Every picture is shown from the outlet’s own server and links to the article it ran in.

George W. Bush displays 9/11-themed paintings
CTV NewsCentre

How each side covered it

Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.

Left

13 rated outlets

  • Left-rated outlets focused on the specific paintings and the moment Bush learned of the attacks. HuffPost highlighted Bush painting the moment he was told a second plane hit the World Trade Center, and noted the use of a 9/11 photo as a meme. People reported on a self-portrait of Bush learning about the Twin Towers attack. Washington Sun and Mediaite also focused on Bush painting the moment he was told the US was under attack. Raw Story quoted social media users calling Bush an 'absolute madman' and an 'absolute mad man' in reaction to the paintings.

Centre

13 rated outlets

  • Centre-rated outlets highlighted Bush's remembrance of 9/11 through his art and the exhibit's themes. CTV News noted that Bush returned to the defining moment of his presidency with brush and canvas, painting symbols and people that have stayed with him. The Hill reported that Bush unveiled new paintings depicting his reaction when told 'America is under attack.' Political Wire stated Bush revisited the morning of 11 September 2001 through paintings. ARTnews reported that the paintings reflect on the courage, sacrifice, and resilience that emerged from the attacks.

Right

1 rated outlet

We have not written our reading of the right coverage of this story. The right-rated outlets that ran it are listed below.

Questions about this coverage

How did the left and right cover George W. Bush displays 9/11-themed paintings?
Of the 27 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 48% are rated left, 48% are rated centre, 4% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 30. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
Is George W. Bush displays 9/11-themed paintings left or right?
Neither side dominates it. Of the 27 rated outlets on this story, 48% are rated left, 48% are rated centre, 4% are rated right, and no side holds the 70% this site would want before calling a field one-sided. A story is not left or right in any case; the outlets that carried it are what carry ratings.
Is the coverage of George W. Bush displays 9/11-themed paintings biased?
George W. Bush displays 9/11-themed paintings is one event reported by 30 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
Which side is not reporting George W. Bush displays 9/11-themed paintings?
When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
Which outlets covered George W. Bush displays 9/11-themed paintings?
30 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
What is George W. Bush displaying at his presidential library?
George W. Bush is displaying a series of 16 paintings inspired by the 9/11 attacks at the George W. Bush Presidential Library in Dallas, Texas. The exhibit marks the 25th anniversary of the tragedy and includes a caption written by the former president.
What do the paintings depict?
The paintings depict scenes from the 9/11 attacks, including the moment Bush was informed of the second plane hitting the World Trade Center. Other artworks show the dust cloud over New York, a first responder's badge, and an American flag. Bush himself is featured in half of the paintings.
What did George W. Bush say about the exhibit?
In a caption for the exhibit, George W. Bush wrote, “Twenty‑five years ago, the actions of an enemy revealed the spirit of the American people.” He also stated, “May we always honor the precious lives stolen, and may God bless America.”

Read it at the source

30 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.

Left

13
Show 5 more

Centre

13
Show 5 more

Right

1

Not rated

3

How did this read?

About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.

George W. Bush 9/11 Paintings | MediaBias News