President Trump says he will not replace Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
He added that Hegseth would be very popular if appointed to the vacant Tennessee Senate seat after Marsha Blackburn's election.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
President Trump says he will not replace Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
Photograph: Joe.My.God. (embedded from source)
What this story says
- Trump denied any plan to replace Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
- Trump said Hegseth would be very popular as a Tennessee senator.
- Hegseth relocated to Tennessee with his family in 2022.
- Outlets differed in whether they mentioned Hegseth’s role in the Iran war.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 14 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 3 of the 17 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
62/100
Craft
87/100
Hype
30/100
17 sources · methodology
President Donald Trump told reporters on Wednesday that he is not considering replacing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, stating “I think he’s doing a very good job.” He also said Hegseth would be “very popular” if appointed to the U.S. Senate seat from Tennessee that will become vacant after Marsha Blackburn becomes governor.
The Associated Press report, reproduced in full by Joe.My.God, noted that Hegseth is a key architect of Trump’s unpopular war with Iran and a likely target of congressional Democrats. The report also recorded that Hegseth moved to Tennessee with his family in 2022, according to the Knoxville News Sentinel.
“I think he’s doing a very good job.”
What the coverage left out
None of the centre‑rated reports mention the Iran war that the left‑rated full report linked to Hegseth. None of the right‑rated reports mention Hegseth’s 2022 relocation to Tennessee or the description of him as a target of congressional Democrats.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 1 time, most recently on 5 Nov 2026, 00:15, and will add the sides that appear.
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
3 rated outlets
- The full report on Joe.My.God highlighted Hegseth’s involvement in the Iran war and described him as a “key architect” of that conflict and a “top target of congressional Democrats.” The Bangor Daily News digest added that Trump defended Hegseth against replacement rumors while noting the possibility of a Senate appointment.
Centre
3 rated outlets
- The Hill digest and the Wall Street Journal digest both focused on Trump’s denial of any plan to replace Hegseth and his comment that the secretary would be very popular if appointed to the Tennessee Senate seat. Neither outlet mentioned the Iran war or the political targeting of Hegseth.
Right
8 rated outlets
- Six right‑rated digests, Anadolu Ajansı, Seeking Alpha, WLTReport, news‑pravda.com, WIN and Capitalism Institute, all reported Trump’s rejection of replacement rumors and repeated his “very good job” quote. They also noted the speculation about a Senate run and linked the discussion to the recent Republican midterm losses, but did not mention the Iran war or Hegseth’s move to Tennessee.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover President Trump says he will not replace Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth?
- Of the 14 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 21% are rated left, 22% are rated centre, 57% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 17. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is President Trump says he will not replace Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth left or right?
- Neither side dominates it. Of the 14 rated outlets on this story, 21% are rated left, 22% are rated centre, 57% 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 President Trump says he will not replace Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth biased?
- President Trump says he will not replace Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is one event reported by 17 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 outlets covered President Trump says he will not replace Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth?
- 17 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.
- Did Trump say he would replace Hegseth as Defense Secretary?
- No. Trump told reporters he is not considering replacing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, repeating the line “I think he’s doing a very good job.” All outlets that covered the story reported this denial.
- What did Trump say about Hegseth’s popularity in Tennessee?
- Trump said he believes Hegseth would be “very popular” if appointed to the vacant Senate seat from Tennessee. The comment appeared in the full report and was echoed in every digest that covered the story.
- What is Hegseth’s connection to Tennessee?
- According to the Associated Press report cited by Joe.My.God, Hegseth moved to Tennessee with his family in 2022. That detail appears only in the left‑rated full report and is omitted from centre and right‑rated coverage.
Read it at the source
17 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
3- Trump Stops Rumors About Pete Hegseth's Destitution - Opinion · Global Voices (opens La Opinion in a new tab)
La Opinion — is La Opinion biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- Trump: Hegseth Would Be “Very Popular” As TN Senator (opens Joe.My.God. in a new tab)
Joe.My.God. — is Joe.My.God. biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Donald Trump stands by Pete Hegseth after midterm rout (opens Bangor Daily News in a new tab)
Bangor Daily News — is Bangor Daily News biased? Our profile of this outlet
Centre
3- Trump says Hegseth doing ‘a very good job’ as questions swirl about his future (opens WTVB in a new tab)
- Trump Says He Isn’t Considering Replacing Hegseth (opens Wall Street Journal in a new tab)
Wall Street Journal — is Wall Street Journal biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump: Hegseth would be ‘very popular’ as Tennessee senator (opens The Hill in a new tab)
Right
8- Trump Shuts Down Hegseth Replacement Talk After Reports of Private Discussions – 100PercentFedUp.com – by Isaac (opens 100% FED UP! in a new tab)
100% FED UP! — is 100% FED UP! biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Donald Trump said he has no intention of firing US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (opens news-pravda.com in a new tab)
news-pravda.com — is news-pravda.com biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump Backs Hegseth as Defense Secretary After GOP Losses (opens capitalisminstitute.org in a new tab)
capitalisminstitute.org — is capitalisminstitute.org biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump Says "Iran War Will Affect Election defeat"... Draws Line on Replacing Hegseth (opens Unknown in a new tab)
Unknown
- Trump rules out replacing Hegseth as defense chief (opens Anadolu Ajansı in a new tab)
Anadolu Ajansı — is Anadolu Ajansı biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump denies he considered replacing Hegseth after Republican midterm defeat (opens WIN in a new tab)
- Trump says he won't replace Hegseth, floats possible Senate run (opens Seeking Alpha in a new tab)
Seeking Alpha — is Seeking Alpha biased? Our profile of this outlet
- President Trump Responds to Reports He Might Fire Pete Hegseth (opens WLTReport in a new tab)
Not rated
3- Trump on Pete Hegseth: He's Doing a "Very Good Job," Ruled Out the Possibility of His Removal (opens parapolitika.gr in a new tab)
parapolitika.gr — is parapolitika.gr biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Trump Claims He Is Not Considering Firing Pentagon Chief: "I Think Hegseth Is Doing a Good Job" (opens Avaz.ba in a new tab)
- Trump Defends Pete Hegseth After Speculations About Resignation (opens Gazeta Do Povo in a new tab)
Gazeta Do Povo — is Gazeta Do Povo biased? Our profile of this outlet
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.
