Talarico seeks release of Paxton depositions in Texas Senate race
Democratic candidate James Talarico wants to unseal testimony from a civil fraud case involving his opponent, Ken Paxton.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
At left, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks in McKinney, Texas, May 19, 2026, and at right, Texas state Rep. James Talarico, after voting, in Austin, Texas, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero and Eric Gay,File)
Photograph: Associated Press News (embedded from source)
What this story says
- Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico plans to ask a court to release deposition transcripts.
- The depositions are from a civil fraud case involving Unity Resources, a company connected to Talarico's opponent, Ken Paxton.
- Paxton was not a defendant in the settled case, and has denied allegations against him.
- The Wall Street Journal previously reported that one deposition suggested Paxton may have violated attorney-client privilege.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 12 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 1 of the 13 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
42/100
Craft
60/100
Hype
20/100
13 sources · methodology
Thin on the right so far
None of the 12 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.
James Talarico, the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Texas, intends to ask a court to release deposition transcripts. These documents stem from a civil case in which the mineral assets company Unity Resources was accused of fraud. Ken Paxton, the Republican opponent Talarico is challenging, was connected to Unity Resources but was not a defendant in the lawsuit, which has since been settled.
Talarico's campaign confirmed it would file a motion with the court on Wednesday to unseal the testimony. The campaign stated that there is no legal basis to keep the depositions from public view and that withholding them violates Texas's constitutional guarantee of open judicial proceedings. Paxton has consistently denied allegations against him, characterising them as politically motivated attacks.
Disagreement on deposition contents
The Associated Press and WKMG reported that The Wall Street Journal previously published details from one deposition, indicating Paxton may have violated attorney-client privilege. Both outlets also noted that those involved disputed this information. The Journal also reported that Paxton stated he could not recall the answer to approximately 90 questions during his deposition.
What the coverage left out
None of the reports printed below mention the specific court where Talarico's campaign plans to file its motion, though The Texas Tribune digest states it will be in Collin County. The full reports from Associated Press and WKMG noted that Paxton was acquitted after being impeached and faced criminal charges for securities fraud, which ended with restitution payments but no admission of guilt. None of the centre-rated digests included this detail.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 3 times, most recently on 26 Aug 2026, 14:30, 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
4 rated outlets
- Four left-rated reports focused on Talarico's effort to release the depositions to highlight his opponent's past. Associated Press and The Seattle Times reported that Talarico wants to keep the focus on Paxton's history of scandals. The Texas Tribune stated Talarico's campaign would ask a court to unseal the depositions. Oskaloosa Herald also reported Talarico's intention to reveal the testimony.
Centre
8 rated outlets
- Seven centre-rated reports highlighted Talarico's move to make the depositions public. WKMG, Winnipeg Free Press, Click on Detroit, The Northern Virginia Daily, Weatherford Democrat, WSLS, and KTBS all reported that Talarico wants to reveal testimony involving his Republican opponent, Ken Paxton. Several of these digests noted the depositions are part of a civil case where Unity Resources was accused of fraud, and that Paxton was connected to the company.
Right
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated right has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Talarico seeks release of Paxton depositions in Texas Senate race?
- Of the 12 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 33% are rated left, 67% are rated centre, 0% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 13. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Talarico seeks release of Paxton depositions in Texas Senate race left or right?
- Neither side dominates it. Of the 12 rated outlets on this story, 33% are rated left, 67% are rated centre, 0% 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 Talarico seeks release of Paxton depositions in Texas Senate race biased?
- Talarico seeks release of Paxton depositions in Texas Senate race is one event reported by 13 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 Talarico seeks release of Paxton depositions in Texas Senate race?
- 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 Talarico seeks release of Paxton depositions in Texas Senate race?
- 13 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 James Talarico trying to do?
- James Talarico, a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Texas, is seeking to have deposition transcripts released. These transcripts are from a civil fraud case involving Unity Resources, a company connected to his Republican opponent, Ken Paxton.
- What is Ken Paxton's connection to the case?
- Ken Paxton was connected to Unity Resources, the company at the centre of a civil fraud case. He was not a defendant in the lawsuit, which has since been settled. Paxton has denied allegations against him.
- What has been reported about the depositions previously?
- The Wall Street Journal previously reported that one deposition suggested Ken Paxton may have violated attorney-client privilege. The same report indicated Paxton stated he could not recall the answer to about 90 questions during his testimony.
Read it at the source
13 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
4- Talarico campaign will ask court to unseal Paxton depositions (opens The Texas Tribune in a new tab)
The Texas Tribune — is The Texas Tribune biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Talarico wants to unearth Paxton’s depositions to keep focus on opponent’s past in Texas Senate race (opens The Seattle Times in a new tab)
The Seattle Times — is The Seattle Times biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Talarico wants to unearth Paxton's depositions to keep focus on opponent's past in Texas Senate race (opens Oskaloosa Herald in a new tab)
Oskaloosa Herald — is Oskaloosa Herald biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Talarico wants to unearth Paxton's depositions to keep focus on opponent's past in Texas Senate race (opens Associated Press News in a new tab)
Associated Press News — is Associated Press News biased? Our profile of this outlet
Centre
8- Talarico wants to unearth Paxton's depositions to keep focus on opponent's past in Texas Senate race (opens Winnipeg Free Press in a new tab)
Winnipeg Free Press — is Winnipeg Free Press biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Talarico wants to unearth Paxton's depositions to keep focus on opponent's past in Texas Senate race (opens KTBS in a new tab)
- Talarico wants to unearth Paxton's depositions to keep focus on opponent's past in Texas Senate race (opens WSLS in a new tab)
- Talarico wants to unearth Paxton's depositions to keep focus on opponent's past in Texas Senate race (opens Weatherford Democrat in a new tab)
Weatherford Democrat — is Weatherford Democrat biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Talarico wants to unearth Paxton's depositions to keep focus on opponent's past in Texas Senate race (opens The Northern Virginia Daily in a new tab)
The Northern Virginia Daily — is The Northern Virginia Daily biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Talarico wants to unearth Paxton's depositions to keep focus on opponent's past in Texas Senate race (opens Click on Detroit in a new tab)
Click on Detroit — is Click on Detroit biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Talarico wants to unearth Paxton's depositions to keep focus on opponent's past in Texas Senate race (opens WKMG in a new tab)
- Talarico wants to unearth Paxton's depositions to keep focus on opponent's past (opens Spectrum Local News in a new tab)
Spectrum Local News — is Spectrum Local News biased? Our profile of this outlet
Right
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Not rated
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