Undercover Videos Released on James Talarico Before Midterms
O'Keefe Media Group published 'Talarico Tapes' alleging moderate messaging is a campaign strategy.
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Undercover Videos Released on James Talarico Before Midterms
Photograph: The Gateway Pundit (embedded from source)
What this story says
- The O'Keefe Media Group released undercover videos titled 'Talarico Tapes' on November 7, 2026, the day before the midterm elections.
- The videos feature Williamson County Democratic Chair Kim Collins Gilby and Matt Menard, identified as Talarico's girlfriend's father, discussing James Talarico's political positions.
- Gilby and Menard stated Talarico holds progressive views and that his moderate messaging is a strategy to appeal to Texas voters.
- As of Monday, neither Talarico's campaign nor the Texas Democratic Party had issued a response to the released videos.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 7 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 1 of the 8 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
68/100
Craft
95/100
Hype
30/100
8 sources · methodology
Thin on the left so far
None of the 7 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated left.
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.
The O'Keefe Media Group released a series of undercover videos on November 7, 2026, the day before the midterm elections. Titled 'Talarico Tapes,' the videos feature individuals discussing the political positions of James Talarico, a candidate in the U.S. Senate election. Among those featured are Williamson County Democratic Chair Kim Collins Gilby and Matt Menard, identified as the father of Talarico's girlfriend.
According to statements attributed to Gilby and Menard in the videos, Talarico holds progressive views that differ from his public messaging. They suggested his moderate stance on issues such as border security, immigration, and transgender surgeries for minors is a strategic approach to appeal to Texas voters. Menard stated Talarico is 'not going middle' and is 'very liberal,' while Gilby indicated his public comments were an attempt to appear more centrist. A regional organizer also mentioned Talarico portraying himself as moderate on issues like abortion to appeal to voters while privately holding more progressive positions.
The O'Keefe Media Group stated that Matt Menard, who claims to communicate with Talarico weekly, insisted Talarico remains a progressive and opposes ICE's immigration enforcement tactics. Menard also reportedly warned against placing too much emphasis on Talarico's public remarks regarding border security. As of Monday, November 8, 2026, neither James Talarico's campaign nor the Texas Democratic Party had publicly responded to the released videos.
Coverage disagreements
The Gateway Pundit and WND, both rated right, attributed statements about Talarico's progressive positions and moderate messaging strategy to Williamson County Democratic Chair Kim Collins Gilby and Talarico's girlfriend's father, Matt Menard. The Beltway Report, also rated right, stated that a Williamson County Democratic chair and others close to Talarico described his moderate public positions as a campaign strategy. Louder With Crowder, rated right, reported that Talarico's girlfriend's father admitted James Talarico is lying about being moderate to get elected. The Post Millennial, rated right, stated that Talarico's staff and girlfriend's family admitted he is not moderate and backs open borders. RedState, rated right, reported that undercover tapes caught Talarico's inner circle admitting his moderate act is a political strategy.
What the coverage left out
None of the right-rated reports below mention the specific date of the midterm elections, only that the videos were released one day prior. The reports also do not include any direct quotes from James Talarico himself, nor do they detail the specific progressive positions Talarico allegedly holds beyond general categories like border security, immigration, and abortion. The full reports from The Gateway Pundit and WND, both by Cristina Laila, are identical in their presentation of the information and quotes, suggesting a shared source or syndication.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 5 times, most recently on 3 Nov 2026, 02:15, 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
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated left has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Centre
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated centre has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Right
7 rated outlets
- The right-rated reports focused on the release of the 'Talarico Tapes' by the O'Keefe Media Group the day before the midterm elections. They highlighted claims made by individuals identified as Williamson County Democratic Chair Kim Collins Gilby and Talarico's girlfriend's father, Matt Menard. These reports emphasised that Talarico's moderate public messaging was presented as a campaign strategy to win over voters, while he privately holds progressive positions on issues including border security, immigration, and abortion. Headlines and opening paragraphs in these reports frequently used phrases such as 'exposed,' 'admitting,' 'lying,' 'faking,' and 'concealing' to describe Talarico's public persona versus his alleged private views.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Undercover Videos Released on James Talarico Before Midterms?
- Of the 7 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 0% are rated left, 0% are rated centre, 100% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 8. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Undercover Videos Released on James Talarico Before Midterms left or right?
- Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 7 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
- Is the coverage of Undercover Videos Released on James Talarico Before Midterms biased?
- Undercover Videos Released on James Talarico Before Midterms is one event reported by 8 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 Undercover Videos Released on James Talarico Before Midterms?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated left 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 Undercover Videos Released on James Talarico Before Midterms?
- 8 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 are the 'Talarico Tapes'?
- The 'Talarico Tapes' are undercover videos released by the O'Keefe Media Group on November 7, 2026. The videos feature individuals, including a county Democratic chair and a relative of James Talarico's girlfriend, who claim Talarico's moderate public messaging is a campaign strategy and that he privately holds progressive views.
- Who is quoted in the 'Talarico Tapes' videos?
- The videos feature statements attributed to Williamson County Democratic Chair Kim Collins Gilby and Matt Menard, identified as the father of James Talarico's girlfriend. They discuss Talarico's political positions and campaign strategies.
- What is the main allegation in the 'Talarico Tapes'?
- The main allegation is that James Talarico's moderate public stance on issues like border security and abortion is a strategic campaign tactic to appeal to Texas voters, while he privately holds more progressive views.
- Has James Talarico's campaign responded to the videos?
- As of Monday, November 8, 2026, neither James Talarico's campaign nor the Texas Democratic Party had issued a public response to the 'Talarico Tapes' released by the O'Keefe Media Group.
Read it at the source
8 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
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Centre
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Right
7- James Talarico’s Girlfriend’s Dady Exposed Admitting James Is Lying About Being Moderate To Get Elected (opens Louder With Crowder in a new tab)
Louder With Crowder — is Louder With Crowder biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Undercover Videos Target Talarico’s Border and Abortion Messaging Day Before Election (opens The Beltway Report in a new tab)
The Beltway Report — is The Beltway Report biased? Our profile of this outlet
- More receipts: New undercover videos confirm James Talarico is faking ‘moderate’ positions * WorldNetDaily * by Cristina Laila, The Gateway Pundit (opens WND in a new tab)
- James O’Keefe Releases ‘Talarico Tapes’ Alleging Texas Democrat Is Concealing Progressive Positions Ahead of Senate Election (opens [your]NEWS in a new tab)
[your]NEWS — is [your]NEWS biased? Our profile of this outlet
- BREAKING: O’Keefe Media Group Drops Talarico Tapes One Day Before Midterm Elections * The Gateway Pundit * by Cristina Laila (opens The Gateway Pundit in a new tab)
The Gateway Pundit — is The Gateway Pundit biased? Our profile of this outlet
- REVEALED: Talarico's staff, girlfriend's family admit he is 'not moderate,' backs open borders, full amnesty: OMG (opens The Post Millennial in a new tab)
The Post Millennial — is The Post Millennial biased? Our profile of this outlet
- 'He's Not Going Moderate': Undercover Tapes Catch Talarico's Inner Circle Admitting 'Moderate' Act (opens RedState in a new tab)
Not rated
1How 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.
![US President Donald leaves after delivering a speech marking the end of the midterm election campaign, in Washington, DC, on November 2, 2026 [AFP]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/afp_6ae9074a7e41-1793656650.jpg?resize=1920%2C1440)
