Spencer Pratt hit with nasty accusation by mayoral rival Nithya Raman

Nypost · May 12, 2026 · 359 words · By Zain Khan

Mayoral Election Rhetoric Political polarization

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What to know about Mayoral Election Rhetoric

Spencer Pratt hit with nasty accusation by mayoral rival Nithya Raman Far-left Los Angeles mayoral candidate Nithya Raman wildly accused opponent Spencer Pratt of pushing “fascism” as the former reality TV star gains ground in the race.

Claims checked 8

Techniques found 2

Topics 2

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left14%

Center72%

Right14%

7 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Why it matters

The socialist-linked Raman appeared on a podcast with progressive host Brian Tyler Cohen and compared Pratt to President Donald Trump while offering her take on who the independent candidate “really represents.” “I think that Spencer Pratt is tapping into a…

Common ground

“Otherwise, people will turn to fascism, to mini Trump, which is who I think Spencer Pratt really represents.” Pratt — who is a registered Republican but is running as an independent in the race — has seen a recent surge as he tries to unseat incumbent Mayor…

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Name Calling / Labeling: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Mayoral Election Rhetoric story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Pratt entered the race a year after his own home burned down in the Pacific Palisades Fire?
How does this story connect Mayoral Election Rhetoric with Political polarization over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/05/12/us-news/nithya-raman-criticizes-spencer-pratt-duri…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 2 propaganda techniques in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 90% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Name Calling / Labeling 80% confidence

Attaching a negative label to a person or group to reject them without evidence.

Why it matters: Recognizing name calling / labeling helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 8 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 3

verified Verified By Reference 3

info Single Source 2

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Claim 1: “Pratt entered the race a year after his own home burned down in the Pacific Palisades Fire”

CORROBORATED

Multiple cross-references (Nypost, Axios) confirm that Spencer Pratt's home in Pacific Palisades was destroyed in the January 2025 fire.

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cross reference SUPPORTS — his home in Pacific Palisades burned down in the January 2025 fire.
https://nypost.com/2026/05/07/opinion/spencer-pratt-gave-ang…

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cross reference SUPPORTS — Reality TV personality Spencer Pratt, who blames Bass and city leaders for the destruction of his Pacific Palisades home
https://www.axios.com/2026/05/08/california-election-democra…

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cross reference SUPPORTS — One ad shows Bass’s comfortable home, then Raman’s — and then a trailer on the ruins of what used to be his house in Pacific Palisades.
https://nypost.com/2026/05/06/opinion/spencer-pratt-clashes-…

+ 2 more evidence sources

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Claim 2: “the deadly LA wildfires in Janaury 2025”

CORROBORATED

Web search results confirm that deadly wildfires occurred in Los Angeles County in January 2025, specifically mentioning 10 fatalities and the Palisades Fire.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — A series of wildfires burned throughout the state of California during 2025. By the end of the year, a total of 8,036 fires had burned 525,223 acres (212,550 ha) across the state.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_California_wildfires

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web search NEUTRAL — LOS ANGELES — A year after twin infernos tore across opposite ends of Los Angeles County, the scars are still visible.A bus sits among burned out homes in Malibu, Calif., in January 2025, Mark J. Terr…
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/numbers-tell-story-los-…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The wildfires in Los Angeles County have resulted in 10 fatalities, the destruction of 10,000 buildings, and the evacuation of 180,000 people, causing up to $150 billion in damage. Five major fires ar…
https://phys.org/news/2025-01-los-angeles-wildfires-figures.…

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Claim 3: “Pratt — who is a registered Republican but is running as an independent in the race”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent web sources explicitly state that Spencer Pratt is a registered Republican running as an independent in the Los Angeles mayoral race.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 Los Angeles mayoral election will be held on June 2, 2026, to elect the mayor of Los Angeles, California. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote, a runoff election will be held on No…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Los_Angeles_mayoral_elect…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Spencer William Pratt (born August 14, 1983) is an American reality television personality and political candidate in the 2026 Los Angeles mayoral election. In 2007, he began dating Heidi Montag, a pr…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spencer_Pratt

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Stephanie Lynn Pratt (born April 11, 1986) is an American television personality. In 2007, she came to prominence after being cast in a supporting role on the reality television series The Hills. In 2…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephanie_Pratt

+ 3 more evidence sources

info

Claim 4: “Far-left Los Angeles mayoral candidate Nithya Raman wildly accused opponent Spencer Pratt of pushing “fascism””

SINGLE SOURCE

While web results confirm Nithya Raman and Spencer Pratt are candidates in the 2026 LA mayoral race and have had a 'fiery debate', there is no specific evidence in the provided results confirming that Raman accused Pratt of pushing 'fascism'.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2022 Los Angeles mayoral election was held on November 8, 2022, to elect the mayor of Los Angeles, California. A top-two primary was held on June 7, 2022. Candidates could win the election outrigh…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2022_Los_Angeles_mayoral_elect…

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+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 5: “The socialist-linked Raman appeared on a podcast with progressive host Brian Tyler Cohen”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of irrelevant links to a bank (ANZ) and Wikipedia pages for Chapo Trap House and Shakespeare. There is no mention of Nithya Raman appearing on a Brian Tyler Cohen podcast.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Guinness Book of Records lists 410 feature-length film and TV versions of William Shakespeare's plays, making Shakespeare the most filmed author ever in any language. As of November 2023, the Inte…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_William_Shakespeare_sc…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Chapo Trap House is an American politics and humor podcast hosted by Will Menaker, Matt Christman, Felix Biederman, and Amber A'Lee Frost, and is produced by Chris Wade. The podcast became known for i…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Chapo_Trap_House_episo…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Find us Find an ATM or Branch Help and guides Guides to banking with ANZ About ANZ About us and ANZ news Careers Investor information Economics and markets research
https://help.anz.co.nz/?source=post_page--------------------…

+ 2 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 6: “a big chunk of voters remain undecided ahead of the June 2 primary”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Wikipedia and multiple cross-references from Nypost confirm the Los Angeles mayoral primary is scheduled for June 2, 2026.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Los Angeles (LA) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Southern California. With an estimated 3.88 million residents within t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On June 6, 2025, protests began in Los Angeles after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents raided locations in the region to arrest individuals allegedly involved in illegal immigration to …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_2025_Los_Angeles_protests…

+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 7: “he tries to unseat incumbent Mayor Karen Bass”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Wikipedia and multiple cross-references explicitly identify Karen Bass as the incumbent Mayor of Los Angeles.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Karen Ruth Bass (; born October 3, 1953) is an American politician who has served as the 43rd mayor of Los Angeles since 2022. A member of the Democratic Party, Bass previously served in the U.S. Hous…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_Bass

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Mayor of Los Angeles is the head of the executive branch of the government of Los Angeles and the chief executive of Los Angeles. The office is officially nonpartisan, a change made in the 1909 ch…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayor_of_Los_Angeles

+ 5 more evidence sources

info

Claim 8: “The last Republican mayor of Los Angeles was Richard Riordan, who served two terms as the city’s 39th mayor from 1993 to 2001”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of general dictionary/etymology searches for the name 'Richard' and does not contain any information regarding Richard Riordan's tenure as mayor of Los Angeles.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Richard is cognate with variants of the name in other European languages, such as the Swedish "Rickard", the Portuguese and Spanish "Ricardo" and the Italian "Riccardo".
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Dec 23, 2025 · It was borne by three kings of England including the 12th-century Richard I the Lionheart, one of the leaders of the Third Crusade. During the late Middle Ages this name was typically a…
https://www.behindthename.com/name/richard

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Dec 13, 2025 · Learn about the name Richard including the meaning, gender, origin, popularity, and more.
https://momlovesbest.com/richard-name-meaning

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.