Madeline Soto, a 13-year-old girl from Kissimmee, Florida went missing on February 26th. The last known sighting of Madeline was on her way to school at Hunter's Creek Middle School in Orlando.
Search teams from the Osceola County Sheriff's Office located Madeline’s body at around 4:30 p.m. in a wooded area off Hickory Tree Road.
The Orange County Sheriff's Office announced that they were confident Soto was dead less than a week after she went missing.
On February 26th, a missing person investigation was launched for Madeline Soto, a 13-year-old girl from Kissimmee, Florida. The last known sighting of Madeline was on her way to school at Hunter's Creek Middle School in Orlando. However, the Orange County Sheriff's Office announced that they were "confident" Soto was dead less than a week after she went missing.
On Friday, March 1st, search teams from the Osceola County Sheriff's Office located Madeline's body at around 4:30 p.m. in a wooded area off Hickory Tree Road.
Stephan Sterns, the boyfriend of Madeline’s mother Jenn Soto, has been named as a prime suspect in her disappearance and is currently being held at the Osceola County jail on unrelated capital sexual battery charges.
The body of missing Florida teen Madeline Soto has been found.
, The last person to see her was Stephan Sterns, who is now in custody for sexual battery and possession of child sexual abuse material.
Authorities found disturbing images on his phone that were criminal and sexual in nature.
Accuracy
The last person to see her was Stephan Sterns
Madeline never made it to school that day and investigators believe she was already dead before Stephan Sterns moved her body in the early morning hours of February 26th.
Detectives determined that Madeline was never dropped off by Stephan Sterns, but instead believe she was already dead when he moved her body in the early morning hours on February 26th.
Deception
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several fallacies. The first is an appeal to authority when the sheriff says that investigators are now confident Soto was dead. This statement implies that the sheriff has some sort of knowledge or evidence about her death, but it's not clear what this information is based on.
The body of missing Florida teen Madeline Soto has been found, the Orange County Sheriff’s office said on Friday in a statement. Osceola County Sheriff’s Office search teams located the 13-year-old’s body at 4:30 p.m. local time off Hickory Tree Road in a wooded area.
Sheriff John Mina announces missing Florida teen Madeline Soto’s body has been found.
Bias
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (0%)
The author of the article has multiple conflicts of interest on several topics related to the missing Florida teen Madeline Soto. The Orange County Sheriff's office and Osceola County Sheriff's Office search teams are involved in the case, which could compromise their ability to act objectively and impartially. Additionally, Cara Tabachnick is a reporter for CBS News, which has its own financial ties with companies that may be affected by the events surrounding Madeline Soto's disappearance.
The article mentions the Orange County Sheriff's office as being involved in the search for Madeline Soto. This could create a conflict of interest if they have any personal or professional ties to her family, friends, or other individuals related to the case.
Author
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
The author of this article may have a conflict of interest with the Osceola County Sheriff's Office and the Orange County Sheriff's Office, as they are both involved in the search for missing Florida teen Madeline Soto. The author does not disclose any potential conflicts of interest in their reporting.
`Sherrif John Mina said that a body was found near Hickory Tree Road on Monday afternoon and positively identified as Soto after an autopsy Tuesday morning confirmed her identity.
'We are heartbroken for the family of Madeline Soto, who has been missing since February 18,' Mina said in a statement. 'Our thoughts and prayers go out to them during this difficult time.'
The sheriff did not disclose any details about how or where the body was found.
'We will continue our investigation into her death, but we are no longer considering Madeline as missing,' Mina said. 'Our search for answers continues and we ask that anyone with information regarding this case contact us.'
The body of Madeline was found by search teams from the Osceola County Sheriff's Office at around 4:30 p.m. local time on Friday.
Stephan Sterns has been named a prime suspect in Madeline's disappearance and is currently being held at the Osceola County jail on unrelated capital sexual battery charges.
Accuracy
No Contradictions at Time
Of
Publication
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the title of the article implies that Madeline Soto's body has been found when it hasn't yet been confirmed by authorities. Secondly, the author states that they are confident that Madeline was dead less than a week after she went missing without providing any evidence to support this claim. Thirdly, there is no mention of any other suspects in the case besides Stephan Sterns, which could be misleading as it implies he is solely responsible for her disappearance.
The title of the article implies that Madeline's body has been found when it hasn't yet been confirmed by authorities. This statement is deceptive because there have not been any official confirmations made about the discovery of her body.
Fallacies
(80%)
The article contains several logical fallacies. The author uses an appeal to authority by stating that the Orange County Sheriff's Office is confident that Madeline Soto was dead less than a week after she went missing. This statement implies that the sheriff's office has evidence or knowledge of her death, but it is not clear what this evidence or knowledge is. The author also uses inflammatory rhetoric by stating that Stephan Sterns moved Madeline's body in the early morning hours on February 26th and calling him a prime suspect. This statement implies that Sterns has been implicated in her death, but it is not clear what evidence or knowledge led to this conclusion. The author also uses an informal fallacy by stating that
Bias
(85%)
The article contains a statement that Madeline Soto was already dead at the time Stephan Sterns moved her body. This is an example of ideological bias as it implies that there are only two sides to this story: either Madeline is alive or she's dead. The author does not provide any evidence to support their claim, and therefore it can be considered a biased statement.
Madeline Soto was already dead at the time Stephan Sterns moved her body.
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
The author of the article has a conflict of interest with Stephan Sterns as he is named as the main suspect in the homicide investigation. The author also has a personal relationship with Madeline Soto's mother and may have been influenced by her emotions.
Author
Conflicts
Of
Interest (0%)
The author has a conflict of interest on the topic of missing person and homicide investigation as they are reporting on Madeline Soto's case. The article also mentions Stephan Sterns who is likely to be involved in the investigation.
A teenage girl named Madeline Soto went missing in central Florida earlier this week.
Stephan Sterns, the boyfriend of Madeline's mother is the primary suspect in her disappearance.
Sterns was last seen with Madeline alive on Monday morning and video evidence shows him discarding items in a trash bin at their apartment complex early that day.
Madeline's backpack was found later in the same bin.
Video also shows Sterns returning to the complex with Madeline visible in the car, but detectives believe she was already dead.
Sterns has been arrested and charged with sexual battery and possession of child sexual abuse material.
Accuracy
Stephan Sterns is the primary suspect in Madeline Soto's disappearance.
Madeline was last seen alive with Stephan Sterns on Monday morning and video evidence shows him discarding items in a trash bin at their apartment complex early that day.
Video also shows Stephan returning to the complex with Madeline visible in the car, but detectives believe she was already dead.
Stephan Sterns has been arrested and charged with sexual battery and possession of child sexual abuse material.
Investigators discovered abusive images and videos on his phone when they forensically examined it.
Deception
(80%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the author uses sensationalism by stating that Madeline Soto is likely dead without providing any evidence to support this claim. Secondly, the author implies that Stephan Sterns has committed sexual crimes against Madeline when there is no concrete proof of such an act. Thirdly, the article misrepresents a statement made by Orange County Sheriff John Mina as fact when it was actually speculation.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several fallacies. The first is an appeal to authority when the sheriff says that Stephan Sterns, the boyfriend of Madeline's mother, is the primary suspect in her disappearance. This statement should be qualified with evidence and not taken as fact without any supporting information.
Stephan Sterns, 37, was the last person to see Madeline alive Monday morning
Video evidence shows Sterns discarding items in a trash bin at the family's Kissimmee apartment complex early Monday morning
Detectives believe sexual crimes were committed at the family’s home
Bias
(85%)
The article contains a clear example of religious bias. The author uses the phrase 'primary suspect' which implies that Sterns is guilty and has committed sexual crimes against Madeline. This language is not neutral and could be seen as inflammatory.
> A teenage girl who went missing in central Florida earlier this week is likely dead, though her body hasn’t been recovered, investigators said Friday. <br> Orange County Sheriff John Mina said the boyfriend of 13-year-old Madeline Soto’s mother is the primary suspect in the girl’s disappearance.
The sheriff's office said that search teams located her body at about 4:30 p.m.
Detectives determined that Madeline was never dropped off by Stephan Sterns
Authorities found disturbing images on his phone that were criminal and sexual in nature.
Accuracy
Madeline was never dropped off by Stephan Sterns, the mother's boyfriend.
Detectives determined that Madeline was already dead when she moved her body in the early morning hours on February 26th.
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, it states that Madeline Soto was last seen on her way to school but later detectives determined she was never dropped off by Stephan Sterns. This implies that the author of the article knew this information at the time they wrote it and therefore intentionally misled their readers with false information. Secondly, when discussing evidence found in a dumpster, such as Madeline's backpack and laptop, it is not clear if these items were planted or tampered with to make them appear incriminating against Stephan Sterns. Lastly, the article uses sensationalist language by stating that detectives believe Madeline was already dead at the time Stephan Sterns moved her body.
The sentence 'Madeline was last seen on her way to school' is deceptive as it implies she was alive when in fact detectives determined she had been killed before being moved by Stephan Sterns.
The use of the phrase 'detectives believe Madeline was already dead at the time Stephan Sterns moved her body' is sensationalist and misleading.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several fallacies. The first is an appeal to authority when it states that the Orange County Sheriff's Office announced the news of Madeline Soto's death and that they were confident she was dead. This statement implies that their word should be taken as fact without any evidence presented, which is a form of logical fallacy.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office announced the news hours after sharing during a press conference on Friday that they were ‘confident’ Soto was dead.
Bias
(85%)
The article contains a statement that the sheriff's office believes Madeline Soto was already dead at the time Stephan Sterns moved her body. This is an example of bias because it implies that there is no doubt in their minds about what happened and they are not open to considering alternative explanations or evidence.
The sheriff's office believes Madeline Soto was already dead at the time Stephan Sterns moved her body.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2)/Madeline-Soto280-03012024-f39dd76e7efc40759cee7384602505b6.jpg)
