Labrynth이 48개 미국 관할권의 뉴스 보도를 모니터링하는 실시간 데이터 센터 미디어 감정 추적기를 출시했다.

As artificial intelligence infrastructure investment accelerates, Labrynth has introduced a new Data Center Media Sentiment tracker through its Red Tape Index. This live tool provides developers, hyperscalers, and investors with an hourly updated view of how data center projects are portrayed in the news across 48 U.S. jurisdictions. Unlike static reports, the tracker refreshes every hour to deliver a current assessment of the media landscape before capital commitments are made.

Initial data reveals a predominantly negative media environment, with unfavorable tone recorded in 45 of the 48 tracked jurisdictions. The national media sentiment score sits at minus 20 on a scale ranging from minus 100 to plus 100, calculated from approximately 4,500 news stories. According to Labrynth founder and CEO Stuart Lacey, the consistent nationwide negativity reflects a persistent pattern rather than a sudden shift. He stated, What this tells us is that the AI infrastructure race is no longer just about power, land and permitting. States can be technically ready for data center investment and still face a challenging media environment around development. That gap matters because major infrastructure projects do not move forward on readiness alone. Developers, investors and public officials need to understand how the conversation is evolving around them in real time.

Texas illustrates the divergence between operational readiness and media perception. While the state ranked number one in Labrynth’s inaugural 2026 Data Center Readiness Index, its media sentiment score during the measurement window was minus 21, based on more than 500 stories. Coverage breakdowns show community-related issues accounted for 31 percent of reporting, followed by energy at 24 percent, zoning at 22 percent, water at 8 percent, and taxes and jobs at 7 percent each. Labrynth emphasizes that the tracker measures press coverage tone rather than public opinion and does not factor into the Readiness Index composite score. It also operates independently from the index’s Community Opposition dimension, which tracks tangible resistance and government moratoriums. Lacey clarified, Media tone is not the same thing as formal opposition, and neither is the same thing as infrastructure readiness. Each tells you something different. When you can see those signals separately, you get a more complete picture of the environment surrounding a major infrastructure decision.

The variation in coverage underscores that media sentiment fluctuates by state, project, and issue area, including community impact, energy demand, zoning, water, taxes, and jobs. The national score remained largely stable throughout the tracking period, reinforcing that negative coverage is widespread and simultaneous with ongoing efforts to expand AI infrastructure. Lacey added, The important signal is not that sentiment changed overnight. It is that negative coverage is appearing across nearly the entire national map at the same time the United States is working to expand the infrastructure required for AI. Understanding that environment earlier can help developers, investors and public officials make better-informed decisions. The accompanying Data Center Readiness Index, launched earlier in 2026, benchmarks fifty states across nine critical deployment dimensions such as energy supply, grid reliability, interconnection, natural disaster risk, water supply, workforce, economic climate, permitting friction, and community opposition. Following Texas, the top-ranked states were Oregon, Illinois, and Florida. The Media Sentiment tracker is available free to the public at redtapeindex.com/united-states/data-centers/media-sentiment. Labrynth designs, builds, deploys, and runs AI services that turn regulatory complexity into a competitive advantage for mid-market companies and regulated enterprises, with more information available at www.labrynth.ai.