The AllSides Media Bias Chart™ makes bias transparent so you can get the full picture, avoid manipulation and misinformation, and think for yourself.
The bias chart is based on over 2,400 AllSides Media Bias Ratings that inform our balanced newsfeed and are powered by people like you. We rate bias by balancing input from thousands of everyday Americans across the political spectrum and a politically balanced panel of experts.
Everyone is biased, but hidden bias misleads and divides us. AllSides makes bias transparent so you can easily identify and consume different perspectives.
The AllSides Fact Check Bias Chart™
The AllSides News Aggregator Bias Chart™
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We don't rate accuracy or credibility, because we're not a Ministry of Truth. A publication can be accurate yet still biased.
Why is The AllSides Media Bias Chart™ the Most Trustworthy Source of Bias Ratings?
- Robust Methodology: We balance the input of experts and ordinary people across the political spectrum so our ratings reveal the average judgment of all Americans, not one elite group. Whether you're a news expert or a novice, politically left, center, or right, we value your perspective. We have a patent on rating bias and use multiple methods, not an algorithm. We use Blind Bias Surveys of Americans, Editorial Reviews by a politically balanced panel of experts trained to look for common types of media bias, independent reviews, and — rarely — third party data from universities and researchers.
- Transparent Methodology: We tell you exactly how we arrived at the bias rating for each outlet and where exactly we saw bias. Search for any media outlet here.
- Precise Ratings: We offer separate bias ratings for the news and opinion sections of some outlets, if they differ, and provide a Bias Meter Rating for more precision.
- Legacy Expertise: We started rating media bias back in 2012.
Frequently Asked Questions
about the AllSides Media Bias Chart
- How Does AllSides Rate Media Bias?
- Why Does the Bias of a Media Outlet Matter?
- Can I Help AllSides Rate Bias?
- How Does AllSides Decide Which Media Outlets to Include on the Chart?
- Which Media Outlets Does AllSides Recommend?
- What Do the Bias Ratings Mean?
- Should I Only Read Outlets Rated Center?
- Why Are Some Media Outlets On The Chart Twice?
- Does AllSides Rate Which Outlets Are Most Factual or Accurate?
- Where Can I See Past Versions of the Chart?
- Where Can I See More Ratings?
- Can AllSides Rate My News Publication?
- I Disagree With Your Media Bias Ratings. Where Can I Give You Feedback?
How Does AllSides Rate Media Bias?
AllSides Media Bias Ratings™ reflect the average judgment of all Americans, not just a panel of insiders. We balance the input of experts and ordinary people across the political spectrum so that our bias ratings reveal the average judgment of all Americans, not one elite group. We use multi-partisan Editorial Reviews by a panel of experts trained to spot bias and Blind Bias Surveys in which participants rate content without knowing the source. We also rely on independent reviews by AllSides reviewers and sometimes, third party data from universities or other researchers.
Can I Help AllSides Rate Bias?
Yes! Our bias ratings are powered by people like you. Sign up to receive Blind Bias Surveys here. We'll send you occasional newsletters inviting you to help us rate media bias.
Why Does the Bias of a Media Outlet Matter?
News media, social media, and search engines have become so biased, politicized, and personalized that we are often stuck inside filter bubbles, where we’re only exposed to information and ideas we already agree with. When bias is hidden and we see only facts, information, and opinions that confirm our existing beliefs, a number of negative things happen: 1) we become extremely polarized as a nation, and misunderstand or hate the "the other side," believing they are extreme, hateful, or evil; 2) we become more likely to be manipulated into thinking, voting, or behaving a certain way; 3) we become limited in our ability to understand others, problem solve and compromise; 4) we become unable to find the truth.
Our bias ratings power our balanced news so you can get a broader view, spot bias, and find the truth.
News outlets have an incentive to be partisan — it helps them to earn ad revenue, especially if they use sensationalism and clickbait. But when we stay inside a filter bubble, we may miss important ideas and perspectives from the other side. The mission of AllSides is to free people from filter bubbles so they can better understand the world — and each other. Making media bias transparent helps us to avoid being manipulated. It improves our country long-term, helping us to understand one another, solve problems, know the truth, and make better decisions.
How Does AllSides Decide Which Media Outlets to Include on the Chart?
Which outlets go on the chart is ultimately up to AllSides' editorial discretion. However, we consider multiple factors when deciding which outlets go on the bias chart, and a team of left, center, and right bias reviewers always give collective input on what decisions we make. Some of the criteria we use when deciding includes:
- Whether the source is relevant nationally. Local news outlets are not included unless they are clearly nationally relevant or cover national news in a prominent way (examples: The New York Times, The Washington Post).
- How much web traffic the source gets. We typically look at Similarweb to determine this (and in the past, Pew Research Center). Well-trafficked outlets are prioritized, but that doesn't preclude lower-traffic outlets from being included if they meet other criteria. In addition, a highly trafficked outlet may not be included if it is overly sensationalist, tabloid-esque, or does not cover U.S. political news prominently.
- How many searches for the bias of that outlet lead people to AllSides.com. How curious are people about this outlet? If a lot of people search for the outlet's bias, it may signal it's worth including in the chart.
- Whether the outlet represents a particular political perspective or ideology. For example, Jacobin magazine is included because it represents socialist thought, while Reason magazine is included because it represents libertarian thought.
- Whether the outlet is a destination site for its political news and/or breaking news specifically. Vogue, for instance, is not included because it is not a destination site for political news, but is primarily a fashion magazine. Likewise People magazine and Rolling Stone. While these outlets do cover politics, it’s not what they are primarily known for or relied upon for, so they are not included.
- Whether AllSides has reviewed that outlet via a Media Bias Audit. Some outlets on the chart have commissioned AllSides for a formal bias audit, or multiple bias audits, such as Straight Arrow News. These outlets may be included because a bias audit is a very in-depth look at bias and makes us quite confident in their rating. However, undergoing a formal bias audit does not guarantee inclusion on the chart. No one can pay AllSides to be placed on the chart. If AllSides has a strong working relationship with that outlet, they may be considered for inclusion.
Which Media Outlets Does AllSides Recommend?
We believe in getting a broad, balanced news diet and reading outlets across the political spectrum. Reading horizontally across the bias chart is key. The problem with relying on only one outlet, even if we rate it Center, is that you may still miss important perspectives from both ends of the political spectrum.
However, AllSides does recommend outlets that are marked as Certified Balanced by AllSides, which you can see indicated on an outlet's individual source page (click any outlet on the chart to see if it's Balance Certified.) AllSides Balance Certification™ is awarded to exemplary news media outlets and signifies that an AllSides Media Bias Audit™ of a news source found it provides news reporting that is substantially free from partisan political bias or equally balances left, center, and right perspectives. We do not recommend reading only Center-rated outlets or only Balance Certified outlets.
AllSides Balance Certification is awarded to outlets that either:
- equally display a variety of perspectives on the left, center, and right or
- don’t show a lot of bias or political leanings in news reporting (This doesn’t mean the source is totally unbiased, just that it’s not displaying clear leanings.)
Not all Center-rated sources are Certified Balanced, but all Certified Balanced Sources are Center-rated. AllSides Balance Certification represents a higher standard that is more difficult to achieve.
What Do the Bias Ratings Mean?
These are subjective judgements made by AllSides and people across the country. Learn our rough approximation for what the media bias ratings mean:
Left - Lean Left - Center - Lean Right - Right
We also acknowledge that our left-to-right bias scale can't capture all political nuance. Learn about 14 types of ideological bias our scale doesn't capture here.
Should I Only Read Outlets Rated Center?
No — Center doesn't necessarily mean better! We are strong believers in consuming a balanced news diet of left, center, and right media. It is important to read horizontally across the bias chart (Use our balanced newsfeed to help you get a broad view.) While many Center outlets do a great job of being balanced and/or objective, a Center rating does not indicate perfection. Just as Left and Right outlets are not necessarily extreme, wrong, or unreasonable, Center outlets are not necessarily totally unbiased, fair, or reasonable.
A Center bias rating can mean a number of things:
- The source or writer does not predictably show conservative or liberal bias.
- The outlet does a good job of being balanced and objective.
- The outlet is largely objective, but omits important perspectives or runs individual articles that display bias on either side.
- The outlet doesn't pick political sides, but shows sensationalism.
Center outlets can be difficult to determine, and there is rarely a perfect Center outlet: some of our outlets rated Center are actually Center-Left or Center-Right, something we clarify on individual source pages. Always check a source's AllSides Bias Meter rating to see the nuance.
Why Are Some Media Outlets On The Chart Twice?
We sometimes provide separate media bias ratings for a source’s news content and its opinion content. This is because some outlets display a notable difference in bias between their news and opinion sections.
When rating an opinion page, AllSides takes into account the outlet's editorial board and its individual opinion page writers. The editorial board’s bias is weighted, and affects the final bias rating by about 60%.
Does AllSides Rate Which Outlets Are Most Factual or Accurate?
AllSides does not rate outlets based on accuracy. We rate perspective only.
We don't rate accuracy because we aren't a Ministry of Truth. The left and right often strongly disagree on what is truth and what is fiction. Read more about why AllSides doesn't rate accuracy.
We disagree with the idea that the more left or right an outlet is, the less credibility it necessarily has. There’s nothing wrong with having bias or an opinion, but hidden bias misleads and divides us. Just because an outlet is credible doesn’t mean it isn’t biased; likewise, just because an outlet is biased doesn’t mean it isn’t credible.
That being said, we do highlight and explore claims of misinformation — check out our Misinformation page and Misinformation Watch blogs.
Where Can I See Past Versions of the Chart?
Learn more about past versions of the chart on our blog:
- Version 10.1
- Version 10
- Version 9.2
- Version 9.1
- Version 9
- Version 8
- Version 7.2
- Version 7.1
- Version 7
- Version 6
- Version 5.1
- Version 5
- Version 4
- Version 3
- Version 2
- Version 1.1
- Version 1
Where Can I See More Ratings?
Visit the AllSides Media Bias Ratings™ page and search for any outlet.
Visit our company FAQ for more information about AllSides.
Can AllSides Rate My News Publication?
Absolutely. Please visit our services page to learn more about AllSides Media Bias Audits™ for newsrooms, or contact us.
I Disagree With Your Media Bias Ratings. Where Can I Give You Feedback?
You can vote on whether or not you agree with media bias ratings, contact us, or sign up to participate in our next Blind Bias Survey.