By John David Van Hove, Editor

Here are some facts about the mainstream media: ownership, founders, leadership, circulation and their particular political bias. These news sources are listed in our order of preference.

The Wall Street Journal

• Founded in 1889 by journalists, Charles Dow, Edward Jones & Charles Bergstresser who established Dow Jones & Company which led to the founding of the newspaper
• Owned by News Corp & Rupert Murdoch; Bought for 5b; Also owns Dow Jones & Co
• Circulation: 2.8m
• Conservative in bias, but uses minimally loaded words in headlines
• Owns Medford & Ashland Tidings
• Media Bias Fact Check rates the Wall Street Journal Right-Center biased due to low biased news reporting in combination with a strongly right biased editorial stance. We also rate them Mostly Factual in reporting rather than High, due to anti-climate, anti-science stances and occasional misleading editorials. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/wall-street-journal/ 

Bloomberg News

• Owned by Michael R. Bloomberg, Bloomberg LP
• Former Editor of The Economist, John Micklethwait is the Editor-in-Chief
• Involved in the C40 Climate Leadership Group
• Media Bias Fact Check rates Bloomberg Left-Center biased due to story selection that slightly favors the left. We also rate them Mostly Factual in reporting, rather than High, due to not covering Michael Bloomberg and his Democratic Presidential rivals during the primaries. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/bloomberg/

Forbes

• Founded in 1917 by B.C. Forbes and his partner Walter Drey
• Chairman & Editor-in-Chief Steve Forbes
• CEO is Mike Federie
• In 2014 a Hong Kong based investor group purchased a majority stake in Forbes Media
• Forbes coverage of China has been criticize due to Chinese ownership
• Published controversial articles by Dinesh
• Media Bias Fact Check rates Forbes Right-Center biased based on story selection that tends to favor the right and the political affiliation of its ownership. We also rate them Mostly Factual in reporting, rather than High due to some misleading or false stories related to climate science. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/forbes/

The Epoch Times

• Owned by the Epoch Media Group which also owns NTD
• Non-Profit 501 (c)3
• First Published in NY in 2000.
• Founded by John Tang and Chinese-American Falun Gong practitioners
• Publishes in 21 languages in 35 countries
• When reporting on China they do reflect a strong anti-communism bias
• Strong Pro-Trump bias
• Media Bias Fact Check listed as false an article entitled “Did China’s Communist government create the novel coronavirus in a laboratory and release it into the world as a deadly bioweapon (Note: LIF tends to agree with The Epoch Times on this matter)
• Media Bias Fact Check rates The Epoch Times borderline Questionable and Right Biased based on editorial positions that consistently favor the right. We also rate them factually Mixed due to the publication of pseudoscience and the promotion of pro-Trump propaganda and conspiracy theories as well as failed fact checks. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-epoch-times/ 

The Hill

• Owned by News Communications, published by Capitol Hill Publishing
• Published in Washington DC since 1994
• Features editorial commentaries that provide a reasonably balanced group of columnist
• Media Bias Fact Check rates The Hill Least Biased based on editorial positions that are currently balanced and news reporting that is low biased. We also rate them Mostly Factual in reporting, rather than High, due to previous opinion columns promoting unproven claims. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-hill

Roll Call

• Owned by FiscalNote
• Founded in 1955 reporting news of legislative and political maneuverings on Capitol Hill
• Merged with Congressional Quarterly in 2009
• Media Bias Fact Check rates Roll Call Least Biased based on straightforward, factually based news reporting. We also rate them Very-High for factual reporting due to strong sourcing and a clean fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/roll-call/

Business Insider

• Owned by German Publishing House of Bold, Die Welt and Fakt,  Axel Springer acquired Business Insider for $442m
• Media Bias Fact Check rates Business Insider Left-Center Biased based on story selection that leans left and High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a reasonable fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/business-insider/

Fox News Channel

• Owned by Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of 21st Century Fox; also owns National Geographic both the U.S. and international versions)
• Fox News began in 1996; $2.7b year revenue
• Fox News is available in 90 million homes
• Ranks 1st with 2.5m viewers; Fox News Channel best show
• Fox News as network for the unrepresented, for outsiders, in direct competition with CNN
• Fox News Rise due to Roger Ailes, CEO
• Fox News Bill O’Reilly & Ailes ousted for sexual harassment charges; Megyn Kelly left
• Fox News Anchors like Tucker Carlson & Sean Hannity lead the way calling CNN “fake news”
• Fox News Lachlan Murdoch, CEO looking at a future beyond Trump (since Rupert Murdoch retired)
• Fox News attacked all media that didn’t have a right-wing basis
• Fox News more propaganda; a mouthpiece for Trump
• Fox News & White House revolving door with more than twenty people (John Bolton was a Fox News contributor BEFORE becoming Trump’s National Security Advisor)
• Fox News Trump identity crisis; Fox poll said 51% of viewers wanted him impeached
• Fox News 18 times Trump criticized Fox News
• Fox News sick of being attacked by Trump
• Fox News not producing unbiased coverage
• Media Bias Fact Check rates Fox News strongly Right-Biased due to editorial positions and story selection that favors the right. We also rate them Mixed factually and borderline Questionable based on poor sourcing and the spreading of conspiracy theories that later must be retracted after being widely shared. Further, Fox News would be rated a Questionable source based on numerous failed fact checks by hosts and pundits, however straight news reporting is generally reliable, therefore we rate them Mixed for factual reporting. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/fox-news/

New York Post

• Founded in 1801 by Alexander Hamilton (One of the Founding Fathers of the United States), the New York Post (NY Post) is a daily tabloid newspaper from New York City. According to an article published by the NY Times, titled “THE NEW YORK POST HAS A LONG HISTORY”, they describe how under Hamilton’s ownership the paper covered “shipping news, engaged in political crusades even if it meant the loss of advertising revenue
• Later owners were Poet William Cullen Bryant who kept the NY Post for 50 years, followed by railroad magnate Henry Villard (1878), Oswald Garrison Villard (1917), Thomas W. Lamond, and Cyrus H. K. Curtis (1920). Under Curtis’ ownership the NY Post followed a conservative editorial policy until 1936.
• When David J.Stern acquired the paper in 1936, they became editorially more liberal. Dorothy Schiff bought the New York Post in 1939, which she controlled until 1976, and under her ownership, The Post was liberal as it supported the civil rights movement and opposed the Vietnam War. In 1942, Theodore Thackrey became editor and The Post switched from a broadsheet paper to a tabloid.
• In 1976, Rupert Murdoch, the owner of News Corp, acquired The New York Post and in 1988, Murdoch sold the paper to Real estate developer Peter S. Kalikow. When Kalikow lost the paper to bankruptcy in 1993, Rupert Murdoch once again purchased the paper and continues to own it today. Since Murdoch took over the paper, The Post has been known for their over-the-top sensational headlines.
• Overall we rate the New York Post on the far end of Right-Center Biased due to story selection that typically favors the Right and Mixed (borderline questionable) for factual reporting based on several failed fact checks. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/new-york-post/

Trending Politics

• Founded in 2019 & Co-Owned by A. Ferretti, R. Nosbish, Jack Murphy and Clayton Keirns
• Pro-Trump bias to balance the Left’s negative reporting
• Media Bias Fact Checks rates Trending Politics a borderline Questionable, Right Biased source based on story selection and editorial positions that routinely favor the right. We also rate them Mixed for factual reporting due to use of poor sources, occasional promotion of conspiracy theories and a failed fact check. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/trending-politics/ 

Daily Caller

• Founded in 2010 by Tucker Carlson, a libertarian political pundit and Neil Patel, former advisor to VP Dick Cheney
• 30m page views per month
• Publishes controversial science articles
• Media Bias Fact Check rates the Daily Caller strongly right biased based on story selection that almost always favors the right and Mixed for factual reporting due to numerous failed fact checks. The Daily Caller is a source that needs to be fact checked on a per article basis. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/daily-caller/ 

Washington Post

• WAPO began in 1887
• Circulation: 1m daily via digital
• WAPO is owned by Jeff Bezos who paid $250m via Nash Holdings LLC cash; He also owns Amazon.com & Blue Origin
• Didn’t buy as an investment, but had an important role to play in democracy
• Doubled its web traffic and became profitable within 3 years
• Newsroom of 900 people operate with full independence says Bezos
• Media Bias Fact Check rates The Washington Post Left-Center biased based on editorial positions that moderately favors the left and factually High due to the use of proper sources and a reasonable fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/washington-post/

Politico

• Owned by Capitol News Company, Robert L. Allbritton, Publisher & Executive Chairman
• Founded by two former Washington Post journalists, John F. Harris and Jim VandeHei.
• Media Bias Fact Check rates Politico Least Biased based on balanced coverage of news stories and High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a clean fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/politico/

The New York Times

• NYT began in 1851
• NYT is owned by Sulzberger family & Carlos Slim
• NYT Chairman Arthur Gregg “A.G.” Sulzberger is the sixth member of the Ochs/Sulzberger family to serve as published since 1896
• Founding Editor Henry Jarvis Raymond and former banker George Jones
• Political Position of the NYT “We shall be Conservative, in all cases where we think Conservatism essential to the public good; and we shall be Radical in everything which may seem to us to require radical treatment and radical reform.”
• Raymond was prominent in forming the Republican Party during the 1850’s
• Early Investors included the first president of Wells Fargo & Company and director of American Express.
• NYT looks at the issues from a progressive perspective and is regarded as “liberal”. According to a Pew Research Centers’ media polarization report  “the ideological Placement of Each Source’s Audience” places the audience for the New York Times as “consistently liberal.” Further, since 1960 The New York Times has only endorsed Democratic Presidential Candidates.
• Donald Trump has frequently criticized The New York Times on his Twitter account. Trump labels the NYT as “fake news”, “naive”, “dumb”, and “the failing New York Times.”
• Media Bias Fact Check shows the New York Times has made false claims in reporting, but always makes corrections to those stories as soon as new information is available. Further, failed fact checks occurred on Op-Ed pages and not straight news reporting.
• Media Bias Fact Check rates the New York Times Left-Center biased based on word and story selection that moderately favors the left, but highly factual and considered one of the most reliable sources for news information due to proper sourcing and well respected journalists/editors. The failed fact checks that occurred were on Op-Ed’s and not straight news reporting. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/new-york-times/

Los Angeles Times

• Founded in 1881 and owned by Biotech billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong
• Owner has spent decades trying to cure cancer; richest doctor in the world; Born to Chinese parents; acquired a handful of other California newspapers
• Moderately loaded headlines
• Endorses Democratic candidates
• Media Bias Fact Check rates LA Times, Left-Center Biased based on editorial positions that favor the left and High for factual reporting due to a clean fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/la-times-los-angeles-times/

USA Today

• Owned by Gannett
• Owned by Gannett Company
• Circulation: 1.7m
• Media Bias Fact Check rates USA Today Left-Center Biased based on editorial positions that slightly favor the left and factually high due to proper sourcing. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/usa-today-2/

Newsweek Magazine

• Owned by Etienne Uza and Johnathan Davis
• Bought in 2013
• Also owns The Daily Beast, Latin Times and Medical Daily

• Media Bias Fact Check rates Newsweek Left Biased based on story selection that favors the left and Mixed for factual reporting due to multiple failed fact checks by IFCN fact checkers. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/newsweek/

Time Magazine

• Owned by Marc & Lynne Benioff, Salesforce)
• Paid $170m in 2017
• Media Bias Fact Check rates Time Magazine Left-Center biased based on story selection that mostly favors the left and High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a clean fact check record. This update moves Time further to the left with their bias rating score increasing from 3.75/10 to 4.75/10, which is on the cusp of Left and Left-Center Bias. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/time/

CNN

• Division of Warner Media News and Sports; owned by Turner Broadcasting System which is a division of Time Warner and founded by Ted Turner in 1980’s)
• AT&T owns Warner Media & Time Warner
• CNN is available in 90 million homes; Ranks 22nd in viewers with less than 1m
• CNN how manyJeff Zucker, Chairman & CEO
• CNN most used digital news and information outlet in world
• CNN was originally an outlet without political bias
• CNN began in 1980’s
• CNN Airport Network pays airports for exclusive access to display their content and provides funds for TV equipment
• CNN wants to be a big and important part of the conversation
• CNN fired multiple Trump-friendly commentators
• CNN produced 20 events to debate issues
• CNN no live and uncut political rallies
• CNN less news reporting, more punditry, more round tables, more horse-race politics, more talking heads, more interviews and interviews yelling at each other which makes the news more confusing for the viewer
• Media Bias Fact Check rates CNN left biased based on editorial positions that consistently favors the left, while straight news reporting falls left-center through bias by omission. We also rate them Mixed for factual reporting due to several failed fact checks by TV hosts. However, news reporting on the website tends to be be properly sourced with minimal failed fact checks. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/cnn/

HuffPost

• Owned by AOL; Owned by Verizon
• Verizon Wireless Owned by AT&T
• Media Bias Fact Check rates HuffPost Left-Biased due to story selection that favors the left and Mostly Factual in reporting due to proper sourcing with a few failed fact checks. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/huffington-post/

The Atlantic

• The Atlantic first published in 1857
• Founded by Ralph Waldo Emerson & Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
• Circulation: less than .5k
• Media Bias Fact Check rates The Atlantic Left-Center Biased due to editorial positions and High for factual reporting based on excellent sourcing of information. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-atlantic/

The New Yorker Magazine

• Founded in 1925 and owned by the Newhouse family, Conde Nast Inc, a subsidiary of Advance Publications; Also owns Vogue, Vanity Fair, Gentlemen’s Quarterly, Architectural Digest & Wired
• Circulation 1m
• Uses strong emotionally loaded headlines; Endorses Democrats
• Media Bias Fact Check rates the New Yorker Left Biased based on story selection and editorial position that favors the left and High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a clean fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/new-yorker/

NETWORKS

ABC News

• American Broadcasting Company Owned by Disney Media Networks and The Walt Disney Company
• Flagship programs include: ABC World News Tonight with David Muir, Good Morning America Nightline, Primetime and 20/20, Political Affairs Program This Week with George Stephanolpoulos
• Founded in 1945
• 37% liberal, 41% mixed and 21% conservative
• Removed a fake Syria bombing video on 10/14/2019
• Media Bias Fact Check rates ABC News Left-Center biased based on story selection and word choices that moderately favor the left and High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a reasonable fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/abc-news/

NBC News

• Division of NBCUniversal News Group, a subsidiary of NBC Universal is Owned by Comcast, Noah Oppenheim, President
• Founded in 1940 as National Broadcasting Company
• Media Bias Fact Check rates NBC News Left-Center biased based on story selection and word choices that moderately favor the left and High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a reasonable fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/nbc-news/

MSNBC

• Owned by Comcast, Brian L. Roberts, CEO
• MSNBC is available in 96 million homes
• MSNBC ranks third with 1.75m viewers; Morning Joe is highest rank show
• Left-wing alternative to Fox News
• Media Bias Fact Check rates MSNBC Left Biased based on story selection that consistently favors the establishment left. We also rate them Mixed for factual reporting due to news hosts and the website producing 3 pants on fire claims. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/msnbc/

CBS News

• Owned by National Amusements, a subsidiary of ViacomCBS, Susan Zirinsky, President
• Founded in 1929
• Flagship programs include: CBS Sunday Morning, 60 Minutes and 48 Hours, Face the Nation. CBS Radio News broadcasts on 100% of radio stations in the USA. CBSN
• Media Bias Fact Check rates CBS News Left-Center biased based on story selection that moderately favors the left and High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/cbs-news/

PBS News Hour

• Public Broadcasting Act of 1967 signs by Lyndon B. Johnson formed the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and National Public Radio (NPR)
• Media Bias Fact Check rates PBS NewsHour slightly Left-Center Biased based on story selection that slightly favors the left and Very High for factual reporting due to in-depth, well sourced information and a clean fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/pbs-news-hour/

Associated Press

• Founder & Published Moses Yale Beach started AP in 1846
• Created by five New York newspapers
• Multinational, not-for-profit news agency and owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the US
• Reporting on the Trump administration the Associated Press usually maintains a neutral voice,
• Media Bias Fact Check rates the Associated Press borderline Left-Center Biased due to left-leaning editorializing, but Least Biased on a whole due to balanced story selection. We also rate them Very-High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a clean fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/associated-press/

Gannett Company

• Parent organization New Media Investment Group
• Large newspaper chain headquartered in McLean, Virginia (same town as the CIA)
• Largest total daily circulation; 3.2b revenue
• Owns USA Today, Detroit Free Press, The Arizona Republic, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and 100 prominent newspaper in small, midsize and large cities
• Bought by GateHouse Media which published 144 daily newspapers, 684 community publications and 569 local-market websites in 38 states

CANADA

CBC News (Canada)

• Canadian Government Funding (66%) The CBC Board consisting of 12 members appointed by the Independent Advisory Board.
• Founded in 1936 by an Act of Parliament, a division of Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
• Republishes stories from credible sources such as Associated Press & Reuters
• Media Bias Fact Check rates CBC Left-Center Biased based on editorial positions that leans slightly left and High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a clean fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/cbc-news-canadian-broadcasting/

The Globe and Mail (Canada)

• Owned by The Woodbridge Company Ltd and controlling shareholder of Thomson Reuters division of Reuters News
• Founded in 1844
• Endorses slightly more conservative candidates
• Media Bias Fact Check rates The Globe and Mail slightly Right-Center biased due to editorial positions and High for factual reporting based on proper sourcing. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-globe-and-mail/

UNITED KINGDOM

Reuters (UK)

• Owned by Woodbridge Company Limited, Thomson Reuters and Reuters Group
• World’s leading international multimedia news agency based in London, UK
• Numerous Pulitzer Prizes for reporting
• Thomson Reuters Trust Principles require journalists to maintain freedom from bias
• Media Bias Fact Check rates Reuters Least Biased based on objective reporting and Very High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing of information with minimal bias and a clean fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/reuters/

BBC (UK)

• BBC governed by a Board of Directors consisting of 13 members. Deputy Governor of the Bank of England David Clementi is the Chairman. Financed by consumer license fees on broadcasting receivers (televisions and radios).
• Founded in 1922 and operating as a Royal Charter, the British Broadcasting System
• Media Bias Fact Check rates the BBC Left-Center biased based on story selection that slightly favors the left and High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing of information. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/bbc/

The Times & Sunday Times (UK)

• Owned by NewsUK, Acquired by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation in 1981
• Founded in 1785
• Media Bias Fact Check rates The Times and Sunday Times Right-Center biased based on story selection and editorial positions that favors the right and High for factual reporting due to a clean fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-times-of-london/

London Evening Standard (UK)

• Owned by Russian businessman and former KGB agent Alexander Lebedev
• Founded in 1827
• Media Bias Fact Check rates the London Evening Standard has a right wing editorial bias and right-center news reporting bias. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/london-evening-standard/

New Statesman (UK)

• Owned by GlobalData PLC
• Founded in 1913 by socialist Fabian Society
• Media Bias Fact Check rates the New Statesman Left Biased based on story selection that mostly favors the left and High for factual reporting due to a clean fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/new-statesman/

The Guardian (UK)

• Owned by Guardian Media Group & Scott Trust Ltd. Founded in 1921
• Slight to moderate liberal bias and uses loaded words
• Media Bias Fact Check rates The Guardian Left-Center biased based on story selection that moderately favors the left and Mostly Factual in reporting, rather than High due to a couple of failed fact checks.  https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-guardian/

Financial Times (UK)

• Published in UK owned by The Nikkei, a Japanese news and financial information company
• Media Bias Fact Check rates the Financial Times Least Biased based on balanced reporting and High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a clean fact check. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/financial-times/

Source: Media Bias Fact Check