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Navigating the Media Spectrum – a Guide to News Outlets and Political Alignment

In a highly polarized cultural and political landscape, identifying the ideological orientation of news outlets is essential for critical and informed media consumption.

It is apparent that several news outlets have engaged in shameless, blatant propaganda promoting a progressive, elitist narrative and one-party dominance by the Democrat party. Few Americans trust news media outlets nowadays. Washington Post, MSNBC and CNN are examples of blatant propagandists.

This blog post categorizes a wide array of news organizations across five broad political categories: Far Right, Right, Center, Left, and Far Left. The analysis is informed by media bias rating platforms such as AllSides, Ad Fontes Media, and conservative critique. Each entry includes the outlet’s ownership, which often informs editorial direction and institutional values.

These are grouped in a manner that is somewhat subjective. If you disagree with the rating of a particular news outlet, let me know. I am not familiar with some of these outlets and have relied upon the aforementioned media bias rating platforms. I have marked the ones that I have some level of tentative trust with asterisks (*).

Far Right

These outlets promote nationalism, populism, or overt rejection of establishment conservatism. Some indulge in conspiracy theory or hyper-partisan rhetoric.

  • Infowars (Free Speech Systems LLC)
  • One America News Network (OANN) (Herring Networks, Inc.)
  • The Gateway Pundit (Jim Hoft)
  • American Thinker (American Thinker, LLC)
  • LifeSiteNews (LifeSiteNews.com)

Right

Firmly conservative, these outlets prioritize free-market principles, national sovereignty, and traditional values.

  • Fox News (News Division) (Fox Corporation) *
  • The Daily Wire (Daily Wire, LLC) *
  • The Blaze (Blaze Media) *
  • Newsmax (Newsmax Media) *
  • The Federalist (FDRLST Media) *
  • The Epoch Times (Epoch Media Group) *
  • Breitbart News (Breitbart News Network, LLC) *
  • The Washington Times (The Washington Times, LLC) *
  • The Wall Street Journal (News Division) (News Corp) *
  • Washington Examiner (MediaDC) *
  • National Review (National Review, Inc.)
  • The Dispatch (The Dispatch Media)
  • The American Conservative (American Ideas Institute)
  • The Bulwark (Bulwark Media)
  • Townhall (Salem Media Group)
  • PJ Media (Salem Media Group)
  • Hot Air (Salem Media Group)
  • RedState (Salem Media Group)

Center

These media outlets aim for balance in reporting and are often trusted across partisan lines, though subtle biases may still emerge.

  • BBC News (US Edition) (UK government funded)
  • Christian Science Monitor (The First Church of Christ, Scientist)
  • Bloomberg News (Bloomberg L.P.)
  • NewsNation (Nexstar Media Group)
  • The Hill (Nexstar Media Group)

Left

These organizations support progressive policies and tend to align with the Democratic Party or globalist liberal values.

  • MSNBC (NBCUniversal / Comcast)
  • CNN (Opinion Division) (Warner Bros. Discovery)
  • The New York Times (The New York Times Company)
  • The Associated Press (AP) (Nonprofit cooperative) – While rated “Center” by many, conservative audiences note a distinct left-leaning framing and vocabulary. In my opinion, the Associated Press Stylebook promotes a leftist bias across news medias that utilize it.
  • Reuters (Thomson Reuters Corporation) – While rated “Center” by many, conservative audiences note a distinct left-leaning framing and vocabulary.
  • The Guardian (U.S.) (Guardian Media Group)
  • HuffPost (BuzzFeed Inc.)

Far Left

Outlets here generally support radical progressivism, socialism, or anti-capitalist frameworks, often promoting structural critiques of U.S. policy, economics, and culture.

  • Democracy Now! (Independent nonprofit)
  • Jacobin (Jacobin Foundation)
  • The Nation (The Nation Company, L.P.)
  • Mother Jones (Foundation for National Progress)
  • Truthout (Independent nonprofit)

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Questions to Help You Assess Media Bias

  1. Who owns the outlet? Are they known for specific ideological causes?
  2. What are the headlines like—neutral or emotionally charged?
  3. Are counterpoints represented or ignored?
  4. Does the outlet frequently rely on anonymous sources?
  5. Are correction policies clear and active?
  6. Does the outlet distinguish clearly between news and opinion?
  7. What rating do independent bias evaluators provide?
  8. Are there recurring patterns in story selection or framing?
  9. How does the outlet describe those they disagree with?
  10. Is the comment section (or audience) highly partisan or reflective?

Final Thoughts

Understanding where a media source falls on the political spectrum can help you recognize framing, filter bias, and seek more balanced perspectives. Conservative readers should be especially discerning with so-called “center” outlets like AP and Reuters, as even subtly biased framing can shape public discourse. At the same time, we should value intellectual rigor and avoid echo chambers. Media literacy isn’t just a skill—it’s a civic responsibility.

I recommend allsides.com to check out their ratings on media outlets. I may not agree with their view on every outlet, but in general, they are fairly close in their assessments.

S.D.G.,

Robert Sparkman

rob@christiannewjunkie.com

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Concerning the Related Content section, I encourage everyone to evaluate the content carefully.

Some sources of information may reflect a libertarian and/or atheistic perspective. I may not agree with all of their opinions, but they offer some worthwhile comments on the topic under discussion.

Additionally, language used in the videos may be coarse. Coarse language does not reflect my personal standards.

Finally, those on the left often criticize my sources of information, which are primarily conservative and/or Christian. Truth is truth, regardless of how we feel about it. Leftists are largely led by their emotion rather than facts. It is no small wonder that they would criticize the sources that I provide. And, ultimately, my wordview is governed by Scripture. Many of my critics are not biblical Christians.

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I will continue to add items to the Related Content section as opportunities present themselves.

By Robert Sparkman