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Evaluating News Sources - Real or Fake?: Sources for Real News

This guide is designed to help users identify and locate sources for real news.

10 Reliable Journalism Brands

Forbes.com published "10 Journalism Brands Where You Find Real Facts Rather Than
Alternative Facts" February 1, 2017.  Click the article link to learn more about these 10
brands.  The article also identifies runners up.
1.  The New York Times
2.  The Wall Street Journal
3.  The Washington Post
4.  BBC
5.  The Economist
6.  The New Yorker
7.  Wire Services:  The Associated Press, Bloomberg News
8.  Foreign Affairs
9.  The Atlantic
10.  Politico

Bias

The Oxford English Dictionary defines bias as: " An inclination, leaning, tendency,
bent; a preponderating disposition or propensity; predisposition towards;
predilection; prejudice."
 
Right-leaning (conservative) reporting and opinion sources
National Review
The Weekly Standard
 
Left-leaning (liberal) reporting and opinion sources
The New Republic
The Nation

 

Click here to see Ad Fontes Media's Media Bias Chart, updated on a regular basis.

Bias - News from the Center, Left, and Right

♦   AllSides is a web site that "uses its media bias ratings to provide a breadth of
    perspectives on today's news, issues and opinions.
♦   Media Bias/Fact Check is a web site that "is dedicated to educating the public on
     media bias and deceptive news practices."

♦  ProCon.org is a web site now owned by Britannica Group, a reliable publisher.

♦  SmartNews is a free app for IOS and Android devices.  It gathers news from a wide
    range of sources and the company believes "news should be impartial, trending and
    trustworthy."

Investigative Reporting

The Moyers & Company web site published "10 Investigative Reporting Outlets to
Follow" on January 13, 2017.  Click the title link to read more about these
organizations.
1.  ProPublica
2.  The Center for Public Integrity (CPI)
3.  The Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR)
4.  Frontline
5.  Mother Jones
6.  The Intecept
7.  Real Clear Investigations
8.  The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ)
9.  Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE)
10. BuzzFeed

Fact Checking

Several web sites can help you fact check news sources.
♦  Snopes, founded in 1994, is now the "oldest and largest fact-checking site on the
    Internet."
♦  PolitiFact, awarded the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 2009, fact-checks
    journalism.
♦  FactCheck.org is a "nonpartisan, nonprofit "consumer advocate" for voters that
    aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics.
♦  Fact Checker (Washington Post) factchecks "the statements of political figures
    regarding issues of great importance."
♦  Open Secrets is maintained by the Center for Responsive Politics which tracks
    "money in U.S. politics and its effect on elections and public policy." 

♦  Hoaxy, created by Indiana University, allows users to "visualize the spread of

    claims and fact checking."

Browser Tools

These browser extensions can help distinguish real information from disinformation:

Staff LADR