Sources

Media Bias Fact Check -- e.g., WashingtonTimes.com

"We are the most comprehensive media bias resource on the internet. There are currently 3200+ media sources listed in our database and growing every day. Don't be fooled by Fake News sources. Use the search feature above (Header) to check the bias of any source. Use name or URL."

RationalWiki:

Our purpose here at RationalWiki includes:

• Analyzing and refuting pseudoscience and the anti-science movement;
• Documenting the full range of crank ideas;
• Explorations of authoritarianism and fundamentalism;
• Analysis and criticism of how these subjects are handled in the media.

Fact Checking

• Ballotpedia, an online encyclopedia about U.S. political and judicial systems, published by Lucy Burns Institute
• FactCheck.org
• ICANN Domain Name Registratioon Data Lookup
• MediaBiasFactCheck.com
• NewsGuard, a browser extension created by NewsGuard Technologies
• PolitiFact
• Snopes

AlterNet

YELLOW FLAG (potentially questionable content; carefully scrutinize).

See also:  Salon  |  Raw Story

Wikipedia:

AlterNet is a politically left-leaning website that was launched in 1998 by the non-profit now known as the Independent Media Institute. In 2018, the website was acquired by owners of The Raw Story. Some AlterNet content is republished on Salon.

Funded by / Ownership. AlterNet is owned by the owners of Raw Story under the name AlterNet Media. The website is funded through online advertising.

---

Analysis / Bias.Overall, we rate AlterNet far Left Biased based on story selection and wording that always favors the left. We also rate them Mixed for factual reporting due to a few failed fact checks as well as the promotion of pseudoscience.

In review, AlterNet publishes news with a far left bias through story selection and the use of emotionally loaded words such as these: Trump goes off in an all-caps New Year's Eve Twitter meltdown: 'MEXICO IS PAYING FOR THE WALL' and The F Word: The Craven Right Wing Is Now Smearing Teenage School Shooting Survivors. The website also features a separate news category that focuses on negative reports about Donald Trump. When it comes to sourcing, AlterNet typically uses known mainstream sources such as the New York Daily News and NBC News.

AlterNet also frequently delves into pseudoscience with the promotion of anti-GMO propaganda, which is not consistent with the consensus of science. AlterNet has conistently reported on the connection between cell phones and cancer, which is misleading as there is not a scientific consensus on whether radiation for cell phones causes cancer or not.

In general, AlterNet consistently publishes pro-Left news stories and those that denigrate the right.

A factual search reveals that AlterNet has a Mixed claim via Snopes and false claim from Check Your Fact.

Overall, we rate AlterNet far Left Biased based on story selection and wording that always favors the left. We also rate them Mixed for factual reporting due to a few failed fact checks as well as the promotion of pseudoscience. (5/13/2016) Updated (D. Van Zandt 12/30/2019)

AlterNet has received $25,000 from the Bauman Foundation:

Bauman Foundation: Grants, by Fiscal Year (July 01 -- June 30)
Data captured 2020-09-11.
Grantee	Fiscal Year	Amount	Cumulative Amount
AlterNet	2008-09	$25,000	$25,000

CBC: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation [Canada]

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation [CBC  |  French: Société Radio-Canada], branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian federal Crown corporation that serves as the national public broadcaster for both radio and television. ...

Although I regard the CBC as being generally trustworthy, I nonetheless have some significant concerns and criticisms with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation -- a Canadian federal Crown corporation that purportedly serves as the national public broadcaster for both radio and television.

While producing competent news coverage -- albeit more often than not presenting superficially written articles that often lack links to key source material -- the CBC has a history of sourcing "guest commentary / opinion" essays that include highly divisive viewpoints and vitriol. As a transsexual woman, I am particularly annoyed by the expenditure of tax dollars in support of the spread of intolerance, prejudice, hate and disinformation.

[2020-09-18] Editor's Blog:  What trusted journalism looks like in the age of disinformation, polarization. A look at how CBC News uses confidential sources and how it deals with allegations of political bias.

Transphobe Meghan Murphy

For example, the CBC, for example, provides a platform for the vitriolic venom verbalized by trans-exclusionary radical feminist  (TERF)  Meghan Murphy -- a venomous, transphobia troll [Meghan Murphy: Opposition to transgender activism]. Even currently [2020-07-07] the CBC continues to list her bio, and link to her feminist / anti-transgender (TERF) website.

• [2018-11-24]  Meghan Murphy: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know  [local copy (html)

Meghan Murphy's Wikipedia page includes the following introductory statement (note the Quillette mention):

"Based in Vancouver, Murphy has written for CBC News, The Globe and Mail, the National Post,  rabble.ca, the New Statesman, and Quillette, among other media outlets."

Quillette is an infamous disinformation site, rife with homophobia, transphobia, anti-theism, misogyny, pseudo-science (climate change denial; racism; ...

It should not be surprising then that Quillette is also favored, apparently, by Alberta Premier / disinformation troll Jason Kenney. Note, e.g., the following propaganda piece.

• [2020-07-06] Jason Kenney's Energy War Room is Spending Tax Dollars on Ads Casting Doubt on Climate Science.  Canadian Energy Centre spent tax dollars on Facebook ads promoting an article published by the right-wing website Quillette

In addition to blogging at Quillette, transphobic TERF Meghan Murphy has also blogged at the National Post, which like Quillette (and occasionally the CBC) has a long tradition of posting transphobic content.

Transphobe Jonathan Kay

Transphobe Jonathan Kay, the Canadian editor for Quillette, was formerly a blogger for the National Post.

Transphobic collusion among { National Post | Quillette | Jonathan Kay } again manifests in the following disingenuous "debate" -- which somehow involves Kay, who defends Meghan Murphy.

• [2019-12-02]  Speaking of gender: A National Post debate about gender identity and free speech, involving Jonathan Kay and transsexual transwoman Mercedes Allen  |  loco (pdf)

Jonathan Kay is mentioned in this Prison Industrial Complex (Wikipedia) article.

Journalist Jonathan Kay in the National Post defined the "prison industrial complex" as a "corrupt human-warehousing operation that combines the worst qualities of government (its power to coerce) and private enterprise (greed)." He states that inmates are kept in inhumane conditions and that the need to preserve the economic advantage of a full prison leads prison leaders to thwart any effort or reforms that might reduce recidivism and incarcerations.

Transphobe Jordan Peterson

Likewise, this National Post "free speech" disinformation piece masquerading as a documentary features the notorious transphobic troll Jordan Peterson.

• [2019-11-13]  Beyond Jordan Peterson: Free speech on campus  |  Beyond Jordan Peterson: Free Speech on Campus

  
  [2019-11-13] Beyond Jordan Peterson: Free Speech on Campus.
  COMMENTARY (BuriedTruth).  The associated description [disinformation] -- citing Trump -- conflates limits on hate speech as state/institution-sponsored "attacks" on free speech ...
  [Source]

• Additional description here [CalgaryHerald.ca, 2019-11-13]:  Beyond Jordan Peterson: A National Post investigation into the state of free speech on campuses

Jordan Peterson's Wikipedia page includes the following statements, conveniently omitted from the descriptions for that transphobic National Post "documentary."

• "Jordan Bernt Peterson (born June 12, 1962) is a Canadian clinical psychologist and a professor of psychology at the University of Toronto. He began to receive widespread attention in the late 2010s for his outspoken views on cultural and political issues."

• Jordan Peterson: Transphobia:

  "In 2016, Peterson released a series of YouTube videos criticizing the Act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code (Bill C-16), passed by the Parliament of Canada to introduce "gender identity and expression" as a prohibited grounds of discrimination. Peterson argued that the bill would make the use of certain gender pronouns into compelled speech, and related this argument to a general critique of political correctness and identity politics. He subsequently received significant media coverage, attracting both support and criticism."

• Jordan Peterson: Transphobia -- Bill C-16:

  On September 27, 2016, Peterson released the first installment of a three-part lecture video series, entitled "Professor against political correctness: Part I: Fear and the Law." In the video, he stated he would not use the preferred gender pronouns of students and faculty, saying it fell under compelled speech, and announced his objection to the Canadian government's Bill C-16, which proposed to add "gender identity or expression" as a prohibited ground of discrimination under the Canadian Human Rights Act, and to similarly expand the definitions of promoting genocide and publicly inciting hatred in the hate speech laws in Canada.

  He stated his objection to the bill was based on potential free-speech implications if the Criminal Code is amended, claiming he could then be prosecuted under provincial human-rights laws if he refuses to call a transgender student or faculty member by the individual's preferred pronoun. Furthermore, he argued the new amendments, paired with section 46.3 of the Ontario Human Rights Code, would make it possible for employers and organizations to be subject to punishment under the code if any employee or associate says anything that can be construed "directly or indirectly" as offensive, "whether intentionally or unintentionally." According to law professor Brenda Cossman and others, this interpretation of C-16 is mistaken, and the law does not criminalize misuse of pronouns.

  The series of videos drew criticism from transgender activists, faculty, and labour unions; critics accused Peterson of "helping to foster a climate for hate to thrive" and of "fundamentally mischaracterizing" the law. Protests erupted on campus, some including violence, and the controversy attracted international media attention. When asked in September 2016 if he would comply with the request of a student to use a preferred pronoun, Peterson said "it would depend on how they asked me. ... If I could detect that there was a chip on their shoulder, or that they were asking me with political motives, then I would probably say no.... If I could have a conversation like the one we're having now, I could probably meet them on an equal level." Two months later, the National Post published an op-ed by Peterson in which he elaborated on his opposition to the bill, saying that gender-neutral singular pronouns were "at the vanguard of a post-modern, radical leftist ideology that I detest, and which is, in my professional opinion, frighteningly similar to the Marxist doctrines that killed at least 100 million people in the 20th century."

  In response to the controversy, academic administrators at the University of Toronto sent Peterson two letters of warning, one noting free speech had to be made in accordance with human rights legislation, and the other adding that his refusal to use the preferred personal pronouns of students and faculty upon request could constitute discrimination. Peterson speculated that these warning letters were leading up to formal disciplinary action against him, but in December the university assured him he would retain his professorship, and in January 2017 he returned to teach his psychology class at the University of Toronto.

  In February 2017, Maxime Bernier, candidate for leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, stated he shifted his position on Bill C-16, from support to opposition, after meeting with Peterson and discussing it. Peterson's analysis of the bill was also frequently cited by senators who were opposed to its passage. In April 2017, Peterson was denied a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) grant for the first time in his career, which he interpreted as retaliation for his statements regarding Bill C-16. However, a media-relations adviser for SSHRC said, "Committees assess only the information contained in the application." In response, Rebel News launched an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign on Peterson's behalf, raising C$195,000 by its end on May 6, equivalent to over two years of research funding. In May 2017, as one of 24 witnesses who were invited to speak about the bill, Peterson spoke against Bill C-16 at a Canadian Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs hearing.

  In November 2017, Lindsay Shepherd, the teaching assistant of a Wilfrid Laurier University first-year communications course, was censured by her professors for showing, during a classroom discussion about pronouns, a segment of The Agenda in which Peterson debates Bill C-16 with another professor. The reasons given for the censure included the clip creating a "toxic climate," being compared to a "speech by Hitler," and being itself in violation of Bill C-16. The censure was later withdrawn and both the professors and the university formally apologized. The events were cited by Peterson, as well as several newspaper editorial boards and national newspaper columnists as illustrative of the suppression of free speech on university campuses. In June 2018, Peterson filed a $1.5-million lawsuit against Wilfrid Laurier University, arguing that three staff members of the university had maliciously defamed him by making negative comments about him behind closed doors. As of September 2018, Wilfrid Laurier had asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit, saying it was ironic for a purported advocate of free speech to attempt to curtail free speech.

Returning to the CBC: the CBC is a longtime supporter | employer | enabler of the divisive troll Rex Murphy, a notable climate change denialist.

In summary, viz-a-viz the CBC:

I am disgusted that in 2020 my tax dollars are being spent by my government in support reprehensible agendae that include transphobia, homophobia, climate change denial, systemic racism (e.g in support of RCMP suppression of indigenous populations), corporate pandering, and other sources of disinformation.

Through mismanagement, incompetence, and lack of established editorial practices, etc. the CBC knowingly and egregiously (through non due diligence and vetting of sources, content and purpose) promulgates disinformation that harms the population of those it allegedly represents and serves.

Center for Media and Democracy (CMD)

YELLOW FLAG (potentially questionable content; carefully scrutinize).

The Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) is a progressive nonprofit watchdog and advocacy organization based in Madison, Wisconsin. CMD publishes PR Watch  (PRWatch.org),  SourceWatch.org, and ALECexposed.org  [see also:  American Legislative Exchange jouncil].

History

CMD was founded in 1993 by progressive writer John Stauber in Madison, Wisconsin. Lisa Graves is the former President of CMD. Author Sheldon Rampton was formerly an editor of PR Watch (CMD's investigative reporting website).

Lisa Graves is a progressive activist who is senior fellow and former executive director of the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD). Lisa Graves served in this role from 2009 to 2017, when she became President of True North Research, and co-Director of DocumentedInvestigations.org. Graves also serves on the advisory board of UnKoch [UnKochMyCampus.org  |  see also: Charles Koch, Koch Family Foundations].

• Note also Lisa Graves' Koch Docs project.

CMD has investigated and reported on donor-advised funds, referring to such donations as a form of "dark money". According to the Capital Times of Madison, Wisconsin, CMD is a recipient of donor-advised funds via the Schwab Charitable Fund.

• See also, re: donor-advised funds:  Donors Trust  |  Fidelity Charitable  |  Philanthropy Roundtable  |  Tides Foundation  |  ...

[ ... snip ... ]

Economist, The

Wikipedia

... The editorial stance of The Economist primarily revolves around classical, social, and most notably, economic liberalism. Since its founding, it has supported radical centrism, favoring policies and governments that maintain centrist politics. The newspaper typically champions neoliberalism, particularly free markets, free trade, free immigration, deregulation, and globalisation.

Despite a pronounced editorial stance, it is seen as having little reporting bias, rigorous fact checking and strict copy editing. Its extensive use of word play, subscription prices, and typical depth of coverage has linked the paper with a high-income and educated readership, drawing both positive and negative connotations in the Western world. In line with this, it claims to have influential readership of prominent business leaders and policy-makers. ...

MediaBiasFactCheck: "Overall, we rate The Economist Least Biased based on balanced reporting and High for factual reporting due to a clean fact check record."

History.  Founded in 1843, The Economist is an English-language weekly news magazine that is edited in London, UK. The current editor is Zanny Minton Beddoes. According to their about page The Economist "is neither right nor left but a blend of the two, drawing on the classical liberalism of the 19th century and coming from what we like to call the radical centre."

Funded by / Ownership.  The Economist is owned by the Economist Group, which is a British multinational media company. The Economist Group is primary owned by the Cadbury, Rothschild, Schroder, Layton and Agnelli families. The Economist is funded through subscriptions, advertising and sponsored content.

Analysis / Bias.  In review, The Economist takes an editorial stance of classical and economic liberalism that supports free trade, globalization, open immigration, and social liberalism. There is minimal use of loaded language in both headlines and articles such as this: America's new attitude towards China is changing the countries' relationship. In fact, most articles are well written with very low emotional bias. Economically, The Economist leans right, but they also support such initiatives as a carbon tax and environmental protectionism, which are not right wing positions. Editorially, The Economist endorses both Republicans and Democrats in the United States. For example, the have endorsed Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2016, while endorsing Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush in earlier elections. In the UK they most recently endorsed the Liberal Democrats, which hold left leaning libertarian positions. One criticism of The Economist is that a majority of their articles are penned anonymously, which they explain is to maintain a continuity of writing. They do however, provide a media directory where you can view who is involved in writing and editing.

A 2014 Pew Research Survey found that 59% of the Economist's audience is consistently or mostly liberal, 24% Mixed and 18% consistently or mostly conservative. This indicates that the Economist is preferred by a more liberal audience.

A factual search reveals that The Economist has never failed a fact check.

[Economist.com, 2020-10-17] The pandemic has eroded democracy and respect for human rights. Strongmen have taken advantage of COVID-19 in numerous ways.

COMMENTARY (BuriedTruth).  While mentioning Brazil, Turkey, Russia ... how can this article not mention  any of: Donald Trump | Mitch McConnell | William Barr | Black Lives Matter | U.S. | US | United States | U.S. protests | contact tracing | ... ?

Epoch Times

RED FLAG: excluded from sources.

Falun Gong operates a questionable "news" organization -- The Epoch Times -- and allied organizations such as the China Tribunal and its affiliates are similarly biased viz-a-viz China and it's dissidents.

• MediaBiasFactCheck:  "Overall, we rate The Epoch Times borderline Questionable and Right Biased based on editorial positions that consistently favor the right. We also rate The Epoch Times factually Mixed due to the publication of pseudoscience and the promotion of pro-Trump propaganda and conspiracy theories as well as failed fact checks."

FOX News

RED FLAG: excluded from sources:  reprehensible, notorious disinformation source: FOX News is -- by proxy -- effectively the public face / mouthpiece of the "Trump White House" informational sewer.

Refer here:  FOX News [Rupert Murdoch]

Go.com

Go.com.  Owned by Disney Parks; hosts ABCNews.go.com/ and https://ESPN.go.com  (redirects to ESPN.com).

Gray Zone | theGrayZone.com

RED FLAG: excluded from sources:  theGrayZone.com

Max Blumenthal established and writes for theGrayZone.com -- which purports to be an independent investigative journalism site, but is tainted by Blumenthal and his associations (e.g.) with RT.com, and other questionable journalistic practices (e.g.: anti-Zionism).

Blumenthal has broadcast on RT.com (RT, formerly known as Russia Today) on many occasions. In December 2015, during an all-expenses paid trip to Moscow, Blumenthal attended RT's 10 Years On Air anniversary party attended by President Vladimir Putin, then-Lieutenant General Michael Flynn of the United States and English politician Ken Livingstone.

In an interview with Tucker Carlson on FOX News in November 2017, Blumenthal defended RT against "the charge that it's Kremlin propaganda." Blumenthal has also contributed on multiple occasions to Sputnik. Blumenthal founded The Grayzone website a month after his visit to Moscow. Gilbert Achcar wrote in an October 2019 article for New Politics magazine that along with the World Socialist Web Site, Blumenthal's Grayzone has "the habit of demonizing all left-wing critics of Putin and the likes of Assad by describing them as 'agents of imperialism' or some equivalent."

While the autobiographical statements on theGrayZone.com (founded by Blumenthal) paint a glowing self-tribute,

Max Blumenthal Max Blumenthal is an award-winning journalist and the author of several books, including best-selling Republican Gomorrah, Goliath, The Fifty One Day War, and The Management of Savagery. He has produced print articles for an array of publications, many video reports, and several documentaries, including Killing Gaza. Blumenthal founded The Grayzone in 2015 to shine a journalistic light on America's state of perpetual war and its dangerous domestic repercussions."

based on internet contentinternet searches it appears that Blumenthal -- an infamous anti-Zionist racist -- is little more than a disinformation-spewing troll.

InfluenceWatch.org

RED FLAG: excluded from sources:  see SourceWatch.org discussion.

International Consortium of Investigative Journalists [ICIJ]

Excellent reporting, via the Center for Public Integrity (CPI).

Praise  |  Criticism

iPolitics | iPolitics.ca

iPolitics.ca: coverage of Canadian politics, policy and the business of government.

Wikipedia: iPolitics.ca is a Canadian digital newspaper, which covers stories in Canadian politics. The site was launched in 2010 by founding editor and publisher James Baxter, and offers daily coverage of political news, a quarterly print magazine, political analysis podcasts and specialized parliamentary monitoring services. Since October 2018, it has been owned by Torstar.

MediaBiasFactCheck.com:

• Factual Reporting: HIGH.

• iPolitics.ca covers Canadian politics and news. They have a very mild left of center bias and are factual in reporting from credible sources. (D. Van Zandt 12/15/2016).

• Left-center bias. These media sources [iPolitics.ca] have a slight to moderate liberal bias. They often publish factual information that utilizes loaded words (wording that attempts to influence an audience by using appeal to emotion or stereotypes) to favor liberal causes. These sources are generally trustworthy for information, but may require further investigation.

Lowy Institute [Australia]

The Lowy Institute is an independent think tank founded in April 2003 by Sir Frank Lowy,  AC  [AC: Order of Australia]  to conduct original, policy-relevant research about international political, strategic and economic issues from an Australian perspective. It is based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

While the Lowy Institute has alternatively been described as "neoliberal," "centre-right" leaning or "reactionary, officially, its research and analysis aim to be non-partisan, and its active program of conferences, seminars and other events are designed to inform and deepen the debate about international policy in Australia and to help shape the broader international discussion of these issues.

COMMENTARY (BuriedTruth). Australia has been sparring with China over China's influence in that region of the globe. Hence, many of the articles from the Lowy Institute have a terse, anti-China sentiment.

• See also: Lowy Institute: Criticism

Maclean's | MacLeans.ca

YELLOW FLAG (potentially questionable content; carefully scrutinize).

MacLeans.ca  |  Wikipedia entry  |  Controversies

"Maclean's is Canada's premier current affairs magazine. Maclean's enlightens, engages and entertains 2.4 million readers with strong investigative reporting and exclusive stories from leading journalists in the fields of international affairs, social issues, national politics, business and culture."

While I have more-or-less trusted MacLean's magazine in the past [pre-2020], of late I am less trusting of this news magazine / website. In particular, note the following entries viz-a-viz disinformation troll Mark Steyn.

• Mark Steyn wrote articles and maintained a blog for Maclean's covering the 2007 business fraud trial of his friend Conrad Black [Canadian-born, past-British newspaper publisher, convicted fraudster] in Chicago, from the point of view of one who was never convinced Black committed any crime. ...

• In 2007, a complaint was filed with the Ontario Human Rights Commission related to an article "The Future Belongs to Islam," written by Mark Steyn, published in Maclean's magazine. The complainants alleged that the article and the refusal of Maclean's to provide space for a rebuttal violated their human rights. The complainants also claimed that the article was one of twenty-two (22) Maclean's articles, many written by Steyn, about Muslims. ...

  Soon afterwards, the head of the Canadian Human Rights Commission issued a public letter to the Editor of Maclean's magazine. In it, Jennifer Lynch said, "Mr. Steyn would have us believe that words, however hateful, should be given free reign [sic]. History has shown us that hateful words sometimes lead to hurtful actions that undermine freedom and have led to unspeakable crimes. That is why Canada and most other democracies have enacted legislation to place reasonable limits on the expression of hatred."

  The National Post subsequently defended Steyn and sharply criticized Lynch, stating that Lynch has "no clear understanding of free speech or the value of protecting it" and that "No human right is more basic than freedom of expression, not even the "right" to live one's life free from offence by remarks about one's ethnicity, gender, culture or orientation."

  The federal Canadian Human Rights Commission dismissed the Canadian Islamic Congress' complaint against Maclean's in June 2008. The CHRC's ruling said of the article that, "the writing is polemical, colourful and emphatic, and was obviously calculated to excite discussion and even offend certain readers, Muslim and non-Muslim alike." However, the Commission ruled that overall, "the views expressed in the Steyn article, when considered as a whole and in context, are not of an extreme nature, as defined by the Supreme Court."

Mint Press News | MintPress_News.com

RED FLAG: excluded from sources:  MintPressNews.com  |  Wikipedia entry  |  MediaBiasFactCheck entry

These media sources have a slight to moderate liberal bias. They often publish factual information that utilizes loaded words (wording that attempts to influence an audience by using appeal to emotion or stereotypes) to favor liberal causes. These sources are generally trustworthy for information, but may require further investigation. See all Left-Center sources.  |  Factual Reporting: MIXED Country: USA  |  source

[Wikipedia]  Frequent contributors include Eva Bartlett [who also contributes to the RT (Russia Today) propaganda / disinformation network], and more alarmingly (?) disinformation conspiracist / anti-Zionist / troll Max Blumenthal; ...

• Max Blumenthal established and writes for theGrayZone.com -- which purports to be an independent investigative journalism site, but is tainted by Blumenthal and his associations (e.g.) with RT.com, and other questionable journalistic practices (e.g.: anti-Zionism).

National Post

YELLOW FLAG: -- potentially questionable content; carefully scrutinize; transphobia:  see National Post-related comments in the CBC subsection, above. With a history of transphobia and other questionable practices, National Post content -- when included -- should be thoroughly scrutinized.

Example:  disinformation troll Ezra Levant wrote an irregular column for the Calgary Sun for ten years, until he was dropped in October 2007 because of "internal decisions." Ezra Levant continued to write occasional columns for the National Post on a freelance basis until 2010.

News Corp

RED FLAG: excluded from sources.

Rupert Murdoch owns the notorious (reprehensible) disinformation source, stridently pro-Trump Fox News network. Accordingly, any information spawned by that sprawling network (including the sources below) must be scrutinized with extreme care, as potential (probable) disinformation sources.

This is exemplary re: the Fox News disinformation universe.

• [BoingBoing.net, 2020-03-18] WATCH: Fox News hosts say coronavirus is fake news, then change their tune.

  What a damning indictment of Fox News from the Post video team here. pic.twitter.com/r8Fz8vo5KV

  -- andrew kaczynski 🤔 (@KFILE) March 18, 2020

  ---

  • [Twitter.com, 2020-03-17] What a damning indictment of Fox News from the Post video team here.

    [video] 🤔 @KFILE: What a damning indictment of Fox News from the Post video team here.

    
    [Source]

    Over the past month, many Fox News anchors and personalities have gone from doubting the seriousness of the coronavirus pandemic to calling it a public health crisis.

    In this video, assembled by the Washington Post's media team, Fox News hosts and their rhetoric is contrasted just a few days apart. Then, they were claiming coronavirus was either nothing to worry about or an outright hoax; now they are solemnly telling people to look out for themselves as the virus rages.

[washingtonpost.com, 2020-03-16] On Fox News, suddenly a very different tune about the coronavirus. For weeks, some of Fox News's most popular hosts downplayed the threat of the coronavirus, characterizing it as a conspiracy by media organizations and Democrats to undermine President Trump.

[BusinessInsider.com, 2020-10-11] James Murdoch, son of Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch, says he walked away from family media empire because it legitimizes disinformation and obscures facts.

• List of assets owned by 21st Century Fox

• News Corp Australia, the Australian subsidiary of News Corp
• News UK, the British subsidiary of News Corp
• List of assets owned by News Corp, notably:
  • The Times [U.K.]
  • New York Post [U.S.A.]
  • Wall Street Journal [U.S.A.]

    ... The Wall Street Journal has won 37 Pulitzer Prizes (as of 2019). The editorial pages of the Wall Street Journal are typically conservative in their position. The Wall Street Journal editorial board has promoted views that differ from the scientific consensus on climate change [climate change denial, acid rain, and ozone depletion, as well as on the health harms of second-hand smoke, pesticides and asbestos. It is regarded as a "newspaper of record," particularly in terms of business and financial news. ...

  • Dow Jones & Company [U.S.A.]

New Tang Dynasty Television  |  NTD  |  NTD.com

RED FLAG: excluded from sources.

New Tang Dynasty Television (NTD).  New Tang Dynasty Television (NTD, Chinese: 新唐人電視臺) is a multilingual American television broadcaster, founded by Falun Gong practitioners, based in New York City. The station [NTD] was founded in 2001 as a Chinese-language broadcaster,[1] but has since expanded its language offerings. NTD retains a focus on mainland China in its news broadcasts.

• MediaBiasFactCheck:  "Overall, we rate NTD TV Right-Center biased based on editorial positions that favor the right. We also rate NTD TV Mixed for factual reporting due to a lack of transparency with ownership and a failed fact check."

NNDB [defunct]

YELLOW FLAG: (potentially questionable content; carefully scrutinize).

NNDB  |  Wikipedia  [owner, Soylent Communications, redirects here]

NNDB is an intelligence aggregator that tracks the activities of people we have determined to be noteworthy, both living and dead. Superficially, it seems much like a "Who's Who" where a noted person's curriculum vitae is available (the usual information such as date of birth, a biography, and other essential facts.)

NNDB mostly exists to document the connections between people, many of which are not always obvious. A person's otherwise inexplicable behavior is often understood by examining the crowd that person has been associating with.

The Adobe Flash-based "NNDB Mapper " [mapper.nndb.com (dead link, 2020-09-01)] is a visual tool for exploring the connections between people in NNDB, linking them together through family relations, corporate boards, movies and TV, political alliances, and shadowy conspiracy groups. Maps can be saved and shared for others to explore.

• Most recent Internet Archive snapshot [2017-08-23].

North99.org

YELLOW FLAG (potentially questionable content; carefully scrutinize).

MediaBiasFactCheck.com (captured 2020-09-24):  "Overall, we rate North99 Left Biased for story selection that always favors the left, and Mixed for factual reporting due to a few failed fact checks and misleading context of article headlines."

North99 is an independent political movement that supports and opposes candidates based on their commitment or opposition to progressive principles

See main article:  North99.

One America News Network [OAA | OANN]

RED FLAG: excluded from sources:  One America News Network is a notorious far-right cable channel prominent for promoting falsehoods and conspiracy theories.

OpenSecrets.org [Center for Responsive Politics]

Superb!

The Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) is a non-profit, nonpartisan research group based in Washington, D.C., that tracks the effects of money and lobbying on elections and public policy. It maintains a public online database of its information.

"CRP's vision is for Americans to be empowered by access to clear and unbiased information about money's role in politics and policy and to use that knowledge to strengthen our democracy."

Center for Responsive Politics' website, OpenSecrets.org, allows users to track federal campaign contributions and lobbying by lobbying firms, individual lobbyists, industry, dark money, federal agencies, and bills. Other resources include the personal financial disclosures of all members of the U.S. Congress, the President, and top members of the administration. Users can also search by ZIP codes to learn how their neighbors are allocating their political contributions.

Examples:  Top SuperPACs  |  Lawmakers' Estimated Personal Wealth

OpenSecrets.org: SuperPACs [captured 2020-09-03].
[Image source. Click image to open in new window.]

See also:  Dark Money: Investigative Resources

Popular Information [Popular.info]

Founded in 2018 by Judd Legum [<< Wikipedia], Popular Information is a news and opinion blog that publishes a subscription newsletter. Judd Legum is the sole writer and was the original founder of the liberal news website, ThinkProgress, which is now defunct. Judd Legum also worked for the Clinton campaign in 2008. According to their about page "You won't just learn about who is up and who is down. You'll get in-depth information and perspective on the things that really matter."

Overall, we rate Popular Information Left Biased based on story selection and editorial content that routinely favors liberal causes. We also rate them High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a clean fact check record.

Postmedia Network [Canada]

SOURCE:  Wikipedia, captured 2020-09-18
This page last modified: 2020-08-17 16:14:38 -0700 (PST)

Postmedia Network Canada Corp. (also known as Postmedia Network or Postmedia) is a Canadian media conglomerate consisting of the publishing properties of the former CanWest, with primary operations in newspaper publishing, news gathering and Internet operations.

The company's strategy has seen its publications invest greater resources in digital news gathering and distribution, including expanded websites and digital news apps for smartphones and tablets. This began with a revamp and redesign of the Ottawa Citizen, which debuted in 2014.

History

On July 13, 2010, the Manhattan-based hedge fund GoldenTree Asset Management acquired the Asper family's bankrupt CanWest media empire for $1.1 billion.

On October 6, 2014, Postmedia's CEO Godfrey announced a deal to acquire the English-language operations of Sun Media. The purchase received regulatory approval from the federal Competition Bureau on March 25, 2015, even though the company manages competitive papers in several Canadian cities; while the Sun Media chain owns numerous other papers, four of its five Sun-branded tabloids operate in markets where Postmedia already publishes a broadsheet competitor. Board chair Rod Phillips has cited the Vancouver market, in which the two main daily newspapers, the Vancouver Sun and The Province, have had common ownership for over 30 years, as evidence that the deal would not be anticompetitive. The purchase did not include Sun Media's now-defunct Sun News Network. The acquisition was approved by the Competition Bureau on March 25, 2015, and closed on April 13 2015.

Margo Goodhand, a former Edmonton Journal editor-in-chief, wrote in a 2016 Walrus article that Postmedia executives were behind outsourcing of Postmedia content to produce "Regina Leader-Post sports pages, Arts fronts for the Montreal Gazette, editorial pages for the Vancouver Sun" to a site within an office in Canada.

In 2016, the company sought to restructure its compensation plans and reduce spending by as much as 20%, after reporting a net loss of $99.4 million, or 35 cents per diluted share, in the fourth-quarter ended Aug 31, compared with a $54.1 million net loss, or 19 cents per diluted share, in the same period a year earlier. This resulted in 90 newsroom staff losing their jobs.

On November 27, 2017, Postmedia and Torstar announced a transaction in which Postmedia will sell seven dailies, eight community papers, and the Toronto and Vancouver 24 Hours to Torstar, in exchange for 22 community papers and the Ottawa and Winnipeg versions of Metro. Except for the Exeter Times-Advocate, St. Catharines Standard, Niagara Falls Review, Peterborough Examiner, and Welland Tribune, all acquired papers will be closed.

In March 2018, the Competition Bureau issued a court filing accusing the two companies of structuring the deal with no-compete clauses in an effort to reduce competition in the newspaper industry, in violation of the Competition Act.

On June 26, 2018, Canadian Press reported that, by the end of August, Postmedia will be closing the Camrose Canadian in Camrose, Alberta, Strathmore Standard in Strathmore, Alberta, Kapuskasing Northern Times in Kapuskasing, Ontario, Ingersoll Times in Ingersoll, Ontario, Norwich Gazette in Norwich, Ontario and Petrolia Topic in Petrolia, Ontario. It will also cease printing the Portage Daily Graphic in Portage La Prairie, Manitoba, the Northern News in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, and The Daily Observer in Pembroke, Ontario while maintaining a digital presence for the three publications. As well, the High River Times in High River, Alberta will go from being published twice a week to once a week.

On November 27, 2018, The Competition Bureau applied for a court evaluation contesting Postmedia's claims of solicitor-client privilege, for records seized by the bureau during raids at the company's offices.

On June 2019, Kevin Libin, the National Post and Financial Post comments editor and editorials editor and a founding editor of Western Standard, was assigned "executive editor of Postmedia politics." The role focuses on coverage for federal politics in the Post. In addition, it focuses on coverage of federal and provincial politics within all of the dallies owned by Postmedia.

In November 2019, Postmedia announced that 66% of its shares were now owned by Chatham Asset Management, an American media conglomerate which owns American Media, Inc., and is known for its close ties to the Republican party.

[ ... snip ... ]

Poynter Institute for Media Studies ["Poynter Institute"]

Main article.

The Poynter Institute for Media Studies is a non-profit journalism school and research organization located in St. Petersburg, Florida. The school is the owner of the Tampa Bay Times newspaper and the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN).

International Fact-Checking Network [Poynter Institute]

In 2015, the Poynter Institute launched the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN), which sets a code of ethics for fact-checking organizations. The IFCN reviews fact-checkers for compliance with its code, and issues a certification to publishers who pass the audit. The certification lasts for one year, and fact-checkers must be re-examined annually to retain their certifications.

Google, Facebook, and other technology companies use the IFCN's certification to vet publishers for fact-checking contracts.

The IFCN and the American Press Institute jointly publish Factually, a newsletter on fact-checking and journalism ethics.

Post Millennial, The [Canada]

RED FLAG: excluded from sources -- "The Post Millennial publishes national and local news and has a large amount of opinion content. The Post Millennial has been criticized for releasing misinformation and articles written by fake personas, for past employment of an editor with ties to white supremacist-platforming and pro-Kremlin media outlets, and for opaque funding and political connections."

DESPITE the conclusions from MediaBiasFactCheck.com, given the highly disconcerting Wikipedia entry and other media (web) reports, it is concluded that "The Post Millennial" is an internet trolling, disinformation site.

See:  BuriedTruth index page  |  main entry

[FreshDaily.ca, 2020-09-08] Here's what you need to know about the "Hugs Over Masks" groups in Canada.  |  local copy (html, captured 2020-10-19)

Who are Hugs Over Masks associated with?

• Hugs Over Masks is affiliated with one of the country's largest anti-vaccine organizations, Vaccine Choice Canada. A look at the anti-vaccine group's social media shows their opposition to a COVID-19 vaccine as well as masks and social distancing.

• Lawyer John Carpay, President of the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms.  John Carpay is the author of this tripe, on the disinformation "news" source The Post Millennial.

  • [thePostMillennial.com, 2020-07-25] Making face masks mandatory is not backed by science or law -- reposted here  [local copy (html, captured 2020-10-19)] on the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms website.

• Vladislav Sobolev told CBC that Sherri Tenpenny, a U.S. anti-vaccination advocate, is providing online training to his group, "Hugs Over Masks." According to a writer who joined the "Hugs Over Masks" Facebook group, people must answer a series of questions to be accepted, and one of those questions is whether you believe vaccines should be mandatory.

---

PressProgress | PressProgress.ca [Canada]

• PressProgress.ca:

  About PressProgress

  We're producing original, progressive journalism that holds Canada's rich and powerful accountable. PressProgress is a non-profit Canadian news organization that produces original reporting and critical analysis.

  Our new coverage prioritizes under-covered topics that matter to our progressive readership and serve the public interest, including social and economic equality, environmental sustainability, democracy as well as a critical focus on fiscal and social conservative actors and ideas.
  PressProgress was launched as a counter-balance to corporate ownership in Canadian media and the growing influence of right-wing think tanks.
  Our head office is located in Ottawa, with reporters on the ground based in Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia and the Prairies.

  Organizational Structure

  PressProgress was founded in 2013 by the Broadbent Institute, an independent progressive organization dedicated to policy research, leadership training and promoting social democratic values.
  PressProgress operates on a non-profit model and receives funding through the Broadbent Institute. Funding includes individual donations and a monthly donor program called the PressProgress Society.
  All news content published by PressProgress is the original work of PressProgress' dedicated team and is produced according to PressProgress' ethics statement and journalistic standards.
  NOTE.  Full-time editorial and reporting positions for PressProgress are governed under a collective agreement with United Food and Commercial Workers' local 1006-A.

• Broadbent Institute:

  In 2013, the Broadbent Institute launched PressProgress, which describes itself as "Canada's most shared source for progressive news and information." Canadaland's "Guide To New Popular, Populist Political Media" says that PressProgress regularly reports critical stories about politicians, business, and media organizations associated with right-wing politics. A 2017 podcast with PressProgress editor Luke LeBrun when questioning the Broadbent institute's role in coverage, noted that they used the "traditional tools of journalism, like access to information requests, fact-checking and seeking comment from politicians."

  However, Canadaland also reports that PressProgress was absent of any critical coverage of the New Democratic Party (NDP). Journalist Jesse Brown questioned the claim "that there were no formal links between the federal NDP and the think tank" by stating that "PressProgress' news stories often run parallel with NDP talking points and never criticize the NDP for non-progressive choices like supporting a west-to-east pipeline." During the 2019 federal election, the Green Party filed a complaint to National NewsMedia Council after a PressProgress report over the Green Party stance on abortion.

• MediaBiasFactCheck.com:

  History

  Founded in 2013, Press Progress is an online news and analysis website, which is a project of the Broadbent Institute that seeks to provide an online Progressive Political news source. According to their about page "Our work focuses on investigative reporting, fact-checking and keeping tabs on issues that don't get enough attention. We aim to break original stories that Canada's big news outlets miss and advance stories on issues that matter to our progressive readership."

  Read our profile on Canada's media and government.

  Funded by / Ownership

  Press Progress is owned by the Broadbent Institute, which a Canadian progressive and social democratic think tank. It was founded by Ed Broadbent in 2011. Press Progress is funded through donations.

  Analysis / Bias

  In review, Press Progress reports news and opinions that are favorable to the left. There is the frequent use of loaded language that favors the left such as this: 10 Cruel and Unusual Ways Doug Ford Has Made Life Worse 'For the People' of Ontario Since Last Year's Election. This story is appropriately sourced to credible outlets such as the Toronto Star, CBC, and the National Post. In general, story selection always favors the left and denigrates the right through the use of emotional language such as this: Conservative Witness for 'Online Hate' Hearing Was a Recent Guest on a White Nationalist's YouTube Channel. This story is also properly sourced to credible media outlets, though the wording is emotional.

  A factual search reveals they have not failed a fact check.

  Overall, we rate Press Progress Left Biased based on story selection and wording that consistently favors the left and High for factual reporting due to strong sourcing and a clean fact check record. [2017-02-18  |  updated 2019-07-06]

  ---

  [Australia] Quillette

  RED FLAG: excluded from sources -- Homophobia; transphobia; anti-theism; misogyny; pseudo-science (climate change denial); racism; ...

  See Agents of Deception, Disinformation: Australia -- Quillette, and main article: Quillette

• Favored by several homophobic British Columbia Liberal Party members, and neoliberal Luddites in Alberta Premier Jason Kenney's  United Conservative Party; e.g.:

  • [2019-12-05] Why Racists (and Liberals!) Keep Writing for 'Quillette'.  The online magazine of the "intellectual dark web" is repackaging discredited race science

  • [2020-07-06] Jason Kenney's Energy War Room is Spending Tax Dollars on Ads Casting Doubt on Climate Science.sp Canadian Energy Centre spent tax dollars on Facebook ads promoting an article published by the right-wing website Quillette

• Transphobic trolls Meghan Murphy, and Jordan Peterson  [<< links to discussions elsewhere in this file] have both written for Quillette

  Transphobe Jonathan Kay, the Canadian editor for Quillette, was formerly a blogger for the National Post.

  ---

  rabble.ca [Canada]

• See main entry:  rabble.ca

  ---

  The Raw Story

  YELLOW FLAG (potentially questionable content; carefully scrutinize).

• Website: RawStory.com
• Wikipedia

• Salon republishes some content from: AlterNet  |  Raw Story  |  ...

  The Raw Story (also stylized as RawStory) is an American online tabloid founded in 2004 by John K. Byrne. It covers current national and international political events and publishes its own editorials which tend to advocate for progressive positions. The Raw Story is a news site, bringing attention to stories that it sees as downplayed or ignored by other media outlets. It is owned by Raw Story Media, Inc.

  Citation in other media

  The Raw Story has been reported on and featured in The New York Times, The Guardian, LA Weekly, the New York Post, the Toronto Star, The Hill, Rolling Stone, The Advocate, Roll Call, and Mother Jones. With an average 10.7 million readers per month (2015), the site is described by Newsweek as, "Muck, raked: If you're looking for alleged GOP malfeasance, the folks at rawstory.com are frequently scooping the mainstream media."

  On August 4, 2008, the Online News Association announced that RawStory.com was a finalist in the 2008 Online Journalism awards in the "Investigative, Small Site" category for the story, "The permanent Republican majority," about improper partisan influence in the prosecution of former Governor Don Siegelman of Alabama.

  The website's original reporting has also been referenced by MSNBC's Ed Schultz and Lawrence O'Donnell, The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, Real Time with Bill Maher, and Countdown with Keith Olbermann. It was also referenced in 2011 by The Telegraph newspaper, as being the news website that first revealed a contract had been awarded to Ntrepid by United States Central Command as part of Operation Earnest Voice, intended to deploy operatives to create fake online personas abroad.

  Management

  According to the site's masthead, as of July 2018, the editor and publisher is Roxanne Cooper. Other editors include Eric W. Dolan, managing editor, and senior editors David Edwards, Travis Gettys, Martin Cizmar, Tana Ganeva and Sarah Burris.

  Raw Story Media, Inc.

  Raw Story is wholly owned by Raw Story Media, Inc.

  • John K. Byrne -- founder, chairman and CEO, partner
  • Michael Rogers -- vice chairman and managing director, partner

  Raw Story partners John K. Byrne and Michael Rogers announced on April 2, 2018, that they had acquired AlterNet via a newly created company "AlterNet Media." Byrne stated, "AlterNet will continue to carry content from the Independent Media Institute, its prior owner, and former AlterNet writers may appear with Independent Media Institute bylines.

  ---

  MediaBiasFactCheck, captured 2020-09-09.  Factual Reporting: MIXED

  Left Bias. These media sources are moderately to strongly biased toward liberal causes through story selection and/or political affiliation. They may utilize strong loaded words (wording that attempts to influence an audience by using appeal to emotion or stereotypes), publish misleading reports and omit reporting of information that may damage liberal causes. Some sources in this category may be untrustworthy.

  Overall, we rate Raw Story "Left Biased" based on story selection that favors the left and "Mixed" for factual reporting due to half-true, false and unproven claims, as well as promotion of mild pseudoscience misinformation.

  Analysis / Bias

  In review, Raw Story is mostly a news aggregation site that aggregates news from AFP and Reuters. Raw Story also summarizes news from other sources such as this: "Irate customer drags salon owner 50 feet to her death after running out on manicure without paying." Infrequently, they publish original stories such as this: Trans activist detained in Arizona and threatened with deportation due to bureaucratic catch-22. Raw Story consistently utilizes strong emotionally loaded headlines such as "Trump insists border wall will be 'all concrete' -- except where it's 'see-through': 'Makes sense to me!'" and "MSNBC's Morning Joe mocks 'confused' Trump over shutdown boasts: 'Voters are blaming him'".

  When it comes to sourcing, Raw Story generally sources to credible media outlets such as the Washington Blade, Las Vegas Review-Journal, and the St. Louis Post Dispatch. In general, story selection always favors the left and frequently has an anti-Trump tone. Raw Story has published misleading articles that promote miracle cures such as this one: Scientists discover virus that kills all grades of breast cancer 'within seven days'. This headline is misleading, as within the article they clearly state "but not in normal mammary epithelial cells." When it comes to consensus science, they sometimes promote anti-GMO propaganda, however they also publish credible scientifically sound information as well.

  A factual search reveals a Half-True claim from Politifact as well as a false claim and an Unproven claim with Snopes.

  Overall, we rate Raw Story Left Biased based on story selection that favors the left and Mixed for factual reporting due to a half-true, false and unproven claims, as well as promotion of mild pseudoscience misinformation. (5/15/2016) Updated (M. Huitsing 7/26/2019)

  ---

  Rebel News [Canada]

  RED FLAG: excluded from sources -- notorious conspiracy, disinformation and troll site similar to Breitbart News.

• See:  Rebel News

• Notable associations:

  • Co-founder Ezra Levant, a racist / xenophobic, litigious "free-speech" troll, with past affiliations with the Koch Summer Fellow Program (1994), and the Fraser Institute (1996) -- both of which push Koch-influenced neoliberal agendae

  • Co-founder Brian Lilley

  • Jack Posobiec, Rebel Media's Washington, D.C. bureau chief

  • Former Sun News Network

  • White supremacist Richard B. Spencer

  • Procession of other white supremacist, neo-Nazi, ... trolls ...

  ---

  Ricochet.media

• Ricochet.media

• Not to be confused with Ricochet.com:

  • "Ricocet.com" is an online disinformation source that includes content and discussion (e.g.) associated with the disinformation troll Mark Steyn.

  • In contrast, "Ricochet.media" -- a high-quality, Canadian new site -- makes no mention of Mark Steyn.

  ---

  Ricochet.media: About

  We practise public-interest journalism.

  Media concentration, layoffs, advertising so pervasive it becomes the content: the world of journalism is in crisis. Ricochet is an audacious response to a difficult context. Independent, dedicated to investigative journalism and incisive opinion, Ricochet seeks to illuminate the cultural and political diversity within Canada.

  Ricochet is the product of collaboration between anglophones and francophones in a plurinational Canada, informed by an understanding of our colonial histories and supportive of contemporary Indigenous struggles. Bringing together English and French, Ricochet is composed of two distinct editions that maintain editorial independence.

  Crowdfunded and serving the public interest, Ricochet provides entirely free content, contrary to the current tendency to hide information behind paywalls. By supporting a new model of media, our readers are financing real independent journalism.

  Founded in 2014, Ricochet is a multiplatform news outlet, with offices in Vancouver and Montreal.

  Ricochet.media: Conflict Policy

  No editor may assign a story, and no journalist may cover one, in which they have a current personal or pecuniary interest. In the case of opinion writing, any current personal or pecuniary interest should be disclosed.

  Ricochet.media: Miscellany

• [2020-09-08] Christopher Curtis: Why I'm quitting Postmedia to test a new model of journalism.  Award-winning journalist launches new reporting project with Ricochet

  ---

  Ricochet (website) | Ricochet.com

  RED FLAG: excluded from sources:  Ricochet (website)  |  Ricochet.com

• Not to be confused with Ricochet.media:

  • "Ricocet.com" is an online disinformation source that includes content and discussion (e.g.) associated with the disinformation troll Mark Steyn.

  • In contrast, "Ricochet.media" -- a high-quality, Canadian new site -- makes no mention of Mark Steyn.

  ---

  Ricochet.com is an online community portal founded as a "politics website intended to resemble Facebook and Twitter." It is a subscription site which has articles posted by contributors and members on which members can comment and discuss the issues raised. The site describes itself as a place for "center-right conversation" and is listed on a libertarian website as being for "Conservative/National Review Types." Members pay a fee to post and comment on the website.

  The site was started in May 2010 and founded by Rob Long and Peter Robinson. Its flagship podcast is hosted by Long, Robinson, and Minneapolis writer James Lileks. Bethany Mandel is one of the current editors. Past editors have included Mollie Hemingway and Claire Berlinski.

  Ricochet.com serves as a host for conservative podcasts including ones produced by National Review. In 2016, the site grouped its podcasts into the Ricochet Network which can be downloaded on a group feed. Some of the podcasts are hosted or led by conservative-leaning figures such as Bill Bennett, James Delingpole, Richard Epstein, Erick Erickson, Jim Geraghty, Jonah Goldberg, Victor Davis Hanson, Steve Hayward, Andrew Klavan, Jay Nordlinger, Larry O'Connor, John Podhoretz, Byron York, John Yoo, and Toby Young.

  ---

  Right Wing Watch | RightWingWatch.org

• Website: RightWingWatch.org

• Wikipedia:

  People for the American Way (PFAW) monitors what it considers right-wing activities by sponsoring a website called Right Wing Watch that showcases video footage of groups and individuals who take conservative stances on social issues. The web site, Right Wing Watch, was founded in 2007, expanding on PFAW's earlier practice of VHS recording controversial clips from conservative television programs, such as Pat Robertson's 700 Club, for distribution to news media. In 2013, evangelist and politician Gordon Klingenschmitt sent DMCA takedown notices for Right Wing Watch's using clips of his program, in which Right Wing Watch was defended by the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

  In 2014, Jason and David Benham lost the opportunity to host their own HGTV television show after Right Wing Watch labeled the brothers as "anti-gay, anti-choice extremists" because of their statements at various events about homosexuality.

  In 2018, Jared Holt, a Right Wing Watch researcher, was credited for getting conservative radio show host Alex Jones's InfoWars program removed from multiple content distribution sites, including Apple, Inc, YouTube, Facebook, and Spotify. Afterwards Holt says he received death threats.

  Right Wing Watch has been quoted by NPR, Fortune, The Daily Beast, The Huffington Post, and a local Fox News affiliate.

• MediaBiasFactCheck.com

  LEFT BIAS. These media sources are moderately to strongly biased toward liberal causes through story selection and/or political affiliation. They may utilize strong loaded words (wording that attempts to influence an audience by using appeal to emotion or stereotypes), publish misleading reports and omit reporting of information that may damage liberal causes. Some sources in this category may be untrustworthy. See all Left Bias sources.

  Overall, we rate Right Wing Watch Left Biased based on story selection and editorial positions that favor the left. We also rate them High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing of information and a clean fact check record.

  ---

  Factual Reporting: HIGH  History.  Right Wing Watch keeps track of a variety of organizations, but the groups they track do tend to be conservative extremists in one regard or another. According to their about page "Right Wing Watch is a project of People For the American Way (PFAW) dedicated to monitoring and exposing the activities and rhetoric of right-wing activists and organizations in order to expose their extreme agenda." Adele M. Stan is the research director.

  Funded by / Ownership.  Right Wing Watch is a project of the People For the American Way (PFAW), which is a progressive advocacy group in the United States. "Organized as a 501(c)(4) non-profit organization, PFAW was registered in 1981 by the television producer Norman Lear. PFAW was founded in opposition to the publicized agenda of the Moral Majority, a formerly prominent and influential American political organization associated with the Christian right." Funding is derived from donations to the People For the American Way.

  Analysis / Bias.  In review, the mission of Right Wing Watch is to "expose the activities and rhetoric of right-wing activists and organizations in order to expose their extreme agenda." They frequently report on right-wing conspiracy theories such as this: This GOP Challenger to Ilhan Omar '100%' Stands with QAnon. This story is properly sourced to the left-leaning sources The Daily Beast and Rolling Stone. Right Wing Watch also frequently reports negatively on the Trump administration, such as this: Is Donald Trump Fulfilling White Nationalist Jared Taylor's Dreams? This story is also properly sourced to the Guardian and Vanity Fair. Finally, they report on the Alt-right and White Nationalism, such as this: Infowars is Working to Sanitize the White Nationalist Group Formerly Known as Identity Evropa. In general, story selection always favors the left and is properly sourced.

  Failed Fact Checks.  None to date. In fact, Right Wing Watch is frequently used as a reliable source for the Poynter Institute's  International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) fact-checkers.

  Overall, we rate Right Wing Watch LEFT BIASED based on story selection and editorial positions that favor the left. We also rate them HIGH for factual reporting due to proper sourcing of information and a clean fact check record. (5/15/2016) Update (D. Van Zandt 5/04/2020)

  ---

  RT.com | RT (TV network)

  RED FLAG: excluded from sources:  RT.com (<< Wikipedia entry)

  RT (formerly Russia Today) is a Russian government-funded international television network directed to audiences outside of Russia, as well as providing Internet content in English, Spanish, French, German, Arabic, and Russian.

  RT is a brand of "TV-Novosti," an "autonomous non-profit organization," founded by the Russian news agency, RIA Novosti, on 6 April 2005. During the economic crisis in December 2008, the Russian government, headed by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, included ANO "TV-Novosti" on its list of core organizations of strategic importance of Russia.

  RT has been described as a propaganda outlet for the Russian government and its foreign policy. RT has also been accused of spreading disinformation by news reporters, including some former RT reporters. The UK media regulator, Ofcom, has repeatedly found RT to have breached its rules on impartiality and on one occasion found it had broadcast "materially misleading" content. RT's editor-in-chief compared it with the Russian Army and Defence Ministry and talked about it "waging the information war against the entire Western world." In September 2017, RT America was ordered to register as a "foreign agent" with the United States Department of Justice under the Foreign Agents Registration Act. Under the act, RT is required to disclose financial information to the U.S.

  Max Blumenthal established and writes for theGrayZone.com -- which purports to be an independent investigative journalism site, but is tainted by Blumenthal and his associations (e.g.) with RT.com, and other questionable journalistic practices (e.g.: anti-Zionism).

  Airing Conspiracy Theories

  A 2013 article in Der Spiegel noted that RT "uses a chaotic mixture of conspiracy theories and crude propaganda," pointing to a program that "mutated" the Boston Marathon bombings into a U.S. government conspiracy. The launch of RT UK was the subject of much comment in the British press. In The Observer, Nick Cohen accused the channel of spreading conspiracy theories and being a "prostitution of journalism" and in The Times, Oliver Kamm called on broadcast regulator Ofcom to act against this "den of deceivers." In 2015, Peter Pomerantsev in The Guardian accused RT of disinformation and of spreading conspiracy theories. Journalists at The Daily Beast and The Washington Post have noted that RT employs Tony Gosling, an exponent of long-discredited theories concerning the alleged control of the world by Illuminati and the Czarist antisemitic forgery The Protocols of the Elders of Zion. For example, Russia Today broadcast stories about microchips being implanted into office workers in EU to make them more "submissive"; about "majority" of Europeans supporting Russian annexation of Crimea; EU preparing "a form of genocide" against Russians; in Germany it falsely reported about a kidnapping of a Russian girl; that "NATO planned to store nuclear weapons in Eastern Europe"; that Hillary Clinton fell ill; it has also on many occasions misrepresented or invented statements from European leaders. In response to accusations of spreading fake news RT started its own FakeCheck project. The Poynter Institute conducted a content analysis of FakeCheck and concluded it "mixes some legitimate debunks with other scantily sourced or dubiously framed 'fact checks.'" A report by RAND called the RT strategy "a firehose of falsehood," where fake stories are distributed in "high-volume and multichanneel, rapid, continuous, and repetitive" with no regard to consistency, where the high volume makes them difficult to counter.

• See also [theGuardian.com, 2017-11-29]:  24-hour Putin people: my week watching Kremlin 'propaganda channel' RT.  Formerly known as Russia Today, the channel gives airtime to pundits from left and right -- many of them UK politicians. After a week watching its often surreal output, our writer asks himself: is this really the best Moscow can do?  |  local copy (html)

  "More than outright lies, RT deals in moral equivalency. Its defenders don't deny bias; they deny the possibility of objectivity. They say western media is equally biased. They liken RT to state broadcasters such as the BBC, France 24 and al Jazeera. They say other news channels have been sanctioned by Ofcom. It's a triumph of cynicism: we're all just as bad as each other."

  ---

  Salon

  YELLOW FLAG (potentially questionable content; carefully scrutinize) -- due to sourcing (reposting) of articles from less reputable sources AlterNet,  Raw Story, ...

• Salon.com
• Wikipedia:

  Some AlterNet content is republished on Salon

• See also:  Raw Story

• MediaBiasFactCheck.com: Factual Reporting: HIGH

  Funded by / Ownership.  Salon is owned by the Salon Media Group and is funded through periodic cash infusions from John Warnock and William Hambrecht. Revenue is generated through online advertising as well as subscription fees for exclusive content and sales from the marketplace.

  ---

  Analysis / Bias.  Overall, we rate Salon Left Biased based on story selection that strongly favors the left and endorsements of political positions that are affiliated with the Democratic Party. We also rate them High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing of information and adherence to the consensus of science.

  In review, Salon focuses on U.S. politics and current affairs. Story selection almost always favors the left and there is frequent use of loaded emotional language such as this: What campus free speech? Arizona case shows how far the right will go to stifle dissent. This story, like most on Salon is properly sourced to credible media such as the New York Times, The Guardian and the Arizona Republic. Salon also publishes health and science news that is scientifically based. Editorially, Salon utilizes strong wording that is anti-right in tone such as this: Donald Trump is running for president as a flat-out racist. Further, they do not clearly label opinion pieces which can be misleading.

  A factual search reveals that they have been a part of a failed a fact check, but not the primary source.

  Overall, we rate Salon Left Biased based on story selection that strongly favors the left and endorsements of political positions that are affiliated with the Democratic Party. We also rate them High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing of information and adherence to the consensus of science. (D. Van Zandt 5/15/2016) Updated (4/7/2019)

  ---

  SaltWire Network [Canada]

• Name: SaltWire Network Inc.
• Type: Public
• Industry: Mass media
• Founded: 2017
• Headquarters: Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
• Area served: Atlantic Canada
• Key people: Mark Lever, CEO
• Owner: Dennis family
• Website: SaltWire.com

  SOURCE:  Wikipedia, captured 2020-09-18
  This page last modified: 2020-08-17 16:14:38 -0700 (PST)

  SaltWire Network Inc. is a Canadian newspaper publishing company owned by the Dennis-Lever family of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Saltwire owns and publishes 35 daily and weekly newspapers in Atlantic Canada.

  Combined with the Chronicle Herald's existing community newspaper holdings, in 2017 the company published 35 titles overall, mainly acquired from Transcontinental Media.

  History

  On April 13, 2017, Halifax's independently-owned The Chronicle Herald announced its acquisition of 27 newspapers in the region from Transcontinental Media, via the newly-formed parent company SaltWire Network. The company had begun a gradual exit from mainstream publishing in order to focus on specialty media and educational publishing. The exact purchase price was not disclosed, although business analysts estimated that the publications were worth approximately $30 million in total. The transaction was criticized by a number of analysts, as it occurred in the middle of a strike by Chronicle Herald employees during which the paper had claimed declining revenues as its reason for demanding major concessions including wage reductions, reduced pension contributions and the removal of several staff divisions from the bargaining unit.

  In June 2018, SaltWire Network changed the Carbonear-based weekly newspaper, "The Compass," from a subscriber model to a free total market product deliver as a flyer package wrap.

  In July 2019, SaltWire Network closed "The Beacon," "The Advertiser," "The Pilot," and "The Nor'wester," and merged them into a free weekly known as "The Central Voice" -- which began publication on August 1, 2018.

  In March 2019, all SaltWire publications introduced metered paywalls.

  In March 2019, SaltWire announced the sale of 10 of its buildings across Atlantic Canada.

  Also in March 2019, the company terminated its affiliation with the Canadian Press newswire service, opting instead to become a client of Postmedia and Reuters.

  In April 2019, SaltWire announced it was turning "The Western Star" into a weekly delivered free to consumers as a flyer wrap. This resulted in the layoff of around 30 employees. Independent delivery contractors were also affected. At the same time, it was announced that the two Labrador weeklies would merge into one called "The Labrador Voice."

  In April 2019, SaltWire filed a lawsuit in the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia against Transcontinental, accusing it of overstating and misrepresenting details surrounding the revenue of the papers it had acquired. The company threatened a counter-suit, stating that the sale was "conducted based on fair, accurate and timely information," and accusing SaltWire of failing to "fulfil its payment obligations."

  Publications

  [ ... snip ... ]

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  SourceWatch.org

  RED FLAG: excluded from sources.

  I have been collecting data (articles, information, ...) on nonprofit "dark money" organizations and influencers. Due to the anonymity of many of the donors and other obfuscations: use of aliases, ...) it can be difficult to fine information on those groups via Wikipedia and web searches.

  Although SourceWatch.org and InfluenceWatch.org provide relatively comprehensive Wikipedia-like entries for many of these nonprofits, closer inspection of the entries provide by SourceWatch and InfluenceWatch raise concerns regarding the deep-rooted biases inherent in each of those sites.

  The obfuscation of disinformation that I have encountered during my research, that similarly affects everyone doing online research, is indicated in the following exemplar.

  • SourceWatch.org -- an online project of the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) -- provides surprisingly detailed wiki pages on influencer nonprofit 501(c) organizations that supplements analogous Wikipedia articles (indeed, often providing pages when no Wikipedia articles can be found).

  • The Wikipedia page for the Center for Media and Democracy describes it as a progressive nonprofit watchdog and advocacy organization and liberal advocacy group ... However (a RED FLAG), it also states that the CMD has received donations from George Soros' Open Society foundations.

    CMD's Wikipedia article also states:

    "According to the conservative news website Watchdog.org, the Tides Foundation, a foundation known to donate primarily to liberal organizations, reported giving CMD $160,000 in 2011, but that money did not appear on CMD's tax return. When asked why CMD heavily criticizes conservative organizations for not revealing their donors while refusing to name all of CMD's funders, CMD's president Lisa Graves said, 'The question of conservative funders versus liberal funders, I think, is a matter of false equivalency. Quite frankly a number of these (corporate donors) like Koch Industries ... they're advancing not just an ideological agenda but an agenda that helps advance the bottom line of their corporate interests. That's quite a distinct difference from some of the funders in the progressive universe.'"

    Apropos to this discussion, I append this statement to my version of the [George Soros] "Open Society Foundations" Wikipedia page:

    • Not indicated in this Wikipedia entry:

      • George Soros / Open Society Foundation is a known, very significant funder of -- or is a member of groups (e.g. Democracy Alliance) that recommend donations to -- the highly malignant fake news / disinformation campaign umbrella group, the Sixteen Thirty Fund: : refer here  |  here  |  here,  and   |  here.

  • In diametric opposition, another source -- "InfluenceWatch.org" -- provides highly critical overviews of both the Center for Media and Democracy and SourceWatch -- rather savagely attacking them as having a left-leaning, liberal bias marred by hypocrisy and dark money sources.

  • That sounds alarming, so I searched Wikipedia for "InfluenceWatch" -- which, in Wikipedia, redirects to the Capital Research Center which it describes as

    "an American conservative and libertarian non-profit organization located in Washington, D.C."

    That sounds good; however, later in that Wikipedia entry:

    "CRC was founded in 1984 by Willa Johnson, former senior vice president of the Heritage Foundation, ... In 2011, Politico reported that CRC had received millions of dollars from conservative philanthropists over the years, with a total budget in 2009 of $1.4 million. Donors have included foundations run by the Koch family, the Scaifes, and the Bradleys [Bradley Foundation]. As of 2017, CRC had received more than $265,000 from ExxonMobil. ..."

    Ouch -- those are major anonymizers, lobbyists, and disinformation campaigners!

    Aside: In their "Bradley Files," the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD), publishers of SourceWatch, launched a series of attack articles on the Milwaukee-based Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, exposing the inner-workings of one of America's largest right-wing foundations. ...

    Another RED FLAG re: InfluenceWatch.com: in a 2018-02-04 disinformation / misinformation article by the Heritage Foundation, Rebecca Hagelin attacked George Soros and his Open Society Foundations -- concluding with

    "... Visit sites where there are copies of legal documents and filings that reveal the truth. Three great resources are DiscovertheNetworks.org, InfluenceWatch.org and AmericanEvangelicals.com. ..."

    The fact that an appallingly malicious group like the Heritage Foundation and its minions refer you to those sites casts doubt on the true purpose of those sites, and the veracity of their content!

  The discussion above highlights the need to question and critically evaluate all source data, comparing it to multiple sources and validating it as much as possible (discounting those sources and content known to be disreputable).

  ---

  Sun News Network | Sun News | Sun Media

  RED FLAG: excluded from sources:

• Wikipedia  |  Controversy and criticism

• Defunct: closed 2015-02-13.

  ... The Sun News Network, known for its right-of centre editorial stance, was plagued with poor viewership: the network reported an average of 8,000 viewers, which was significantly lower than its competitors, CBC News Network and CTV News Channel. This lack of viewership has been attributed in part to failing to gain mandatory carriage, which their competitors enjoyed, by the CRTC. Following failed attempts to sell the network to ZoomerMedia (a company owned by Canadian television executive Moses Znaimer) and Leonard Asper, Sun News Network abruptly signed off on February 13, 2015 at 5:00 a.m. ET. ...

  Criticism by former staff

  Writing several years after leaving Sun News, former senior anchor Theo Caldwell wrote of the station's output that "the finished product was lousy television, even by Canadian standards." He also complained that he was not being paid, despite his contract, and finally quit as a result. Caldwell described management's view on mandatory carriage as "hypocritical." "At first, when they imagined the station would be a blockbuster success, they mocked the very idea of mandatory carriage. When it became clear, however, that no amount of Suzuki-bashing and Justin Trudeau prizefights could save the enterprise, they insisted it was unfair not to grant Sun a guaranteed income stream, on the risible basis that CBC and CTV had received similar treatment decades before. It wasn't honest, and it is astounding that Peladeau and Sun management could undertake such a blatant reversal without a trace of irony."

  On the reason for the channel's failure, Caldwell wrote: "Simply put, if Sun were good, people would have watched it. The channel was available in 5 million homes, yet garnered only a few thousand viewers... The simple truth is that Sun News was mind-bendingly bad television, and only a dysfunctional crew led by the likes of Peladeau could have thought it would catch on."

  Former anchor Krista Erickson wrote an article for National Newswatch in 2015 that singled out former Québecor Média [Quebecor] Vice-President Kory Teneycke, who was in charge of the channel, for criticism calling him a "controlling authoritarian" whose pro-Conservative Party "partisanship often went into overdrive" at the channel's expense. ...

  [ ... snip ... ]

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  Sun Media

  RED FLAG: excluded from sources:

  Sun Media Corporation was the owner of several tabloid and broadsheet newspapers in Canada and the 49 percent owner of the now defunct Sun News Network. It was a subsidiary of Quebecor Media. On October 6, 2014, Quebecor Media announced the sale of the remaining English-language print assets of Sun Media to rival Postmedia. The sale did not include the Sun News Network, which subsequently closed when a buyer was not found, nor Quebecor's French-language papers Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec. The sale was approved by the federal Competition Bureau on March 25, 2015, and closed on April 13. Canoe Sun Media merged with Postmedia rather than being maintained as a separate division. Quebecor had previously sold its community newspapers in Quebec to TC Transcontinental in June 2014, under a deal first announced in December 2013.

  [ ... snip ... ]

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  Toronto Sun

  YELLOW FLAG (potentially questionable content; carefully scrutinize) -- particularly due to associations with Torstar,  Post Media,  Sun Media, and columnist Brian Lilley (previously associated with Rebel News and Sun News Network).

  ... The Toronto Sun is owned by Post Media following the 2015 purchase of Sun Media from Quebecor.  Torstar, the parent company of the Toronto Star, once attempted to purchase the Toronto Sun.

  The Toronto Star, which boasts the slogan "Toronto's Other Voice" (also once called "The Little Paper that Grew") acquired a television station from Craig Media in 2005, which was renamed SUN TV and later was transformed into the Sun News Network, until its demise in 2015. By the mid-2000s, the word "The" was dropped from the paper's name and the newspaper adopted its current logo. ...

  ... Editorially, the paper frequently follows the positions of traditional Canadian/British conservatism and neo-conservatism in the United States on economic issues. Editorials typically promote individualism, self-reliance, the police, and a strong military and support for troops. Editorials typically condemn high taxes and, most of all, perceived government waste. ...

  ---

  Washington Post [ WashingtonPost.com ]

• Wikipedia  [captured 2020-07-03]:

  On August 5, 2013, Bezos announced his purchase of Washington Post for $250 million in cash. To execute the sale, he established Nash Holdings, a limited liability holding company that legally owns the paper. The sale closed on October 1, 2013, and Nash Holdings took control.

  In March 2014, Bezos made his first significant change at The Washington Post and lifted the online paywall for subscribers of a number of U.S. local newspapers in Texas, Hawaii, and Minnesota. In January 2016, Bezos set out to reinvent the newspaper as a media and technology company by reconstructing its digital media, mobile platforms, and analytics software.

  Throughout the early years of ownership, Bezos was accused of having a potential conflict of interest with the paper. Bezos and the newspaper's editorial board have dismissed accusations that he unfairly controlled the paper's content and Bezos maintains the paper's independence. After a surge in online readership in 2016, the paper was profitable for the first time since Bezos made the purchase in 2013.

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  Washington Times [ WashingtonTimes.com ]

• WashingtonTimes.com  << Media Bias Fact Check

• Has published disinformation / misinformation articles by the Heritage Foundation -- e.g., this 2018-02-04 article by Rebecca Hagelin, attacking George Soros and his Open Society Foundations.

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  Western Standard

  RED FLAG: excluded from sources:  Western Standard

  Canadian disinformation source, originally founded in 2004 by disinformation troll Ezra Isaac Levant; later relaunched in 2019 by disinformation troll Derek Fildebrandt.

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