Shaping the Narrative: How Major Media Outlets Cover International News

How do news outlets across the political spectrum drive our discussions on international news?

For the six-part Shaping the Narrative series, AllSides examined how often national news media outlets featured select topics on their homepages, including: the economy, the Trump administration, politics, international news, immigration, and crime.

In part five of this series, we’re breaking down coverage of international news. Some key findings were: 

• Center outlets featured international news the most – at 25% of total coverage
• Left outlets related international news stories back to the Trump administration’s tariffs around half of the time
• Center outlets featured the Russia-Ukraine conflict (20%) more than the Israel-Hamas conflict (13%)
• Right outlets tended to publish stories on international news with favorable framing to the Trump administration (echoing behavior from the Shaping the Narrative: Trump administration analysis)

We collected and analyzed headlines from the homepages of 16 outlets across the political spectrum over the course of 14 days (April 9 – April 22, 2025). Readers should note that republished wire coverage from organizations such as Associated Press (Left bias), Reuters (Center bias), UPI (Center bias), and AFP (Not Rated) was included in the collection.

For the purposes of this study, a media outlet was determined to cover “international news” if it wrote about the Middle East, Russia-Ukraine conflict, Israel-Hamas conflict, and daily news outside the US. (Full Breakdown per Topic - Report) Moreover, what led to an article being labeled international news was determined by AllSides’ Topic Mapping Methodology. 

Note: Outlets may have changed their headlines since the data collection period. Our analysis is based on the headlines as they appeared when collected. For the purposes of this project, wire news content and opinion pieces were included in the overall headline analysis for each hosting news outlet. AllSides assumes that such content passed each outlet’s standard of review and is thus attributed to the hosting news outlet.

Read more from the Shaping the Narrative series:

• Shaping the Narrative: Economy
• Shaping the Narrative: Trump Administration
• Shaping the Narrative: Politics
• Shaping the Narrative: Immigration

Which News Outlets Covered International News the Most/Least?

International news was the fourth most prominent topic featured by the sampled outlets, appearing in 259 of the 2,240 articles AllSides analyzed in the Shaping the Narrative project.

Center outlets featured international news on their homepages the most during the research period – representing, on average, about 25% of coverage. 

BBC News (Center bias) featured the topic the most, at 36% of all homepage coverage by the outlet. This was followed by Reuters (Center bias) at 25%, and Breitbart (Right bias) at 20%. 

The outlet that featured content on international news through its homepage the least was Vox (Left bias) at 1% of total media content. 

How Are Left & Lean Left Outlets Covering International News?

Left and Lean Left outlets featured international news on their homepages the least – at 8% of coverage on average. Outlets on the left typically framed international news stories as responses to the Trump administration. Additionally, about half of all headlines observed on these outlets’ homepages were in direct relation to the economy. These outlets often wrote sensationalist headlines that emphasized the role of the US in foreign affairs. 

Read more on AllSides’ topic weighting in AllSides’ Topic Mapping Methodology.

HuffPost (Left bias) published the sensationalist headline, “Global Stock Markets Keep Swinging As Trade War Escalates.” It should be noted that HuffPost listed a different title for the AP wire on its homepage “Dow Surges 2,600 As U.S. Stocks Soar In Relief After Trump Pauses Some Of His Tariffs” which was less sensational but spun through the use of the word ‘relief.’ 

Associated Press (Left bias) wrote, “Iran-US talks over Tehran’s nuclear program hinge on a billionaire and a seasoned diplomat.” While the headline indicated the high stakes of the Iran-US talks, the article text itself indicated a disapproval of the individuals chosen by the Trump administration to handle the Iran-US talks. The outlet mind-read in the article to reinforce this bias, noting how a billionaire must have been chosen by Trump to serve in his administration because Trump’s “whole identity as a businessman” makes the billionaire “someone he can understand.” This interpretation of real estate mogul-turned Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff’s credentials stands in direct contrast to a previous news story by the outlet which made note of Witkoff’s past successes in negotiations with foreign nations.

The New York Times (Lean Left bias) wrote the sensational headline, “Europe Fears US Tariffs Will Set Off a Flood of Cheap Goods From China,” through the use of words "fears" and "flood" increasing the intensity of the situation reported.

The Washington Post (Lean Left bias) spun the headline, “U.S China barrel towards the bottom as Trump and Xi refuse to backdown” through the pejorative use of the phrase “barrel towards the bottom.” Additionally, the outlet engaged in sensationalism in stating that Xi Jinping “refuse[d]” to back down in a trade war.

How Are Center Outlets Covering International News?

Center outlets featured international news the most – at 25% of total homepage coverage. The data indicated that these outlets took a wider approach to international news, often relating to the US, while remaining focused on smaller stories across the globe.

Center outlets dedicated more coverage to the Russia-Ukraine conflict – about 20% – as opposed to the Israel-Hamas conflict – about 13%. 

BBC News’ (Center bias) coverage of international news was geographically widespread, including stories from the UK, Israel, Sudan, Ukraine, and more. This variety in international coverage led to minimal trends in coverage, beyond a particular emphasis on stories related to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. 

Reuters (Center bias) wrote the sensational headline, “China hits back at Trump tariff hike. US stands its ground.” Through the use of the phrases “hits back” and “stands its ground,” Reuters frames the trade disagreement as an ongoing altercation. Reuters often mirrored Left or Lean Left outlet tendencies in how it tied international news to the economy.

The Wall Street Journal News (Center bias) wrote the sensational headline, “China Has Readied a Trade-War Arsenal That Takes Aim at U.S. Companies.” Similar to Reuters, the headline alludes to a back-and-forth between the two countries that has escalated into an altercation. Moreover, the headline spun the effects of this “war” to be especially harmful to US companies moving forward. Whether or not this is true, the article doesn’t provide any data or evidence to support the claim, which may constitute as an unsubstantiated claim.

How Are Right and Lean Right Outlets Covering International News?

Right outlets generally featured stories on international news with relation to the US’ involvement and often with favorable spin on its involvement. Lean Right outlets displayed more balance with international news than in previous Shaping the Narrative analyses, often including left and right perspectives.

Breitbart (Right bias) published the headline, “WE OWE OUR LIVES TO YOU': FORMER HAMAS HOSTAGES THANK TRUMP, ASK HIM TO HELP SAVE OTHERS,” framing Trump’s engagement with the Hamas conflict through a more positive lens than Left outlets have, an example of story choice bias and slant. 

Fox News (Right bias) wrote the sensationalist headline, “Ahead of high-stakes US-Iran nuclear talks, new report has serious warning.” While the research provided within the article may warrant a look into the danger of the US-Iran negotiations, Fox News was the only outlet to dedicate favorable homepage placement for this report, an example of story choice bias and bias by story placement.

The New York Post (Lean Right bias) published the headline, “Hamas claims it ‘lost contact’ with the captors of final living American hostage Edan Alexander.” The outlet included Hamas’ perspective near the top of the article, followed by Israel’s comments on the situation. However, throughout the article, the outlet framed Hamas as a “terror group” and labeled a video as “propaganda,” displaying word choice bias and negative framing.

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The Washington Examiner (Lean Right bias) published an original report that found a potential connection between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and a nonprofit organization that helped manage US military sites. The outlet published follow-up stories several times during the content collection period, which took up the majority of its international news reporting. As a result, the outlet did not exhibit much in terms of AllSides’ 16 types of bias in its limited coverage – 4% – of the topic. 

Was Coverage Influenced by Political Bias?

Perhaps the most important factor to consider before interpreting the effects of political bias on coverage of international news is the discussion of the Associated Press (Left bias). A vast majority of content posted by Breitbart (Right bias), Newsmax (Right bias), as well as some published content from other outlets like HuffPost (Left bias) were wire pieces from the Associated Press. This results in an overrepresentation of Associated Press in our data sample, leading to an uncertain answer on whether political bias influenced coverage.

Center outlets covered international news the most out of all bias groups. A disproportionate amount of coverage on international news was from BBC News (Center bias) and Reuters (Center bias), both outlets based outside of America. This suggests that the data may inflate or skew upward the level of international coverage typically provided by Center outlets. 

Meanwhile, outlets from the left and right, which primarily cater to an American audience, do not cover international news as often, likely reflecting the interests of their readers.
 

See how major media outlets covered Crime in the sixth part of our analysis.

Emanuel Macuixtle is a Policy Analyst and Research Assistant at AllSides. He has a Left bias.

This blog was edited and reviewed by Andrew Weinzrierl, Bias Research Manager & Data Journalist (Lean Left), Gabriel James, Content Intern (Center), Andy Gorel, News Editor and Bias Analyst (Center), Henry A. Brechter, Editor-in-Chief (Center), and Johnathon Held, News & Bias Analyst (Lean Right).