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An AllSides analysis of SmartNews in December 2025 found that the news aggregator displayed more sources with an AllSides Media Bias Rating™ on the left and Center than the right.
The aggregator appears to have gotten more balanced since our 2023 bias analysis: there was a 27% decrease in sources on the left, a 2% increase in Center sources, and 6% increase in sources on the right.
Of 280 articles evaluated over a two-week period, SmartNews displayed:
- 29% outlets on the left
- 34% outlets rated Center
- 8% outlets on the right
- 30% outlets not rated by AllSides.
Note: Percentages are rounded to whole numbers; totals may not sum exactly due to rounding.
Breaking down the bias ratings further:
- 7% of outlets shown on SmartNews were from outlets rated Left
- 22% Lean Left
- 34% Center
- 2% Right
- 5% Lean Right.
The top five sources appearing the most often were The Hill (Center bias), Reuters (Center bias), ABC News (Lean Left bias), CBS News (Lean Left bias), and CNN (Lean Left bias).
AllSides’ analysis looked at four sections of the SmartNews application: “Top news,” “U.S.,” “World,” and “Politics.” A total of 70 articles per section were collected.
A breakdown of bias by section is as follows (ranked by percent on the left):
- “Top news” section: 44% on the left, 13% Center, 6% on the right
- “Politics section: 33% on the left, 59% Center, 9% on the right
- “U.S.” section: 29% on the left, 33% Center, 7% on the right
- “World” section: 9% on the left, 33% Center, 9% on the right
Read the full report on AllSides’ 2025 SmartNews Analysis here.
RELATED: AllSides News Aggregator Bias Chart
Bias in News Aggregators
Just because the news is aggregated from different sources does not mean readers are getting the full picture. But our analysis indicates that SmartNews might be moving toward a more balanced aggregation of news.
AllSides has found a similar pattern in NewsBreak, which also increased its curation of outlets on the right in 2025. Hopefully the trend toward more balanced aggregation continues, so readers are able to better understand the landscape of perspectives and decide what they think for themselves.
The AllSides News Aggregator Bias Chart, first released in 2024, plots the political bias of popular news aggregators.
AllSides Media Bias Ratings™ reflect the average judgment of all Americans, not just a panel of insiders. Ratings are driven by a balance of input from experts and ordinary people across the political spectrum to reveal the average judgment of Americans. AllSides uses multiple methodologies to rate bias, including Editorial Reviews and Blind Bias Surveys of Americans.
RELATED: AllSides Media Bias Chart
Please contact AllSides for inquiries about this news aggregator bias analysis.
Clare Ashcraft is the Bridging Coordinator and Media Analyst at AllSides. She has a Center bias.
Visuals by Andrew Weinzierl, Director of Research at AllSides (Lean Left bias).
Reviews and edits by Julie Mastrine, Director of Communications and Bias Services (Lean Right bias).
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