Axios

About Axios's Bias Rating

Axios is featured on the AllSides Media Bias Chart™.

Axios is a news media source with an AllSides Media Bias Rating™ of Lean Left.

What a "Lean Left" Rating Means

Sources with an AllSides Media Bias Rating of Lean Left display media bias in ways that moderately align with liberal, progressive, or left-wing thought and/or policy agendas. A Lean Left bias is a moderately liberal rating on the political spectrum.

• Axios Bias Moved to Lean Left Following Feb. 2023 Blind Bias Survey and Editorial Review
• Sept. 2020 Independent Review
• May 2017 Blind Bias Survey and Independent Review

Axios Bias Moved to Lean Left Following Feb. 2023 Blind Bias Survey and Editorial Review

Axios' bias was rated Lean Left by Americans across the political spectrum in the Feb. 2023 Blind Bias Survey. Axios was rated Center by AllSides at the time. After conducting an Editorial Review, Axios' bias was moved from Center to Lean Left.

On average, respondents on the left and in the center rated Axios as Lean Left; respondents on the right rated Axios as Left. Republicans rated Axios as Left, while Democrats and Independents on average rated it Lean Left.

Axios was rated -2.35 (Lean Left) on average in the Blind Bias Survey, and was rated -1.13 in the Editorial Review. The average of these ratings resulted in a final bias rating of -1.75 for Axios (Lean Left). 

The Editorial Review found story choice bias and Lean Left slant on issues such as immigration, abortion, critical race theory, and other hot-button cultural and social issues. The panel agreed that Axios provided a lot of good context and information, including via its brevity structure. Axios did not include many story choices of interest to the right and did not equally balance voices on the right in articles. Axios used the word "insurrection" to describe the Jan. 6 Capitol riot (read why the left and right disagree Jan. 6 was an insurrection here), as well as the term "pregnant person" instead of woman, which seen as a Lean Left word choice.

A focus on Democrats' negative reaction to Jan. 6 footage going to Fox was seen as Lean Left, as well as pieces on farmers of colors asking for land equity and a strong editorial focus on climate change/greenhouse gas emissions. Abortion coverage and immigration coverage was found to lean left, with Axios framing border control issues as a "humanitarian crisis" and using terms such as "migrants," which was perceived as Lean Left word choice. Photo bias was noted in an article about an abortion restriction in Oklahoma, as it featured protesters against abortion restrictions. In an article about the controversy over critical race theory, Axios described CRT as, "a college-level framework that is rarely taught in grade school but often conflated with teachings on systemic racism.” This was seen as a Lean Left description by reviewers on the right. Another article described it as, "Critical race theory — which holds that racism is baked into the formation of the nation and ingrained in our legal, financial and education systems — was developed in law schools in the 1970s and 1980s and isn't really taught in grade school.” Conservatives tend to disagree that the concepts are not present in grade schools.

Some articles were seen as Center, such as those on solar tariffs and the Ohio train derailment. However, the panel determined that Axios showed apparent left slant in coverage of political and cultural issues.

Axios Rated Center in Sept. 2020 Independent Review

A Sept. 2020 independent review of Axios by an AllSides editor determined the site largely has a Center bias.

The editor found Axios is very brief in its reporting, typically using short paragraphs and bulleted lists, and does not often commit common types of media bias such as spin, unsubstantiated claims, or sensationalism.

Axios' reporting largely included objective statements, with few examples of subjective analysis or opinion passed off as objective fact. There were some exceptions to this. Axios typically uses full quotes, not partial quotes.

Axios sometimes commits omission of source attribution, making claims without providing a clear source to back them up. Axios does display bias occasionally — a Sept. 20, 2020 article "Democrats' Armageddon Option" included much sensationalist language, such as "furious Democrats are considering total war," and mentions of "Republican hypocrisy." Overall, Axios' reporting did not display much partisan bias one way or the other.

May 2017 Blind Bias Survey and Independent Review

The results of a May 2017 AllSides Blind Bias Survey indicated respondents across the political spectrum found Axios to be Center.

Also in May 2017, an AllSides independent reviewer determined Axios' rating to be Center based on its avoidance of charged or emotive language in most cases, and its general focus on facts and hard information as opposed to hearsay.

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As of September 2023, people have voted on the AllSides Media Bias Rating for Axios. On average, those who disagree with our rating think this source has a Lean Left bias.

As of Sept. 2020, 2,218 people voted that they agreed with our rating of Center for Axios, and 2,480 disagreed.

The average rating from the community is Center. Of people who disagreed with the Center rating, on average they thought Axios leaned right. Overall, counting all votes, the average community vote was on the border of Center and Lean Right.

As of September 2023, AllSides has medium confidence in our Lean Left rating for Axios. An Editorial Review or Blind Bias Survey has affirmed this rating, or multiple reviews have returned differing results. If we perform more bias reviews and gather consistent data, this confidence level will increase.

Additional Information

Axios is a digital news website. It was created in 2016 by three former Politico journalists. It publishes stories in a signature concise format based around bulleted lists. The site's name is based on the Greek: ἄξιος (áxios), meaning "worthy."

Axios's founder VandeHei said he wanted the site to be a "mix between The Economist and Twitter."

Third Party Claims of Bias

Some right-rated media sources have accused Axios of "climate alarmism" in reporting about extreme weather events, and of using word choice that favors left-leaning causes such as abortion access.

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Owner: Axios Media, Inc.

In 2022, Axios agreed to sell to Cox Enterprises for $525 million.

In 2016, Axios secured $10 million in a round of financing led by Lerer Hippeau Ventures, a venture capital firm that also backed HuffPost and BuzzFeed. Backers included NBC News, a media partner and whose president, Andy Lack, sits on the Axios board; Emerson Collective, the investment vehicle of Laurene Powell Jobs, the widow of Steve Jobs; Greycroft Partners; and David and Katherine Bradley, owners of Atlantic Media.

AllSides has noted numerous instances in which Axios published clearly labeled sponsored content from companies such as Walmart, ZipRecruiter, Amazon and Emergent BioSolutions.

Financing and ownership information last updated March 30, 2022. If you think this information is out of date or needs to be updated, please contact us.