HuffPost

AllSides Media Bias Rating™: Left
39735/23228
The bias meter value for HuffPost is -4.30. -6 is the furthest "Left" value and 6 is the furthest "Right" value.
-4.30
Left What does this mean?

How we determined this rating:

  • Independent Review
  • Community Feedback:   ratings
  • AllSides has high confidence in this bias rating.

Unless otherwise noted, this bias rating refers only to online news coverage, not TV, print, or radio content.

Learn about our bias rating methods
HuffPost
HuffPost
Bias Rating Left
Type News Media
Region National
Owner BuzzFeed, Inc.
Established 2005
Website huffpost.com
Twitter @HuffPost
Facebook HuffPost
Wikipedia HuffPost
What a Left Bias Rating Means

The source displays media bias in ways that strongly align with liberal, progressive, or left-wing thought and/or policy agendas. A Left rating is our most liberal rating on the political spectrum.

Learn more about Left ratings
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About HuffPost's Bias Rating

HuffPost is featured on the AllSides Media Bias Chart™.

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

What a "Left" Rating Means

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

Learn more about Left ratings

Details

According to AllSides analysis, HuffPost has a tendency to use sensationalism in headlines, and to employ negative spin when reporting on Republicans and conservatives. 

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Bias Reviews

We use multiple methods to analyze sources. Learn how we rate media bias.

HuffPost Rated Left in May 2023 Independent Review

An AllSides May 2023 Independent Review returned a rating of Left for Huffpost. The reviewer noted several instances of sensationalism, slant, spin, emotionalism, and omission of viewpoint

Coverage was consistently critical of Republicans and right-leaning issues, often omitting viewpoints or framing conservatives in a negative light. The reviewer noted uses of sensational words such as “slams” and “rips” when covering conservatives, but language used to describe liberals was consistently neutral or positive. Examples of articles perceived as Left were:


HuffPost rated Left in Jan. 2013, March 2013, and Oct. 2013 Blind Bias Surveys

The results from the January 2013, March 2013, and October 2013 Blind Surveys (which are normalized to better reflect American opinion) indicated that The Huffington Post had a Left bias (see other highlights of that study here). 

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Community Feedback

Feedback does not determine ratings, but may trigger deeper review.

As of March 2024, people have voted on the AllSides Media Bias Rating for HuffPost. On average, those who disagree with our rating think this source has a Lean Left bias.

Confidence Level

Confidence is determined by how many reviews have been applied and consistency of data.

As of March 2024, AllSides has high confidence in our Left rating for HuffPost. Two or more bias reviews have affirmed this rating or the source is transparent about bias.

Additional Information

Political Leanings of HuffPost's Audience

According to the 2014 Pew Research Study, Where News Audiences Fit on the Political Spectrum, the majority (59%) of HuffPost readers hold political values to the political left or left-of-center. 17% of HuffPost's audience is right or right-of-center (compared with 26% of all respondents to the survey). Roughly 23% of HuffPost's audience is considered mixed or center (compared with 36% of all respondents to the survey).

About HuffPost

HuffPost is an online news source co-founded in May 2005 by Arianna Huffington, Kenneth Lerer, and Jonah Peretti; some sources also list Breitbart News founder Andrew Breitbart as a co-founder. Peretti also co-founded BuzzFeed in 2006. Formerly The Huffington Post, the news and blog site was originally intended to be a liberal counterweight to the conservative news aggregator Drudge Report

On its About page, HuffPost states (retrieved Sept. 30, 2022) that "we report with empathy and put people at the heart of every story." In a section titled, "OUR COMMITMENT TO INCLUSIVITY," HuffPost states, "We believe diversity – in who we are, in the audience we write for and in whose stories we tell – is critical to our mission. We aim to write for, and not just about, those left out of traditional power structures; to approach stories inclusively; and to serve a diverse audience with stories that matter to them. This means including a diverse range of voices in our reporting, actively pursuing diversity in our newsroom, and listening to our readers and viewers to make sure we're as open and responsive as possible."

Ariana Huffington won the Pulitzer Prize in 2012 for national reporting. She has been part of Time Magazine’s list of the world’s 100 most influential people and the list of Forbes most Powerful Women. According to the Alexa Global Traffic Rank, The Huffington Post was ranked as the number one most popular political site in July 2012.

Third-Party Claims of Bias

HuffPost is frequently regarded as a liberal or progressive outlet. In 2011, the Los Angeles Times said because of its news aggregation, the outlet "has been criticized for luring traffic away from traditional news outlets and contributing to an environment in which online news has been less profitable than the news business had hoped."

Related: How Media Bias is a Business: HuffPost and Daily Wire

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HuffPost Ownership and Funding

Funding and ownership do not influence bias ratings. We rate the bias of content only.

Owner: BuzzFeed, Inc.

Who Owns and Funds HuffPost?

In March 2011, Huffington Post was acquired by AOL for $315 million. AOL would go on to be acquired by Verizon Communications in June 2015 and became a part of Verizon Media. In November 2020 BuzzFeed Inc. agreed to acquire the HuffingtonPost in a stock deal. Comcast and its NBCUniversal subsidiary own about a third of BuzzFeed. BuzzFeed has said that it intends to stay independent. Comcast owns NBC Universal. Brian L. Roberts is the chairman, president, and CEO of Comcast. Comcast is publicly traded.

Financing and ownership information last updated February 24, 2021. If you think this information is out of date or needs to be updated, please contact us.

Articles from HuffPost

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