Washington Examiner

About Washington Examiner's Bias Rating

Washington Examiner is featured on the AllSides Media Bias Chart™.

Washington Examiner is a news media source with an AllSides Media Bias Rating™ of Lean Right.

What a "Lean Right" Rating Means

Sources with an AllSides Media Bias Rating of Lean Right display media bias in ways that moderately align with conservative, traditional, libertarian, or right-wing thought and/or policy agendas. A Lean Right bias is a moderately conservative rating on the political spectrum.

• Washington Examiner Rated Lean Right in Feb. 2022 AllSides Blind Bias Survey
• Washington Examiner is Lean Right in Feb. 2020 Blind Bias Survey

Washington Examiner Rated Lean Right in Feb. 2022 AllSides Blind Bias Survey

On average, respondents rated the Washington Examiner as Lean Right, confirming AllSides’ current rating.

The weighted average was 2.34, which is in the Lean Right category. The middle 50% of responses lied between -0.10 (Center) and 4.13 (Right).

When normalized, 15% of respondents rated Washington Examiner as left of center and 66% rated Washington Examiner as right of center.

On average, people in all bias categories perceived the Washington Examiner as right of center. People on the left (Left, Lean Left), on average, perceived the Washington Examiner as Right, while people in the Center and on the right (Right, Lean Right) perceived the outlet as Lean Right. People in the Center perceived the outlet as Lean Right, on average.

Democrats were also more likely than Independents and Republicans to perceive the Washington Examiner as Right.

Washington Examiner Rated Lean Right in Feb. 2020 Blind Bias Survey

A February 2020 AllSides Blind Bias Survey found that the Washington Examiner maintains a Lean Right bias. During a Blind Bias Survey, people from all sides of the political spectrum and a diverse array of ages and geographic locations rate the bias of content from a media outlet blindly, meaning all identifying branding and information is removed.

Our February 2020 Blind Bias Survey showed that participants who rated themselves as Lean Left, Center, Lean Right, and Right were, on average, in agreement that Washington Examiner content has a Lean Right bias. However, those who identified themselves as being Left rated Washington Examiner content, on average, as being on the border line of Lean Right and Right. The average rating of all respondents was Lean Right.

In March 2020, a report from The Daily Beast (Left bias) said that the Examiner's head editor had directed staff not to publish content that framed Fox News in a negative light.

In Sept. 2018, AllSides conducted an extensive editorial review of the Washington Examiner. Our team decided to move the Washington Examiner from its previous media bias rating of Right to Lean Right.

During an editorial review, the AllSides editorial staff — which includes people from across the political spectrum — reviews the works of a source and comes to a general consensus on its bias. During our Sept. 2018 review, AllSides noted that the Washington Examiner's media bias is reflected in the fact that its story choice is conservative, but stories are not presented in a way that is sensationalist or exaggerated. The Washington Examiner does showcase Democratic or Left-leaning points of view, even giving them a place as a top headline, and covers different sides of various issues.

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

As of September 2024, AllSides has high confidence in our Lean Right rating for Washington Examiner. Two or more bias reviews have affirmed this rating or the source is transparent about bias.

Additional Information

The Washington Examiner is a free daily newspaper published in Springfield, Virginia, and distributed in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. It is owned by Denver billionaire Philip Anschutz. When Anschutz started the Examiner in its current format, he envisioned creating a conservative competitor to The Washington Post.

The Washington Examiner is owned by MediaDC, a subsidiary of Clarity Media Group, which is owned by Philip Anschutz. With The Examiner, Anschutz wanted to create a competitor to The Washington Post with a conservative editorial page. According to Politico, "When it came to the editorial page, Anschutz's instructions were explicit—he 'wanted nothing but conservative columns and conservative op-ed writers,' said one former employee." 

According to its publisher, 26% of The Examiner's readership holds a master's or postgraduate degree.

According to Wikipedia, "The paper became influential in conservative political circles, hiring much of the talent from The Washington Times and replacing the Times as the primary conservative paper in the capital city.^[10]The website DCist wrote in March 2013 that "Despite the right-wing tilt of its editorial pages and sensationalist front-page headlines, it also built a reputation as one of the best local sections in D.C."^[2]

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Owner: Clarity Media Group

The Washington Examiner is owned by MediaDC, a subsidiary of Clarity Media Group, which is owned by Philip Anschutz. Philip Anschutz is #50 on Forbes’s Richest People in America. Anschutz has a net worth of over 10 billion dollars. Among other businesses, Anschutz owns the Weekly Standard publication.

Financing and ownership information last updated March 31, 2021. If you think this information is out of date or needs to be updated, please contact us.