Which outlets does AllSides currently list as 'Lean Left' on its Media Bias Chart (live list)?
Executive summary
AllSides maintains a live bias-rating-systems">Media Bias Chart that assigns outlets to categories including "Lean Left," and the definitive, up-to-date roster of which outlets sit in that box is published on AllSides’ Media Bias Chart page — the live list is best read directly at AllSides [1]. Reporting and AllSides' own examples indicate prominent national outlets such as The New York Times and USA Today have been classified as Lean Left in AllSides material [2], while other well-known digital properties (and some aggregators) have also been identified as Lean Left in separate AllSides analyses [3] [4].
1. Where the canonical “Lean Left” list lives and why it can change
AllSides’ live Media Bias Chart page is the official source for the current set of outlets in each category and is explicitly described as the place where the chart helps users identify bias across news sources [1], and AllSides states its bias ratings are fluid and subject to change over time as outlets and evidence evolve [5].
2. Examples AllSides has identified as Lean Left in its reporting
AllSides’ published materials and examples have specifically labeled The New York Times and USA Today as Lean Left in coverage and demonstrations of how outlets framed stories [2], and its historical notes show mainstream digital news operations like CNN (online) have been moved to Lean Left in prior revisions of the chart [4]. Those named examples illustrate the type of newsroom that typically falls into the Lean Left band on AllSides’ -6 to +6 Media Bias Meter, where Lean Left corresponds to roughly -2.99 to -1.00 on their numerical scale [6] [7].
3. Aggregators and related Lean Left designations
AllSides also applies bias ratings to news aggregators and has explicitly rated Google News as Lean Left based on the mix of sources it curates (63% from outlets AllSides rates on the left), demonstrating that Lean Left is used beyond individual publishers to describe platforms and curation patterns [3]. This shows AllSides’ methodology can produce Lean Left labels for both single outlets and composite services.
4. How AllSides decides and why readers see variation
AllSides combines multipartisan editorial reviews, blind bias surveys of everyday Americans, and other methods to place outlets on its five-point scale and to produce numerical scores that inform categories like Lean Left [6] [4]. The company explicitly warns that the left–right boxes simplify a complex landscape and that ratings can be contentious; critics and observers (including Poynter) have noted staff self-reporting and methodological trade-offs that can influence outcomes [8].
5. Why a definitive named list cannot be reproduced here from the sources provided
The sources supplied describe the chart, its categories, and give sample outlets but do not contain a copy of the current live list of every outlet AllSides presently labels Lean Left; AllSides’ own Media Bias Chart page is the live authoritative list and must be consulted for a complete, up-to-the-minute roster [1] [5]. Any static list created from older snapshots risks being out of date because AllSides regularly reviews and updates ratings [4].
6. How to verify and approach the chart critically
For a full, current list of outlets labeled Lean Left, consult the AllSides Media Bias Chart online; readers should also review AllSides’ methods page to understand how Lean Left is numerically defined (-2.99 to -1.00) and how multipartisan editorial reviews, blind surveys, and other inputs feed that categorization [6] [7]. Given documented shifts in ratings over time and critiques about staff composition and methodology, the chart is best used as one tool among several for assessing news perspectives rather than an absolute yardstick [4] [8].