Overview

Ad Fontes Media rates Defense News in the Middle category of bias and as Reliable, Analysis/Fact Reporting in terms of reliability. Defense News is an independent news source for the global defense community. Its magazine and website report on programs, policy, business and technology. Information also is shared via newsletters and videos. Founded in 1986, Defense News is part of the Sightline Media Group, owned by Regent. Based in Virginia, it reports from bureaus around the world.

Overall Score

The following are the overall bias and reliability scores for Defense News according to our Ad Fontes Media ratings methodology.

Reliability: 44.67

Bias: 2.70

Panels of analysts from Ad Fontes Media regularly review representative sample content to rate it for reliability and bias. Each panel of analysts comprises one left-leaning, one right-leaning, and one center-leaning analyst.

The team considers a variety of factors when rating content. To determine its reliability score, we consider the content’s veracity, expression, its title/headline, and graphics. We add each of these scores to the chart on a weighted scale, with the average of those creating the sample content’s overall reliability score.

To determine sample content’s bias score, we consider its language, its political position, and how it compares to other reporting or analysis from other sources on the same topic. We add each of these scores to the chart on a weighted scale, with the average of those creating the content’s overall bias score.

The bias rating, demonstrated on the Media Bias Chart^®️ on the horizontal axis, ranges from most extreme left to middle to most extreme right. The reliability rating, demonstrated on the chart’s vertical axis, rates sources on a scale from original fact reporting to analysis, opinion, propaganda and inaccurate/fabricated information.

Reliability scores for articles and shows are on a scale of 0-64. Scores above 40 are generally good; scores below 24 are generally problematic. Scores between 24-40 indicate a range of possibilities, with some sources falling there because they are heavy in opinion and analysis, and some because they have a high variation in reliability between articles.

Bias scores for articles and shows are on a scale of -42 to +42, with higher negative scores being more left, higher positive scores being more right, and scores closer to zero being minimally biased, equally balanced, or exhibiting a centrist bias.

Individual Content Sample Scores

These are the most recent content samples that Ad Fontes Media analysts have rated for this source.

Content Sample URL	Bias	Reliability
Turkish firm unveils Anka-3 combat drone ahead of maiden flight	0	42
European Union awards grant to forge unmanned ground vehicle standard	1.33	47.33
UAE could get up to 50 F-35s in $10B sale	-0.33	46
Lockheed is developing a system to turn airlift planes into weapons trucks	1.67	45.5
Defense aerospace primes are raking in money for classified programs	2.83	45.5
US election drama ups the ante for Europe’s signature next-gen weapon	2.67	45.5
Lithuania signs deal for its first American military helicopters	1.67	45.5
US Air Force chief’s top modernization priorities aren’t what you think they are	1	44
Aircraft makers sweeten their offers in high-stakes Swiss warplane race	1.33	44
House Democrats see political motive in Air Force decision to base C-130s in Georgia	-0.67	38
Stop the budgetary bleeding to get the Air Force we need	3.33	42.33
The US Air Force wants to buy a big robot to help with bomb disposal	1.67	47
The Air Force wanted to mothball over 100 planes. Here’s what Congress says it will permit.	0.67	46.33
These 3 companies will build prototypes for the Air Force’s Skyborg drone	0.67	47.33
Counterterrorism setback: ‘Armed Overwatch’ is stalled again	5.67	40
Artoo, take the wheel: U-2 spy plane flies for the first time with an AI co-pilot	0	49
Russia is developing a helicopter drone to destroy other drones	0.67	46.67
Lockheed Martin buys Aerojet Rocketdyne in $4.4B deal	1.33	45.67
The military is scrambling to understand the aviation crash risk from a new 5G sale	1	46
Britain has one last contract for its Sentinel spy planes: Breaking them up	0	40.67
Ligado investors should be scared of its future	13.67	29
COVID-19 pandemic keeps Lockheed from meeting F-35 delivery goal in 2020	0	48
US greenlights $4 billion attack helicopter sale to Kuwait	0	50.67
Biden selects Hicks, Kahl for top Pentagon roles	0	48
‘Race matters.’ Austin advocates tout his historic candidacy in the face of other concerns	-5.67	46.67