CGTN media bias and reliability
Ad Fontes Media and Media Bias/Fact Check place CGTN as leaning left. We have seen it on 129 published stories of ours.
The short answers
Is CGTN biased?
Ad Fontes Media and Media Bias/Fact Check place CGTN as leaning left. An outlet rating describes a broad pattern in its output, not every article it publishes.
Is CGTN left or right?
Ad Fontes Media and Media Bias/Fact Check place CGTN as leaning left. In the three-way grouping used on story pages, that puts it under Left.
Is CGTN reliable?
The factual-reliability assessments we hold for CGTN are Ad Fontes Media: High factuality; Media Bias/Fact Check: Mixed factuality. These are outlet-level assessments, not a guarantee that every report is correct.
What CGTN has been covering
Our account of each story, written from every outlet that ran it, with CGTN’s own report linked underneath.
The US House of Representatives has passed a bill that could allow President Donald Trump to impose up to 100% tariffs on countries buying Russian oil. India's Ministry of External Affairs stated the nation will take necessary steps to protect its trade and economic interests.
CGTN reported it asUS House passes Russia sanctions bill granting Trump tariff authority (opens CGTN in a new tab)
The U.S. Federal Reserve has raised its key interest rate by 25 basis points, marking the first such increase in over three years. The unanimous decision aims to combat inflation, and was followed by a significant drop in gold prices.
CGTN reported it asUS Fed hikes rates for first time since 2023 as inflation stays sticky (opens CGTN in a new tab)
The United States has imposed new visa restrictions on certain South African nationals, citing race-based discrimination and uncompensated land seizures. South Africa has rejected the US allegations, stating the measures are based on mischaracterised policies and fringe group information.
CGTN reported it asUS restricts visas over South Africa race and land policies (opens CGTN in a new tab)
A Pakistan Navy vessel collided with an Indian Navy warship in the North Arabian Sea on September 15, 2026. India lodged a strong protest, citing a violation of a 1991 agreement on advance notice of military exercises. The incident occurred in international waters and caused no major damage.
CGTN reported it asIndia protests to Pakistan over collision of naval ships at sea (opens CGTN in a new tab)
The US Space Force has confirmed the deployment of weapons in Earth orbit, marking the first public acknowledgement of such capabilities. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink stated the weapons are intended for defence against hostile actions, though specific details remain undisclosed.
CGTN reported it asRUSSIA'S FOREIGN MINISTRY: WESTERN POLITICIANS AND DIPLOMAT SHOULD "SOBERLY" EVALUATE EXISTING RISKS (opens CGTN in a new tab)
North Korea's Ministry of Defense has stated that nuclear weapons could be used in response to actions by the US and South Korea. This statement follows defense talks between the two nations aimed at strengthening cooperation against potential weapons of mass destruction attacks from Pyongyang.
CGTN reported it asYonhap: ROK court orders DPRK to pay damages over 2020 liaison office demolition (opens CGTN in a new tab)
Failure to reform the World Trade Organization could reduce global GDP by approximately 10% by 2050, according to a new WTO report. The organization faces challenges from geopolitical tensions and shifts in trade dynamics.
CGTN reported it asWTO: Strengthening multilateral trade could raise global GDP by 2.9% (opens CGTN in a new tab)
The United Kingdom has announced it will upgrade its diplomatic relations with Venezuela, including the appointment of an ambassador. The UK stated the move is intended to bolster its ability to support a democratic transition in Venezuela, clarifying it does not alter its assessment of past elections.
CGTN reported it asUK GOVERNMENT UPGRADES ITS DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS WITH VENEZUELA (opens CGTN in a new tab)
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has stated the United States is open to discussing shared risks with China in upcoming AI talks scheduled for this weekend. The discussions aim to prevent the bifurcation of AI systems between the two countries.
CGTN reported it asChina calls for global AI governance framework amid rapid advances (opens CGTN in a new tab)
Iran's Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei has stated that there will be no negotiations with the United States until Iran's conditions are met. He responded to US President Donald Trump's statements about being open to negotiations, asserting that the balance of power regarding oil and the straits has changed.
CGTN reported it asIranian Security Official Says There Will Be No Negotiations with the United States Until Conditions Are Met (opens CGTN in a new tab)
The US Space Force has confirmed the deployment of weapons in Earth orbit, marking the first public acknowledgement of such capabilities. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink stated the weapons are intended for defence against hostile actions, though specific details remain undisclosed.
CGTN reported it asChina urges US to stop expanding military buildup in outer space (opens CGTN in a new tab)
The United States has confirmed for the first time that it has deployed weapons in orbit. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said the Space Force placed "space control weapons" to deter adversaries, drawing accusations from China and Russia.
CGTN reported it asChina urges US to stop expanding military buildup in outer space (opens CGTN in a new tab)
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is scheduled to visit China this week for talks with his counterpart Wang Yi. The meeting is set for Wednesday, shortly before Chinese President Xi Jinping's expected trip to the US.
CGTN reported it asIranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi to visit China (opens CGTN in a new tab)
The United States has imposed 50% tariffs on a select group of Canadian products, including motorboats and steel, while simultaneously removing tariffs on others like cement and toilet paper. The measures are part of an escalating trade war between the two nations.
CGTN reported it asTrump's latest round of 50% tariffs on Canadian goods now in effect (opens CGTN in a new tab)
Microsoft has released a provisional 37-page code of conduct to govern its artificial intelligence models, restricting content related to weapons, dangerous substances, and explicit material. The move follows calls for slower AI development and researcher resignations over safety concerns.
CGTN reported it asMicrosoft publishes AI code of conduct amid industry's safety concerns (opens CGTN in a new tab)
Twelve European countries met in Finland to call for a strengthened EU presence in the Arctic. They cited Russia as a significant threat and also mentioned Donald Trump's past actions. No official decisions were made, but a new EU strategy for the region is anticipated.
CGTN reported it asTwelve European countries urge EU to boost Arctic role in face of Russia (opens CGTN in a new tab)
Leaders of the SNP, Plaid Cymru, and Sinn Féin met in Cardiff to sign a memorandum of understanding calling for self-determination and independence referendums. The meeting followed US President Donald Trump's public support for Irish unity.
CGTN reported it asScotland, Wales and Northern Ireland sign MoU, call for constitutional change (opens CGTN in a new tab)
An Israeli soldier shot a Palestinian man in the leg during a confrontation over grazing land in the West Bank. Eyewitnesses claim settlers initiated the conflict, leading to Israeli forces firing on villagers. The IDF confirmed a soldier fired and has launched an investigation.
CGTN reported it asYemen's Houthis claim major missile, drone attack on Saudi air base (opens CGTN in a new tab)
Mohammad Eslami, head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, was prevented from attending an IAEA meeting in Vienna. Austria cited a UN travel ban, while Iran accused the US of pressuring Vienna to deny the visa.
CGTN reported it asIran protests as US prevents its nuclear chief attending IAEA meeting (opens CGTN in a new tab)
The UAE Ministry of Defence announced the deaths of Major Abdalla Shamis Almenhali and candidate Saeed Abdalla Alshamsi on Monday, September 14, 2026. Both servicemen died while performing a training mission within the country. The ministry expressed condolences to their families.
Who says so
2 organisations have published a rating for this outlet, in their own words. Where they disagree, the disagreement is the useful part and it is left standing.
How reliably it reports fact
A rating of the newsroom in general, by others, and a different thing from the Trust score we publish on each story, which judges one piece of reporting.
High factuality
Who owns it
- Chinese Communist PartyGovernmentdirect owner
Where it publishes from
What we have seen ourselves
Counted across the stories this site has published, which is the only denominator a reader can check: every one of them has a page, and every page lists the reports it was written from.
- Stories
- 129
- Reports listed
- 137
- We could read
- 25
- First seen
- 4 August 2026
112 of those reports were paywalled or blocked to us. Our reading of this outlet is built on the 25 we could open, not on everything it published.
On 66 of those stories, outlets rated left were largely absent from the coverage and CGTN ran the story anyway.
Across the 129 stories of ours where at least three of the reports we listed carried a time, we logged no report earlier than CGTN’s on 4 of them. Overall it filed a median of 27 hours after the earliest report we logged.
Measured 18 September 2026. Last seen in a coverage list 18 September 2026. Ratings pulled 5 September 2026.
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What we are responsible for is everything else: the ownership chain, where CGTN publishes from, which of our stories we have listed it on, and whether we have the right publisher at all. Tell us what is wrong and an editor reads it.
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Anything we correct is written up in the public corrections log. We do not publish reader votes as a rating, because an unattributed rating is the thing this site exists to argue against.
Every rating on this page is a named third party’s published work, republished with its author and, where one exists, a link to it. Our own coverage record is the section we measure ourselves. Neither is a judgement of any individual report: those are scored story by story, and the reasoning is on our methodology page.