Deutsche Welle media bias and reliability
The rating organisations do not give Deutsche Welle one shared verdict in the records we hold. Their published ratings are AllSides: Centre; Ad Fontes Media: Centre; Media Bias/Fact Check: Leans left. We have seen it on 189 published stories of ours.
The short answers
Is Deutsche Welle biased?
The rating organisations do not give Deutsche Welle one shared verdict in the records we hold. Their published ratings are AllSides: Centre; Ad Fontes Media: Centre; Media Bias/Fact Check: Leans left. An outlet rating describes a broad pattern in its output, not every article it publishes.
Is Deutsche Welle left or right?
The rating organisations do not give Deutsche Welle one shared verdict in the records we hold. Their published ratings are AllSides: Centre; Ad Fontes Media: Centre; Media Bias/Fact Check: Leans left. In the three-way grouping used on story pages, that puts it under Centre.
Is Deutsche Welle reliable?
The factual-reliability assessments we hold for Deutsche Welle are Ad Fontes Media: Very high factuality; Media Bias/Fact Check: High factuality. These are outlet-level assessments, not a guarantee that every report is correct.
What Deutsche Welle has been covering
Our account of each story, written from every outlet that ran it, with Deutsche Welle’s own report linked underneath.
The United States, Denmark and Greenland plan to sign a security pact at the UN General Assembly next week. President Donald Trump says the deal gives the US permanent control over security matters, while other outlets report no sovereign US control. A joint working group will discuss future cooperation.
Deutsche Welle reported it asUS, Denmark reach deal over Greenland's security, Trump says (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
The United States has imposed new sanctions on eight Cuban companies and three military officers. The companies are linked to mineral exploitation, including nickel extraction, and military research and development. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated the sanctions aim to prevent Cuban resources from sustaining the security apparatus.
Deutsche Welle reported it asUSA Announces New Sanctions Against Cuba (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
Researchers have identified a new wild cat species, Leopardus tilcayo, in Bolivia's Yungas forest. The small feline, measuring about 45-46 cm and weighing 1.4 kg, is the first new wild cat species described in more than 100 years.
Deutsche Welle reported it asBolivia: New cat species discovered by scientists (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
Russian President Vladimir Putin will deliver a televised address to the nation on September 16 at 6 p.m. Moscow time. The speech is in anticipation of the upcoming parliamentary elections, scheduled to take place from September 18 to 20. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced the president's speech.
Deutsche Welle reported it asNews Compact: Russians Elect New Parliament in Wartime (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
Russia has begun a three-day parliamentary election, the first since the start of the war in Ukraine. Polling stations opened in the Far East, with President Vladimir Putin's party widely expected to win the 450 seats in the State Duma. Voting is also taking place in occupied Ukrainian territories.
Deutsche Welle reported it asNews Compact: Russians Elect New Parliament in Wartime (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
US President Donald Trump announced significant progress toward establishing a US military base in Poland. He stated the location would be announced soon and described the potential base as a historic step for the US-Poland alliance. Polish President Karol Nawrocki was credited for his leadership.
Deutsche Welle reported it asTrump hails 'major progress' in setting up US base in Poland (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
The United Nations General Assembly has voted to allow Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to address the 81st session via video link. The decision follows the United States' denial of a visa to Abbas, preventing his in-person attendance in New York.
Deutsche Welle reported it asUSA: Door for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Remains Closed (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is set to address the European Parliament. This follows a proposal by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen for Canada to become the EU's first associate member, a move US President Donald Trump has criticised.
Deutsche Welle reported it asCanada's Carney welcomes associate status idea in EU speech (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
Global freshwater reserves have fallen significantly, with the World Meteorological Organization reporting 2025 as one of the driest years for river flows in 35 years. The UN warns the water cycle is becoming more unpredictable, potentially exacerbated by El Niño.
Deutsche Welle reported it asDrought of Global Rivers in 2025 Was One of the Worst in 35 Years (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
India's Ministry of External Affairs has dismissed reports circulating on social media alleging that world leaders fell ill after attending the BRICS Summit in New Delhi. The ministry's fact-checking unit labelled the claims 'fake' and 'malicious'.
Deutsche Welle reported it asIndia denies claims leaders fell ill after BRICS summit (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
The United Nations General Assembly has voted to allow Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to address the 81st session via video link. The decision follows the United States' denial of a visa to Abbas, preventing his in-person attendance in New York.
Deutsche Welle reported it asUS extends visa denial for Palestinian officials before UNGA (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
Russian airstrikes hit Kyiv and Odesa, injuring at least 13 people and damaging buildings including residential structures, warehouses, and a gas station. A child was among those wounded in Odesa.
Deutsche Welle reported it asUkraine: Russian strikes injure several in Kyiv, Odesa (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
Russia launched missile and drone attacks across Ukraine, injuring at least 19 people, including children. Ukrainian forces responded with overnight strikes targeting an oil refinery in Yaroslavl and a military airfield in Rostov.
Deutsche Welle reported it asUkraine: Russian strikes injure several in Kyiv, Odesa (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
Donald Trump has threatened to impose tariffs or halt trade with the European Union if Canada is granted associate membership. He described the prospect as 'laughable' and a 'hostile act', while European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed a desire for Canada to be the bloc's first associate member.
Deutsche Welle reported it asTrump threatens EU with further sanctions over Canada (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
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.
Deutsche Welle reported it asUS Congress passes Russia sanctions bill (opens Deutsche Welle 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.
Deutsche Welle reported it asUS Fed raises key rate for first time in 3 years (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
US envoy John Coale has arrived in Minsk to meet with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. The talks are focused on negotiating the release of political prisoners. Coale's visit follows a trip to Lithuania and a previous successful negotiation that led to the release of 250 prisoners.
Deutsche Welle reported it asU.S. Negotiators in Belarus Get More Prisoners Free (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz campaigned for the Berlin CDU alongside candidate Stefan Evers. He addressed approximately 150 party members at the CDU headquarters, speaking about federal politics and praising Evers. The event was held behind closed doors.
Deutsche Welle reported it asGermany news: Conservative state premiers rally behind Merz (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
Federal authorities have unsealed an indictment charging five individuals linked to Russian intelligence services with plotting targeted killings in the United States and European nations supporting Ukraine. The FBI announced it disrupted the alleged plot.
Deutsche Welle reported it asUS charges 5 people over Russia-backed plots (opens Deutsche Welle 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.
Deutsche Welle reported it asUS announces South Africa visa curbs over race claims (opens Deutsche Welle in a new tab)
Who says so
3 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.
Very high factuality
Who owns it
- Federal Government of GermanyGovernmentdirect 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
- 189
- Reports listed
- 196
- We could read
- 27
- First seen
- 4 August 2026
169 of those reports were paywalled or blocked to us. Our reading of this outlet is built on the 27 we could open, not on everything it published.
A blindspot is measured against one side of the spectrum. Deutsche Welle is rated centre, so there is no side for it to be counted against and we publish no figure here.
Across the 189 stories of ours where at least three of the reports we listed carried a time, we logged no report earlier than Deutsche Welle’s on 4 of them. Overall it filed a median of 24 hours after the earliest report we logged.
Measured 19 September 2026. Last seen in a coverage list 19 September 2026. Ratings pulled 4 September 2026.
Other outlets rated the same way
Publishers carrying the same published leaning as Deutsche Welle, also publishing from Germany, ordered by how often we have seen them on a story. Sharing a rating is not the same as being alike.
Think this page is wrong?
The leanings above are published by AllSides, Ad Fontes Media and Media Bias/Fact Check, and we republish them rather than make them. If you think one is misapplied, the strongest place to say so is with the organisation that made it, and every verdict here links to their page.
What we are responsible for is everything else: the ownership chain, where Deutsche Welle 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.
Report something wrong on this page
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.