Irish Times media bias and reliability
The rating organisations do not give Irish Times one shared verdict in the records we hold. Their published ratings are AllSides: Centre; Ad Fontes Media: Leans left; Media Bias/Fact Check: Leans left. We have seen it on 89 published stories of ours.
The short answers
Is Irish Times biased?
The rating organisations do not give Irish Times one shared verdict in the records we hold. Their published ratings are AllSides: Centre; Ad Fontes Media: Leans left; Media Bias/Fact Check: Leans left. An outlet rating describes a broad pattern in its output, not every article it publishes.
Is Irish Times left or right?
The rating organisations do not give Irish Times one shared verdict in the records we hold. Their published ratings are AllSides: Centre; Ad Fontes Media: Leans left; Media Bias/Fact Check: Leans left. In the three-way grouping used on story pages, that puts it under Left.
Is Irish Times reliable?
The factual-reliability assessments we hold for Irish Times are Media Bias/Fact Check: High factuality. These are outlet-level assessments, not a guarantee that every report is correct.
What Irish Times has been covering
Our account of each story, written from every outlet that ran it, with Irish Times’s own report linked underneath.
California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed an executive order mandating state agencies to develop recommendations for strengthening AI safety laws. The order calls for a team of experts to propose new regulations within two months, potentially including a 'kill switch' for AI programs.
Irish Times reported it asCalifornia governor Gavin Newsom wants AI ‘kill switch’ to rein in tech industry (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin is set to visit UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham at No 10 North in Manchester. The meeting will focus on strengthening UK-Ireland relations, trade, security, and support for Ukraine.
Irish Times reported it asTaoiseach to become first foreign leader to visit UK prime minister Burnham at No 10 North (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
Irish President Catherine Connolly has stated that Donald Trump inquired about her belief in Ireland's unification within her lifetime. She also confirmed they discussed genocide and the normalisation of war, while defending her sister's right to protest his visit.
Irish Times reported it asTrump asked President Connolly if Irish unity would be ‘resolved’ during her lifetime (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
Three supporting acts have withdrawn from Ed Sheeran's tour following the removal of rapper Macklemore. Macklemore was dropped by tour promoters for pro-Palestinian comments made during a performance. The departing acts cited solidarity with Macklemore and opposition to perceived silencing of voices speaking out against Israeli actions.
Irish Times reported it asEd Sheeran controversy: How his North American tour has ended up in crisis (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
Three supporting acts have withdrawn from Ed Sheeran's tour following the removal of rapper Macklemore. Macklemore was dropped by tour promoters for pro-Palestinian comments made during a performance. The departing acts cited solidarity with Macklemore and opposition to perceived silencing of voices speaking out against Israeli actions.
Irish Times reported it asIrish acts Aaron Rowe and Beoga quit Ed Sheeran’s US tour in protest over Palestine (opens Irish Times 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.
Irish Times reported it asChina warns of new arms race after US confirms deployment of space weapons (opens Irish Times 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.
Irish Times reported it asChina warns of new arms race after US confirms deployment of space weapons (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
The European Commission plans to propose a ban on social media for children under 13. Those aged 13 to 15 would have restricted access, potentially via parent-supervised 'mini-accounts'. The legislation is to be known as the 'EU Kids Act'.
Irish Times reported it asEU to bring in minimum age limit of 15 to set up social-media accounts (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
Donald Trump confirmed he uses artificial intelligence but declined to specify how, stating only that it can be used for "a lot of things." He also commented on the technology's future, saying "whoever wins in artificial intelligence wins."
Irish Times reported it asDonald Trump says attempts to limit artificial intelligence are part of ‘sick conspiracy’ (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
Donald Trump has rejected calls for new regulations on artificial intelligence, stating that the U.S. government already possesses adequate power to control AI firms. He described efforts to implement guardrails as a "sick conspiracy" that could cede technological leadership to China.
Irish Times reported it asDonald Trump says attempts to limit artificial intelligence are part of ‘sick conspiracy’ (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
US stock markets closed lower on September 15, 2026, influenced by climbing oil prices and Treasury yields. Concerns about artificial intelligence spending and corporate demand also added to investor apprehension, leading to a broad market downturn.
Irish Times reported it asGlobal stocks fall amid surge in oil prices and rising government bond yields (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
President Donald Trump is visiting his golf resort in Doonbeg, Ireland, for the Irish Open. His trip includes planned meetings with Irish leaders and is met with objections from lawyers and planned protests.
Irish Times reported it asPresident Connolly issues statement stating she told Trump ‘normalisation of war can never be accepted’ (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
US President Donald Trump's visit to Ireland on September 12 and 13 will be supported by a large-scale security and policing operation. An Garda Síochána has declared the event extraordinary to manage staffing and resources for the extensive plan.
Irish Times reported it asDonald Trump expected to urge Ireland to buy liquefied natural gas from US during visit (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
AI company Anthropic has blocked researchers from using its models for work that could potentially aid biological weapons development. The company stated it could not determine if the research served a legitimate scientific purpose or malicious intent, citing attempts to circumvent restrictions and obscure research goals.
Irish Times reported it asAnthropic says it blocked possible efforts to build biological weapons and deadly pathogens (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
US President Donald Trump's visit to Ireland on September 12 and 13 will be supported by a large-scale security and policing operation. An Garda Síochána has declared the event extraordinary to manage staffing and resources for the extensive plan.
Irish Times reported it asTwo days of Donald Trump – what to expect in Dublin and Doonbeg (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
Golfer Rory McIlroy has stated that former US President Donald Trump's planned visit to the Irish Open will present logistical challenges and alter the tournament's atmosphere. Trump is expected to attend the event at his golf course in Doonbeg, County Clare.
Irish Times reported it asDonald Trump’s presence at Doonbeg can only be good for Irish Open, says Rory McIlroy (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
Explosions were reported near Iran's Kharg Island and the port city of Jask. A US official confirmed strikes on Iranian oil tankers, while Iran's military warned of retaliation if its vessels are attacked. Oil prices rose following the news.
Irish Times reported it asBrent oil pushes toward $100 a barrel after US attacks Iranian tankers (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
President Donald Trump stated the war in Iran will conclude immediately after the US midterm elections in November. He accused Iran of prolonging the conflict to influence the election outcome and suggested the country seeks nuclear weapons.
Irish Times reported it asBrent oil pushes toward $100 a barrel after US attacks Iranian tankers (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
Ireland's media regulator, Coimisiún na Meán, has opened a formal investigation into X, formerly Twitter. The probe focuses on the platform's compliance with the Online Safety Code, specifically concerning age assurance and parental control provisions.
Irish Times reported it asX faces Irish investigation over concerns children not protected from pornography and violence (opens Irish Times in a new tab)
Global 15-year-old students have recorded their weakest performance in reading, mathematics, and science since testing began 25 years ago, according to the OECD's PISA 2025 results. Average scores across OECD countries have fallen significantly, with a notable increase in 'hasty readers' and complex challenges presented by AI use.
Irish Times reported it as‘Pervasive’ decline: Educators must re-engage young people with reading, says OECD (opens Irish Times 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.
High factuality
- Media Bias/Fact CheckhighCheck it
Who owns it
- The Irish Times DACCorporationdirect owner
- The Irish Times Trust CLGIndependentparent group
Where it publishes from
- Publishes from
- Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland
- Official site
- irishtimes.com
- Seen publishing on
- irishtimes.com
- Access
- Paywalled
- Wikipedia
- Entry
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
- 89
- Reports listed
- 93
- We could read
- 0
- First seen
- 3 August 2026
93 of those reports were paywalled or blocked to us. Our reading of this outlet is built on the 0 we could open, not on everything it published.
On 27 of those stories, outlets rated left were largely absent from the coverage and Irish Times ran the story anyway.
Across the 89 stories of ours where at least three of the reports we listed carried a time, we logged no report earlier than Irish Times’s on 3 of them. Overall it filed a median of 21 hours after the earliest report we logged.
Measured 19 September 2026. Last seen in a coverage list 19 September 2026. Ratings pulled 3 September 2026.
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 Irish Times 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.