National Observer media bias and reliability
Ad Fontes Media and Media Bias/Fact Check place National Observer as leaning left. We have seen it on 76 published stories of ours.
The short answers
Is National Observer biased?
Ad Fontes Media and Media Bias/Fact Check place National Observer as leaning left. An outlet rating describes a broad pattern in its output, not every article it publishes.
Is National Observer left or right?
Ad Fontes Media and Media Bias/Fact Check place National Observer as leaning left. In the three-way grouping used on story pages, that puts it under Left.
Is National Observer reliable?
The factual-reliability assessments we hold for National Observer are Ad Fontes Media: High factuality; Media Bias/Fact Check: High factuality. These are outlet-level assessments, not a guarantee that every report is correct.
What National Observer has been covering
Our account of each story, written from every outlet that ran it, with National Observer’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.
National Observer reported it asUS House passes bill that could squeeze Canada's Russian oil loophole (opens National Observer in a new tab)
British Columbia Premier David Eby has instructed his legislators to be prepared for an upcoming election, citing disruption from the trade war with the United States. He has appointed Cheryl Oates to manage the party's campaign.
National Observer reported it asEby says NDP needs to be 'election ready' in BC, but offers no date (opens National Observer in a new tab)
United Steelworkers International President Roxanne Brown called for unity between Canada and the United States amid ongoing trade tensions. She delivered her message at a news conference in Laval, Quebec, on Tuesday, September 15.
National Observer reported it asSteelworkers union president calls for Canada-US unity in Quebec amid the trade war (opens National Observer in a new tab)
A new report highlights a significant lack of recourse for non-profit organizations and individuals in Canada whose bank accounts are closed due to alleged ties to terrorist financing. The International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group's findings point to a systemic issue of 'derisking' with limited oversight.
National Observer reported it asAction needed to ensure groups aren't unduly 'de-banked' over terror risks, says report (opens National Observer in a new tab)
Three former prime ministers attended the Canada Investment Summit in Toronto on September 14, 2026. Organised by Mark Carney, the event aimed to attract private sector investment to Canada.
National Observer reported it asThree PMs: Carney recruits Chrétien and Harper to kick off investment summit (opens National Observer in a new tab)
British Columbia's deficit forecast has risen by $450 million to $13.8 billion. The province's first quarterly report attributed the increase primarily to a calculation error regarding natural gas royalties and higher wildfire-related expenses.
National Observer reported it asBC's deficit is forecast up $450M to $13.8B after calculation errors on gas royalties (opens National Observer in a new tab)
The European Parliament will open a new office in Ottawa, Canada, to facilitate parliamentary exchanges and strengthen cooperation. The announcement comes ahead of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's address to the European Parliament.
National Observer reported it asEU announces an Ottawa office for more parliamentary exchanges with Canada (opens National Observer in a new tab)
Canada is offering priority access to tax rulings for investors committing $1 billion or more to the economy. The move, announced by Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne, aims to reduce risk and encourage major projects.
National Observer reported it asCanada pitches mix of 'conventional and clean energy' to power $1 trillion capital push (opens National Observer in a new tab)
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith stated it is unlikely her government will establish a new Crown corporation to build natural gas pipelines. This follows a leaked cabinet report that recommended such a move to address transmission bottlenecks and support the growth of AI data centres.
National Observer reported it asAlberta could spend billions on public gas pipelines to fuel data centre boom, leaked document suggests (opens National Observer in a new tab)
A ceremony in Gander, Newfoundland, marked the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, bringing together passengers and responders who experienced the event. The town became a refuge for nearly 7,000 people when North American airspace closed.
National Observer reported it asThousands are expected in Gander, N.L., for ceremony marking 9/11 attacks 25 years ago (opens National Observer in a new tab)
New York first responders will attend a British Columbia memorial ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks. Hundreds of first responders are expected at the annual event held at the Peace Arch monument on the Canada-US border.
National Observer reported it asSept. 11 first responders will attend BC border ceremony on anniversary of attacks (opens National Observer in a new tab)
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney stated that the government is studying the latest U.S. tariffs and import bans. He indicated that Canada is considering whether to adjust its own retaliatory tariffs and called the U.S. trade bans 'modest'. Carney recently spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump.
National Observer reported it asCanada is still studying Trump's latest trade attack: Carney (opens National Observer in a new tab)
Thousands of Donald Trump supporters gathered in Dallas for a convention where many echoed his criticisms of Canada. One attendee called Canada "communist," while polling data showed a drop in favourable views among Republicans.
National Observer reported it asTrump's Canada-bashing is echoed by supporters at Dallas convention (opens National Observer in a new tab)
A report commissioned by unions and industry leaders recommends building ferries in British Columbia to mitigate economic impacts from US tariffs. It suggests domestic shipbuilding over foreign contracts, citing potential economic benefits for the province.
National Observer reported it asBuilding ferries in BC would help in battle against US tariffs: report (opens National Observer in a new tab)
August 2026 was the hottest month on record globally, tying with July 2023, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service. The record heat was attributed to human-caused climate change and a strong El Niño event, with sea surface temperatures also reaching new highs.
National Observer reported it asGlobal heat stuck on high. Scientists say August was Earth's hottest month they have measured. (opens National Observer in a new tab)
The United States will ban imports of dairy, motorcycles, and alcoholic beverages from Canada, and impose a 50% tariff on new Canadian products. These actions are a response to Canada's own retaliatory tariffs.
National Observer reported it asDistilleries to bear brunt of US ban on Canadian booze, say experts (opens National Observer in a new tab)
Before the 9/11 attacks, some Canadians living near the U.S. border could cross with minimal checks. News reports indicate this changed significantly after the attacks, leading to increased security measures.
National Observer reported it as'Consequences we live with': How 9/11 changed Canada's approach to our national security (opens National Observer in a new tab)
On September 11, 2001, Canada had only minutes to decide whether to close its airspace as hundreds of planes flew overhead. Former transportation minister David Collenette described the swift actions taken to land or divert aircraft.
National Observer reported it asWith hundreds of planes in the air on 9/11, Canada had just minutes to respond (opens National Observer in a new tab)
Prime Minister Mark Carney has convened his cabinet in Banff, Alberta, for two days of closed-door meetings. The discussions are taking place against the backdrop of an intensifying trade war with the United States and an upcoming referendum in Alberta on potential separation.
National Observer reported it asCarney's cabinet meets in Banff as trade war intensifies (opens National Observer in a new tab)
President Donald Trump's trade war with Canada is emerging as a significant issue ahead of the US midterm elections. While Canada cannot match US economic power, it may be able to make the trade dispute costly for Trump.
National Observer reported it asCanada is to blame for Washington's escalation of trade war, says Trump trade czar (opens National Observer in a new tab)
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
- Observer Media Group (Canadian company)Independentdirect owner
Where it publishes from
- Publishes from
- Vancouver, Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
- Official site
- nationalobserver.com
- Seen publishing on
- nationalobserver.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
- 76
- Reports listed
- 79
- We could read
- 0
- First seen
- 5 August 2026
79 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 2 of those stories, outlets rated left were largely absent from the coverage and National Observer ran the story anyway.
Across the 76 stories of ours where at least three of the reports we listed carried a time, we logged no report earlier than National Observer’s on 3 of them. Overall it filed a median of 15 hours after the earliest report we logged.
Measured 19 September 2026. Last seen in a coverage list 19 September 2026. Ratings pulled 8 September 2026.
Other outlets rated the same way
Publishers carrying the same published leaning as National Observer, also publishing from Canada, 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 National Observer 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.