Religion News Service media bias and reliability
The rating organisations do not give Religion News Service 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 26 published stories of ours.
The short answers
Is Religion News Service biased?
The rating organisations do not give Religion News Service 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 Religion News Service left or right?
The rating organisations do not give Religion News Service 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 Religion News Service reliable?
The factual-reliability assessments we hold for Religion News Service 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 Religion News Service has been covering
Our account of each story, written from every outlet that ran it, with Religion News Service’s own report linked underneath.
Syria has sent a limited number of military personnel to Saudi Arabia to provide advice and training. The move comes as Houthi forces advance toward Aden, and as Turkey and Pakistan also offer support to the Saudi-led coalition.
Religion News Service reported it asSaudi Arabia turns to Syria for help as fighting with Houthis escalates (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
A protest ride targeting Jewish-owned businesses in Philadelphia led to three arrests and counter-demonstrations. Police estimated hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters and counter-protesters were present.
Religion News Service reported it asCounterprotesters rally in support of Philadelphia Jewish restaurants during boycott ride (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
Israel's election results will be upheld despite an ongoing investigation into allegations of foreign funding for Arab parties. The head of the Central Elections Committee stated that even if suspicions are confirmed, they will not invalidate the overall outcome of the vote.
Religion News Service reported it asIsraeli officials say elections will stand after Netanyahu claimed Arabs stole vote (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed will campaign with former primary rival Rep. Haley Stevens in Detroit. This marks their first joint public appearance in months, with Rep. Jim Clyburn also set to attend a get-out-the-vote event.
Religion News Service reported it as5 things to know about the Michigan Senate race set on Israel (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
A 46‑year‑old man has been charged with fraud for pretending to be a victim of the 2025 Bondi Beach Hanukkah massacre that killed 15 people and injured about 40. The prosecution was postponed to 24 February 2027 and victims may receive up to AU$35,000 in compensation.
Religion News Service reported it asMan charged with posing as Sydney Hanukkah massacre victim to get compensation (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
Eight people were killed and 40 wounded in an attack on a Greek Orthodox church in Karak, Jordan. Jordanian authorities have labelled the incident as extremist terrorism, and investigations into the attackers' potential links to known groups are ongoing. The US embassy announced increased security measures across Jordan.
Religion News Service reported it asGunmen open fire at a church during a funeral in Jordan, killing 7 and wounding 40 (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
Itamar Ben-Gvir's Otzma Yehudit Party is projected to win seven to ten seats in Israel's upcoming election. This could make his party a key coalition partner for Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party, giving Ben-Gvir significant leverage.
Religion News Service reported it asIsrael presses ahead with West Bank army operation days before election (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
Saudi Arabia is investigating a failure in its air defense systems after a Houthi attack on Riyadh airport killed at least 13 people and wounded over 300. The investigation aims to understand how the barrage of missiles and drones was not intercepted, with initial findings suggesting a tactic of using drones to precede missile strikes.
Religion News Service reported it asSaudis probe how defense systems failed to stop deadly Houthi attack on Riyadh airport (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
Two states, Idaho and Missouri, will feature abortion-related ballot measures in the upcoming election. Campaigns are focusing on reaching Gen Z voters, a demographic that polling suggests may prioritize other issues.
Religion News Service reported it asAbortion is on midterm ballots in 4 states. Here’s what the polls — and faith groups (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
A Hindu temple in Richmond Heights, Ohio, was attacked with bricks, shattering windows while priests and devotees were present inside. The FBI and the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division have been notified, and authorities are reviewing surveillance footage.
Religion News Service reported it asOhio Hindu temple vandalized, rattling worshippers (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
The Rt. Rev. Mariann Budde, who gained national attention for urging President Donald Trump to show mercy, has announced her resignation as head of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington. Her departure initiates a nearly two-year process to select her successor.
Religion News Service reported it asBishop Mariann Budde to resign, will remain in post during lengthy replacement process (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
An immigration judge has ruled that Salah Sarsour, the Palestinian-born leader of Wisconsin's largest mosque, can be deported from the United States on foreign policy or national security grounds. The Trump administration had sought his removal since his arrest in March.
Religion News Service reported it asUS can deport the leader of Wisconsin’s largest mosque on national security grounds, judge rules (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
Pope Leo XIV has stated that concerns about artificial intelligence are not 'fake news' and warrant serious attention. Speaking aboard the papal plane, he assured he does not sleep in panic mode regarding AI, despite its potential risks.
Religion News Service reported it asPope Leo says existential concerns about AI ‘should be taken seriously’ (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced he will use his UN General Assembly speech to "tell the truth" about New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Netanyahu accused Mamdani of supporting Hamas and inciting violence against Jews, while Mamdani has called Netanyahu a "war criminal" and "architect of a horrific genocide."
Religion News Service reported it asAs Netanyahu takes UN stage, New Yorkers protest antisemitism — and his government (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
An incident outside the Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Belleville, Ontario, on Sunday evening resulted in injuries to a police officer and another person. Ontario's Special Investigations Unit is investigating the event, which occurred as the Jewish community marked Yom Kippur.
Religion News Service reported it asMan critically injured, police officer wounded in gunfire near Ontario synagogue on Yom Kippur (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced that the government will introduce a maximum number of foreign students per class. She also stated that parents of foreign students with integration issues will be required to learn Italian and that burqa and niqab will be banned in schools.
Religion News Service reported it asMeloni plans to ban burqas and niqabs in Italian schools, and cap foreign students in classrooms (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
In parts of Africa, rainmakers who perform rituals for rainfall are facing increased violence from farmers struggling with unpredictable weather patterns attributed to climate change. This has led to assaults, and in some cases, deaths.
Religion News Service reported it asThey are paid to bring rain. When it fails — or leads to floods — violence can follow (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
Pastor Daimon L. King, a registered sex offender with prior child-related convictions, delivered the opening prayer at a rally for North Carolina GOP Senate nominee Michael Whatley. Whatley's campaign stated they did not know King and that the event was not planned by the campaign.
Religion News Service reported it asConvicted sex offender offered opening prayer at rally for GOP Senate nominee in North Carolina (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
Families of victims of the 9/11 attacks are calling for New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to not attend the 25th anniversary memorial ceremony at Ground Zero. A petition to ban him has gathered over 98,000 signatures, and families plan to ignore him if he attends.
Religion News Service reported it asSome critics cite Mamdani’s Muslim faith in demanding he skip 9/11 anniversary ceremony (opens Religion News Service in a new tab)
Wendell Berry, the prolific Kentucky-born author, farmer, and environmentalist, has died at the age of 92. His daughter confirmed his death on August 31, 2026. Berry was celebrated for his writings on agrarianism and his critiques of industrial society.
Religion News Service reported it asWendell Berry, writer and farmer, was extolled by many as a modern-day prophet (opens Religion News Service 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
Who owns it
- Religion News FoundationIndependentdirect owner
Where it publishes from
- Publishes from
- Washington, District of Columbia, United States
- Official site
- religionnews.com
- Seen publishing on
- religionnews.com
- Access
- Free to read
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
- 26
- Reports listed
- 26
- We could read
- 0
- First seen
- 12 August 2026
26 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 8 of those stories, outlets rated left were largely absent from the coverage and Religion News Service ran the story anyway.
Across the 27 stories of ours where at least three of the reports we listed carried a time, we logged no report earlier than Religion News Service’s on 2 of them. Overall it filed a median of 2 days after the earliest report we logged.
Measured 11 November 2026. Last seen in a coverage list 11 November 2026. Ratings pulled 12 October 2026.
Other outlets rated the same way
Publishers carrying the same published leaning as Religion News Service, also publishing from United States, 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 Religion News Service 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.