Sydney Morning Herald media bias and reliability
The rating organisations do not give Sydney Morning Herald one shared verdict in the records we hold. Their published ratings are Ad Fontes Media: Centre; Media Bias/Fact Check: Leans left. We have seen it on 245 published stories of ours.
The short answers
Is Sydney Morning Herald biased?
The rating organisations do not give Sydney Morning Herald one shared verdict in the records we hold. Their published ratings are 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 Sydney Morning Herald left or right?
The rating organisations do not give Sydney Morning Herald one shared verdict in the records we hold. Their published ratings are Ad Fontes Media: Centre; Media Bias/Fact Check: Leans left. In the three-way grouping used on story pages, that puts it under Left.
Is Sydney Morning Herald reliable?
The factual-reliability assessments we hold for Sydney Morning Herald 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 Sydney Morning Herald has been covering
Our account of each story, written from every outlet that ran it, with Sydney Morning Herald’s own report linked underneath.
Imperial Oil announced a third-quarter profit of $2.45 billion, a significant increase from $539 million in the same period last year. The company's results were bolstered by rising oil prices and improved refining margins, while upstream production saw a slight decrease.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asThe rate rise that stops the economy? Fears of an RBA-induced recession (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
On Tuesday, Americans vote in the 2026 midterms that will decide whether Republicans keep their narrow House majority and Senate seats. Trump faces low approval ratings, a war with Iran and a costly cost‑of‑living squeeze, while polls show 54% of his base would back him even if he loses.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asJudgment day comes for Trump and the abuse of power (opens Sydney Morning Herald 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.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it as‘Despicable betrayal’ reopens a Democratic Party wound that won’t heal (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
A federal judge has dismissed Donald Trump's lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal and Rupert Murdoch. The case concerned a story about Trump's ties to Jeffrey Epstein and a sexually suggestive birthday letter. The judge found Trump did not prove actual malice.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it as‘Grasping at straws’: Judge dismisses Trump suit against Wall Street Journal over Epstein letter (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
The United States cancelled a planned group photo at the G20 foreign ministers meeting in Atlanta due to deep rifts among member nations. Several European diplomats objected to standing alongside Russia's top diplomat, Sergey Lavrov, leading to the cancellation.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asUS cancels G20 ‘family photo’ after Europeans, Australia object to Russia (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
Cryptocurrency exchange Binance is investigating a potential security issue on its platform. Stablecoin issuers Tether and Circle have frozen billions of dollars in assets connected to the incident, while Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao stated user funds remain safe.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it as‘Biggest hack in history’: Crypto giant freezes assets after $8.9b heist (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
Patrick Stewart, the British actor famous for his roles as Captain Jean-Luc Picard in 'Star Trek' and Professor Charles Xavier in 'X-Men', has died at the age of 86. His death was announced by his family.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asStar Trek and X-Men star Patrick Stewart dies aged 86 (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
King Charles III participated in a Junkanoo festival parade in Nassau, Bahamas, while protesters called for reparations for the slave trade. He acknowledged the "great suffering of the past" and stated that Commonwealth leaders would discuss slavery's legacy.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asKing Charles dances in the Bahamas as calls for slavery reparations grow louder (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
On 28 October 2026 the Federal Reserve kept its benchmark rate steady. Chairman Kevin Warsh told reporters politics played no role in the choice, warned that upcoming inflation numbers may rise, and noted the timing ahead of the U.S. midterm elections.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it as‘Politics played no role’: Fed hits pause button ahead of midterms (opens Sydney Morning Herald 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.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asMan charged after allegedly faking being victim in Bondi terror attack (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
The USS Colorado will be the first US submarine deployed to Australia under the AUKUS security pact. It will be based at HMAS Stirling in Western Australia from late 2027 as part of the Submarine Rotational Force-West initiative.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asUS nuclear submarine docks ahead of AUKUS rotations (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
Brazil's Liberal Party, the political group for which Senator Flávio Bolsonaro ran, has officially recognized the results of the presidential election. The party's president signed a statement acknowledging the outcome proclaimed by the Superior Electoral Tribunal, while also calling for clarification on issues raised by Bolsonaro.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asLula declared winner of Brazil’s election (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
An internal review by King & Wood Mallesons found the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service does not have a toxic culture, despite 20% of employees experiencing or witnessing sexual harassment and sexist and racist material at fundraising events. The service's $500 million contract is under scrutiny.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asWestpac Rescue cleared of ‘toxic culture’ despite sexual harassment and racism findings (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
Asian stock markets saw a significant rise following Anthropic's initial public offering filing, which disclosed strong revenue growth alongside substantial losses. Meta Platforms' large equity fundraising also contributed to the positive sentiment.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asMining giants lead ASX higher, banks and retailers fall, the Star soars (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
Former New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern has taken a new paid role at Sydney University. She will deliver guest lectures and masterclasses, rather than undertaking full-time teaching duties.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asFrom prime minister to professor: Jacinda Ardern lands new gig at Sydney University (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
Rapper Nicki Minaj announced her continued support for Donald Trump at a Republican rally in Michigan. She stated she would back him if he runs for president again, appearing alongside him at the event.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asTrump’s election rallies are getting weirder and looser – and more racist (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
Oil prices saw a decline on Monday, with Brent crude futures falling to $114.51 and US West Texas Intermediate futures at $101.04. The drop occurred despite recent surges to near six-month highs, influenced by hopes for reduced Iran-US hostilities, though attacks on Saudi Arabia maintained investor caution.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asASX falls as banks, tech stocks decline; CSL names new chair (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
Benjamin Netanyahu posted an AI-generated image depicting a nuclear explosion over Tel Aviv, warning that a loss in the upcoming election could lead to a 'Second Holocaust'. The post, which included text from a right-wing activist, drew criticism from opposition leaders.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asDesperate Netanyahu goes nuclear in bid to stay in power. Next step could be war with Iran (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted an AI-generated image of an atomic bomb over Tel Aviv, warning of Iran's nuclear ambitions. The post, made two days before an election, also suggested domestic political issues were distractions from the threat. It drew criticism from a political opponent.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asDesperate Netanyahu goes nuclear in bid to stay in power. Renewing war with Iran could be next (opens Sydney Morning Herald in a new tab)
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has secured a fourth term as Brazil's president, defeating right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro. Bolsonaro challenged the election results, while international leaders congratulated Lula on his victory and commitment to democracy.
Sydney Morning Herald reported it asThe other Bolsonaro who could become Brazil’s next president (opens Sydney Morning Herald 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.
Very high factuality
Who owns it
- Nine Entertainment Co. Holdings LimitedMedia Conglomeratedirect owner
Where it publishes from
- Publishes from
- North Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Official site
- smh.com.au
- Seen publishing on
- smh.com.au
- 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
- 245
- Reports listed
- 250
- We could read
- 0
- First seen
- 4 August 2026
250 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 79 of those stories, outlets rated left were largely absent from the coverage and Sydney Morning Herald ran the story anyway.
Across the 245 stories of ours where at least three of the reports we listed carried a time, we logged no report earlier than Sydney Morning Herald’s on 5 of them. Overall it filed a median of 24 hours after the earliest report we logged.
Measured 3 November 2026. Last seen in a coverage list 3 November 2026. Ratings pulled 5 October 2026.
Other outlets rated the same way
Publishers carrying the same published leaning as Sydney Morning Herald, also publishing from Australia, 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 Sydney Morning Herald 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.