The Herald Scotland media bias and reliability
The rating organisations do not give The Herald Scotland 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 26 published stories of ours.
The short answers
Is The Herald Scotland biased?
The rating organisations do not give The Herald Scotland 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 The Herald Scotland left or right?
The rating organisations do not give The Herald Scotland 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 The Herald Scotland reliable?
The factual-reliability assessments we hold for The Herald Scotland 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 The Herald Scotland has been covering
Our account of each story, written from every outlet that ran it, with The Herald Scotland’s own report linked underneath.
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.
The Herald Scotland reported it asRussia is holding its first parliamentary election since invading Ukraine (opens The Herald Scotland 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.
The Herald Scotland reported it asRussia is holding its first parliamentary election since invading Ukraine (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
US Vice President JD Vance stated the conflict with Iran is not a war and that the situation in the Strait of Hormuz is nearly back to normal. President Trump is reportedly considering declaring victory.
The Herald Scotland reported it asIran claims to have hit U.S ship in Strait of Hormuz as fighting escalates (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. The talks occurred as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced a potential ceasefire, while Russian missiles struck airports near Kyiv.
The Herald Scotland reported it asDonald Trump envoys in Kyiv after 'constructive and frank' talks with Putin (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty, has condemned the public glorification of Ratko Mladic, a convicted war criminal. O’Flaherty stated that such acts are a criminal offence under Bosnian law and not protected free speech. Mladic's body was transported to Belgrade for a funeral scheduled for September 7, 2026.
The Herald Scotland reported it asSo Mr Burnham, will you refuse to be an apologist for Israel as PM? (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
The UN General Assembly has adopted a resolution to use maps that more accurately represent the true relative sizes of countries and continents. The move, driven by African nations, seeks to correct distortions caused by the centuries-old Mercator projection.
The Herald Scotland reported it asThis could be the new world map as United Nations votes on historic change (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
The UK government is reportedly close to approving the Jackdaw gas field in the North Sea. The project, previously blocked by courts over climate concerns, could produce up to 6% of the UK's gas output.
The Herald Scotland reported it asUK government to approve Jackdaw gas field off Aberdeen within days (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
Scottish ministers knew UK military lacked aerial firefighting ability, says Justice Secretary
Trust 65Scotland's Justice Secretary Neil Gray has stated that Scottish ministers were aware the UK military did not possess aerial firefighting capabilities when they requested assistance for the Cairngorms wildfire. The request was made to explore all available options, Gray said.
The Herald Scotland reported it asScottish ministers knew UK military lacked wildfire helicopters, Gray admits (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham met French President Emmanuel Macron at Downing Street on Thursday, 3 September 2026. They discussed defence, energy, support for Ukraine, European security, small-boat migration, and UK-EU relations. Burnham announced an increase in French officers deployed to tackle Channel crossings.
The Herald Scotland reported it asAndy Burnham praises Emmanuel Macron for collaboration as they meet at No 10 (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
A tanker was struck by an unknown projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz. The incident occurred 12 nautical miles north of Khasab, Oman. No casualties or environmental impact were reported.
The Herald Scotland reported it asUnited States and Iran trade strikes as IRGC claims tanker 'hit sea mines' (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
Seven activists are facing charges of malicious damage with a terrorist connection for a protest at Donald Trump's Turnberry golf resort. The protest involved spray-painting messages and damaging the course. An initial court hearing is scheduled for August 31.
The Herald Scotland reported it asActivists who allegedly vandalised Trump Turnberry accused of 'terrorism connection' (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
BBC Scotland journalist Elizabeth Quigley, wife of First Minister John Swinney, has resigned from her role on health grounds. She cited trigeminal neuralgia, a condition causing facial pain, alongside her existing diagnosis of multiple sclerosis.
The Herald Scotland reported it asJohn Swinney’s BBC journalist wife Elizabeth Quigley resigns on health grounds (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
Germany is reportedly considering providing financial support for the UK's Trident nuclear deterrent program. This move is part of broader efforts to strengthen European defence capabilities and reduce reliance on the United States, particularly amid concerns over Russia's actions and potential US troop withdrawals from Europe.
The Herald Scotland reported it asGermany 'could help fund' Trident with plans to place air defences in Scotland (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
A U.S. federal judge has postponed the trial of Abu Agila Mohammad Mas’ud Kheir Al-Marimi, who is charged in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103. The delay is due to newly discovered evidence that defense attorneys need to examine.
The Herald Scotland reported it asTrial of alleged Lockerbie bomber delayed for a third time (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
Members of the Royal Family, including King Charles, Queen Camilla, Prince William, and Princess Kate, attended a church service at Crathie Kirk in Scotland. The gathering occurred shortly after news emerged of Prince Harry's potential move back to the UK.
The Herald Scotland reported it asRoyals attend church service near Balmoral estate (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
Ghent University suspended Nathan Cofnas, a researcher who accused the late Cambridge professor Jason Arday of plagiarism, after opening a disciplinary inquiry. Cofnas, who describes himself as a 'race realist', was previously dismissed from Cambridge in 2024. Arday died in mid-August amid the allegations.
The Herald Scotland reported it as'Race realist' who accused Jason Arday of plagiarism suspended by university (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are moving back to the United Kingdom after six years in the US, but will not resume their roles as working royals. Their children will attend British schools from September, and King Charles III was informed of the decision on 16 August 2026.
The Herald Scotland reported it asHarry and Meghan’s return: How the drama unfolded in the years since Megxit (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
Actress Hayden Panettiere, 36, was found dead in her Greenville, South Carolina apartment on 16 August 2026. Police and the coroner’s office reported no signs of foul play. Her father confirmed her death in a statement to ABC News, and tributes followed from co-stars and fans.
The Herald Scotland reported it asHeroes and Nashville actress Hayden Panettiere dies aged 36 (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
The annual Perseid meteor shower reaches its peak between 12 and 13 August 2026, with up to 100 meteors per hour visible. A partial solar eclipse will occur on 12 August, offering a rare dual celestial event. Outlets varied in emphasis on timing, visibility, and the eclipse's coincidence.
The Herald Scotland reported it asScots to gather for partial eclipse but forecasters warn of clouds for many (opens The Herald Scotland in a new tab)
The US government sold two oil tankers, Era and Lileo, to Dubai-based Global Marketing Systems for scrap after seizing them in January. The tankers, linked to sanctioned oil exports from Venezuela and Iran, will be dismantled in India. Ownership complexities were noted in the court-authorised sale.
The Herald Scotland reported it asOil tanker which was seized and brought to Scotland quietly sold for scrap (opens The Herald Scotland 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
- Newsquestunknowndirect owner
- GannettMedia Conglomerateparent group
Where it publishes from
- Publishes from
- Glasgow, Glasgow City, Scotland, United Kingdom
- Official site
- heraldscotland.com
- Seen publishing on
- heraldscotland.com
- Access
- Free to read
- 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
- 26
- Reports listed
- 26
- We could read
- 9
- First seen
- 4 August 2026
17 of those reports were paywalled or blocked to us. Our reading of this outlet is built on the 9 we could open, not on everything it published.
On 5 of those stories, outlets rated left were largely absent from the coverage and The Herald Scotland ran the story anyway.
Across the 26 stories of ours where at least three of the reports we listed carried a time, another outlet was always ahead of The Herald Scotland: its report arrived a median of 22 hours after the earliest one we logged.
Measured 19 September 2026. Last seen in a coverage list 19 September 2026. Ratings pulled 6 September 2026.
Other outlets rated the same way
Publishers carrying the same published leaning as The Herald Scotland, also publishing from United Kingdom, 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 The Herald Scotland 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.