The Local media bias and reliability
The Local is held by the ratings provider we draw on, and no rater has placed it on the political spectrum. We have seen it on 15 published stories of ours.
The short answers
Is The Local biased?
The Local is held by the ratings provider we draw on, and no rater has placed it on the political spectrum. An outlet rating describes a broad pattern in its output, not every article it publishes.
Is The Local left or right?
The Local is held by the ratings provider we draw on, and no rater has placed it on the political spectrum.
Is The Local reliable?
We do not hold a factual-reliability assessment for The Local. A political-leaning label would not answer that question on its own, so we do not infer reliability from left, centre or right.
What The Local has been covering
Our account of each story, written from every outlet that ran it, with The Local’s own report linked underneath.
French President Emmanuel Macron and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez have welcomed the possibility of the UK rejoining the European Union. The leaders also discussed strengthening European trade defences against China and the migrant situation in Ceuta.
The Local reported it as'We won't change approach': EU wants actions from UK, rather than words (opens The Local in a new tab)
The European Commission has proposed a new EU Critical Communications System (EUCCS) to enhance communication for emergency services across member states. The system aims to support over five million first aid workers and will convert current radio systems to broadband technologies like 5G, with satellite backup.
The Local reported it asEU plans cross-border emergency comms system to replace radio (opens The Local in a new tab)
The United States, Denmark and Greenland plan to sign a security pact at the UN General Assembly next week. President Donald Trump says the deal gives the US permanent control over security matters, while other outlets report no sovereign US control. A joint working group will discuss future cooperation.
The Local reported it asTrump says Denmark to give US 'permanent control' over Greenland security (opens The Local in a new tab)
Ursula von der Leyen plans to propose a European Security Council to coordinate responses to growing threats. The body would include EU member states alongside the UK, Canada, Norway, and Ukraine, and feature a consultation mechanism inspired by NATO's Article 4.
The Local reported it asEU chief calls for 'emergency' migration tool amid crisis in Spain's Ceuta (opens The Local 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'.
The Local reported it as'Europe has power to act': EU to ban social media for under 13s (opens The Local in a new tab)
Sweden is holding its national, regional, and municipal elections on Sunday, with a record 3.6 million people voting early. Opinion polls suggest a victory for the Social Democrats, though the race is tight.
The Local reported it asJust how big were the Sweden Democrats' losses in the Swedish election? (opens The Local in a new tab)
Calls for action against smart glasses are growing in Europe due to privacy concerns over covert recording. Norway is considering a ban or stricter regulations, while Oslo has already banned the devices in schools.
The Local reported it asEurope eyes battle over 'pervert' AI glasses (opens The Local in a new tab)
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has won state elections in Saxony-Anhalt, according to exit polls. This marks the first time a far-right party has achieved such a result in modern German history, though it is unclear if the AfD can form a government alone.
The Local reported it as'Wake-up call': Greens in Magdeburg vow to continue fight against right-wing extremism (opens The Local in a new tab)
The European Union is preparing to announce a significant increase in investment in Greenland, aiming to strengthen political ties with the Arctic territory. The move comes amid ongoing claims by former US President Donald Trump that Greenland should be controlled by the United States.
The Local reported it asEU pledges 200 million euros for Greenland investment package (opens The Local in a new tab)
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has won state elections in Saxony-Anhalt, according to exit polls. This marks the first time a far-right party has achieved such a result in modern German history, though it is unclear if the AfD can form a government alone.
The Local reported it as'We've made history': German far-right AfD 'landslide winner' in Saxony-Anhalt vote (opens The Local in a new tab)
Denmark expects to be ready by the end of 2027 to send migrants without legal residency to a return hub outside the European Union. Five EU countries are meeting in Copenhagen to discuss the establishment and practical functioning of these deportation centres.
The Local reported it asFive EU countries aim to send rejected migrants to 'return hubs' by 2027 (opens The Local in a new tab)
As Europe grapples with severe heatwaves, attention turns to whether EU chief Ursula von der Leyen will prioritise climate change in her upcoming policy speech. Environmental advocates are pushing for concrete plans to phase out fossil fuels, while some lawmakers suggest defence and industry concerns have overshadowed climate goals.
The Local reported it asWill the European Union take up the climate fight after brutal heatwaves? (opens The Local in a new tab)
A police report sent to Spain’s National High Court alleges Moroccan gendarmes coordinated the mass entry of migrants into Ceuta on 30 to 31 July 2026. The government has not confirmed the document, but opposition parties and police unions are demanding resignations from the interior minister and police chief.
The Local reported it asSpain's PM insists no 'solid proof' Morocco planned Ceuta migrant rush (opens The Local in a new tab)
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has denied his government received extraordinary warnings before the mass entry of approximately 72,000 migrants into Ceuta from Morocco. While acknowledging intelligence failures, he dismissed claims of prior specific alerts about the scale of the influx.
The Local reported it asSpain's PM insists no 'solid proof' Morocco planned Ceuta migrant rush (opens The Local in a new tab)
A second man has been arrested in connection with the fatal school attack in Fagersta, Sweden, where a 17-year-old girl died and three boys were injured. The new suspect is accused of complicity in murder and attempted murder.
The Local reported it asSecond man held over fatal Fagersta school attack (opens The Local in a new tab)
Six European Union countries have formally requested the introduction of an EU-wide tax on exceptional profits made by oil companies. The ministers argue that these companies are experiencing profit margins that outpace the rise in crude oil prices, exacerbated by the Middle East conflict.
The Local reported it asSix EU countries urge windfall tax on energy firms (opens The Local in a new tab)
Who says so
No rating organisation we draw on has placed The Local. We asked on 13 September 2026.
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.
We hold no factual-reliability rating for this outlet.
Who owns it
We hold no ownership record for The Local.
Where it publishes from
- Official site
- thelocal.com
- Seen publishing on
- thelocal.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
- 15
- Reports listed
- 16
- We could read
- 0
- First seen
- 14 August 2026
16 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.
A blindspot is measured against one side of the spectrum. The Local has not been placed on the spectrum, so there is no side to count against and we publish no figure here.
Across the 15 stories of ours where at least three of the reports we listed carried a time, another outlet was always ahead of The Local: its report arrived a median of 2 days after the earliest one we logged.
Measured 10 October 2026. Last seen in a coverage list 6 October 2026. Ratings pulled 13 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 The Local 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.