The West Australian media bias and reliability
Media Bias/Fact Check places The West Australian as leaning right. We have seen it on 193 published stories of ours.
The short answers
Is The West Australian biased?
Media Bias/Fact Check places The West Australian as leaning right. An outlet rating describes a broad pattern in its output, not every article it publishes.
Is The West Australian left or right?
Media Bias/Fact Check places The West Australian as leaning right. In the three-way grouping used on story pages, that puts it under Right.
Is The West Australian reliable?
The factual-reliability assessments we hold for The West Australian are Media Bias/Fact Check: High factuality. These are outlet-level assessments, not a guarantee that every report is correct.
What The West Australian has been covering
Our account of each story, written from every outlet that ran it, with The West Australian’s own report linked underneath.
Earl Charles Spencer claims King Charles sounded 'euphoric' and 'like a lottery winner' in a phone call shortly after Princess Diana's death in 1997. Buckingham Palace has responded, stating that grief can affect memory.
The West Australian reported it as‘Lottery winner’: New King Charles claim over Diana’s death (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
Russia launched missile and drone attacks across Ukraine, injuring at least 19 people, including children. Ukrainian forces responded with overnight strikes targeting an oil refinery in Yaroslavl and a military airfield in Rostov.
The West Australian reported it asChildren among injures in Russian barrage on Ukraine (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
Russian airstrikes hit Kyiv and Odesa, injuring at least 13 people and damaging buildings including residential structures, warehouses, and a gas station. A child was among those wounded in Odesa.
The West Australian reported it asChildren among injures in Russian barrage on Ukraine (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
Donald Trump has threatened to impose tariffs or halt trade with the European Union if Canada is granted associate membership. He described the prospect as 'laughable' and a 'hostile act', while European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed a desire for Canada to be the bloc's first associate member.
The West Australian reported it asTrump warns EU of tariffs over closer ties with Canada (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
President Donald Trump stated the war in Iran will conclude immediately after the US midterm elections in November. He accused Iran of prolonging the conflict to influence the election outcome and suggested the country seeks nuclear weapons.
The West Australian reported it as'Hopefully we are towards end' of Iran war, Trump says (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
Representative Thomas Massie has introduced articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Massie alleges Hegseth continued U.S. military operations in Iran without congressional approval and criticizes his actions in Venezuela and Yemen.
The West Australian reported it asImpeachment articles filed against US Sec Def Hegseth (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
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.
The West Australian reported it asUS Congress approves bill on sanctions against Russia (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
The U.S. Federal Reserve has raised its key interest rate by 25 basis points, marking the first such increase in over three years. The unanimous decision aims to combat inflation, and was followed by a significant drop in gold prices.
The West Australian reported it asFed hikes rates, defying Trump's demands (opens The West Australian 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 West Australian reported it asEU chief proposes social media ban for kids under 13 (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
New Zealand's Parliament has passed legislation to implement its free trade agreement with India. The deal will eliminate or significantly reduce tariffs on approximately 95% of New Zealand's exports to India and includes a NZ$20 billion investment commitment.
The West Australian reported it asNZ parliament passes India trade deal to cut tariffs (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
A Pentagon Inspector General report estimates Iranian attacks caused $184 million in damage to U.S. diplomatic facilities in Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. The report also details U.S. war costs and casualties.
The West Australian reported it asIran war cost at $US38b: Congressional Budget Office (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
The board of the Kennedy Center voted to close the performing arts venue due to financial problems and a disagreement about naming the building after President Donald Trump. A judge had previously blocked the venue from being renamed.
The West Australian reported it asKennedy Center closes for repairs, Trump's name blocked (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
Three supporting acts have withdrawn from Ed Sheeran's tour following the removal of rapper Macklemore. Macklemore was dropped by tour promoters for pro-Palestinian comments made during a performance. The departing acts cited solidarity with Macklemore and opposition to perceived silencing of voices speaking out against Israeli actions.
The West Australian reported it asMore acts quit Ed Sheeran tour after Macklemore dropped (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
US stock markets closed lower on September 15, 2026, influenced by climbing oil prices and Treasury yields. Concerns about artificial intelligence spending and corporate demand also added to investor apprehension, leading to a broad market downturn.
The West Australian reported it asWall St wobbles as oil, Treasury yields stoke unease (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate swore at a journalist and left a press conference after being asked about a claimed dinner with Donald Trump. The White House has contradicted Tate's assertion that he dined with the former US president.
The West Australian reported it as‘F*** off’: Mayor loses it as ABC journo (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
Senator Mitch McConnell cast a vote to advance the farm bill in committee on September 16, after receiving voting instructions from Senator John Hoeven. The bill passed the committee 12-11 along party lines.
The West Australian reported it asFrail Mitch McConnell returns to the US Senate (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
The Environmental Protection Agency is set to repeal rules limiting greenhouse gas emissions from coal and natural gas power plants. Administrator Lee Zeldin stated the move could save billions for the industry and boost American energy.
The West Australian reported it asUS scraps greenhouse gas rules for power plants (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
The Supreme Court has rejected the Trump administration's request to enforce new U.S. Postal Service mail ballot regulations ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. The court's order leaves in place a lower court injunction blocking the rules.
The West Australian reported it asSupreme Court rejects Trump mail ballot restrictions (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
Kim Jong Un has pledged to expand and deepen cooperation with Russia in a message to Vladimir Putin. The North Korean leader expressed confidence in Russia's victory in Ukraine and promised unwavering support.
The West Australian reported it asNorth Korea's Kim vows to expand ties with Russia (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
Donald Trump confirmed he uses artificial intelligence but declined to specify how, stating only that it can be used for "a lot of things." He also commented on the technology's future, saying "whoever wins in artificial intelligence wins."
The West Australian reported it asTrump insists United States has tools to keep AI safe (opens The West Australian in a new tab)
Who says so
One organisation has published a rating for this outlet. Where they disagree, the disagreement is the useful part and it is left standing.
- Media Bias/Fact CheckleanRightCheck it
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
- Media Bias/Fact CheckhighCheck it
Who owns it
- Seven West Mediaunknowndirect owner
- Seven Group Holdingsunknownparent group
- Kerry StokesBillionaireparent group
Where it publishes from
- Publishes from
- Osborne Park, City of Stirling, Western Australia, Australia
- Official site
- thewest.com.au
- Seen publishing on
- thewest.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
- 193
- Reports listed
- 204
- We could read
- 0
- First seen
- 3 August 2026
204 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 52 of those stories, outlets rated right were largely absent from the coverage and The West Australian ran the story anyway.
Across the 193 stories of ours where at least three of the reports we listed carried a time, we logged no report earlier than The West Australian’s on 1 of them. Overall it filed a median of 23 hours after the earliest report we logged.
Measured 18 September 2026. Last seen in a coverage list 18 September 2026. Ratings pulled 3 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 West Australian 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.