Is The Independent a reliable source?
This is how independent third parties assess the credibility and media bias of this source.
OVERALL RATING:37 +, 26 -
The Independent scores a total of 37 Plus Points and 26 Minus Points in our evaluation of journalistic quality.
This corresponds to a score of 58* resp. the grade C+ (satisfactory).
*: (37 + 5 BP) * 100 / (37 + 5 BP + 26 + 5 BP)
This corresponds to a score of 58* resp. the grade C+ (satisfactory).
| Grade | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| very good | A+ | > 89 |
| A | 89 - 84 | |
| A- | 83 - 79 | |
| good | B+ | 78 - 74 |
| B | 73 - 67 | |
| B- | 66 - 62 | |
| satisfactory | C+ | 61 - 56 |
| C | 55 - 49 | |
| C- | 48 - 44 | |
| sufficient | D+ | 43 - 39 |
| D | 38 - 32 | |
| poor | D- | 31 - 26 |
| insufficient | F | < 26 |
Grade composition
The overall rating is made up of the following individual ratings from independent third parties:
Ad Fontes Media11 +, 9 -
Ad Fontes Media, Inc. is a media watchdog organization based in Colorado that is best known for its Media Bias Chart, which ranks media sources based on political bias and reliability. We combine their ratings of individual articles and episodes to create a weighted average, with low-rated items increasingly weighted higher.
- "Medium"
Reliability (Weighted Average)
- "Center-Left"
Bias (Weighted Average)
Media Bias/Fact Check10 +, 10 -
Media Bias/Fact Check (MBFC) is an American fact-checking website founded in 2015. It uses a 0-10 scale to rate sites on two areas: bias and factual accuracy. A source rated by MBFC with minimal bias gets 10 plus points. Maximum bias gets 10 minus points. The same principle applies to factual accuracy.
- "Center-Left"
Bias Rating
- "Mixed"
Factual Reporting
Studies7 +, 3 -
Most scientific publications, though not all, rely on some form of peer review or editorial review to qualify texts for publication. Sources mentioned in studies which rate media quality and/or reliability receive between 10 plus and 10 minus points.
- "The Independent 6.78/10 Points (Average from Accuracy: 7.17/10 Points + 7 more quality-related ratings)"
European Media Systems Survey 2013
Wikipedia4 +, 1 -
Wikipedia’s reliability was frequently criticized in the 2000s. However, various studies and media reports have noted improvements over time, and in the late 2010s and early 2020s, it was more often praised.
In the scoring model, any positive mention of a source’s credibility or quality in a Wikipedia extract receives a plus point—while negative mentions are treated as minus points.
- "The Independent is a British online newspaper."
"The Independent won the Brand of the Year Award in The Drum Awards for Online Media 2023."
"it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003."
English-speaking
- "The Independent ist eine britische Internet-Zeitung."
German-speaking
Journalism Awards5 +
Journalism prizes are awards for excellent journalistic work in the period covered by the call for entries, which is usually one or two years. Sources receive one plus point for each journalistic award won that we track. We currently track up to three prestigious awards per country.
- "Health & Life Sciences Journalism: Rebecca Thomas (The Independent): Produced three impactful investigations into NHS failings and abuse, demonstrating dogged journalism with significant impact."
- "Barbara Blake-Hannah Award: Kuba Shand-Baptiste (The Independent): For work reflecting the spirit of Barbara Blake-Hannah, particularly coverage of Black Lives Matter protests."
- "Health and Life Sciences Journalism: Rebecca Thomas (The Independent): Revelatory reporting exposing the true crisis in hospital A&E departments before it was widely known."
- "Travel Journalism: Simon Calder (The Independent): Consumer champion who led coverage of major travel stories, informing the public on key issues."
- "Marie Colvin Award: Bel Trew (The Independent): Honored for courageous, steadfast foreign reporting, especially from Ukraine, and self-starting investigative work."
British Journalism Awards
Fact Checkers3 -
We primarily use fact-checkers affiliated with the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN). We have linked to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers' code of principles in the headline. For each failed fact-checker there is one minus point.
Press Council Rulings
Press councils are national institutions of media self-regulation. Press councils have their own defined press code. Reprimands are issued in the event of a violation of the press code (e.g. for truthfulness, diligence, sensationalism, separation of advertising and editorial, personal rights). For each reprimand issued by a national press council, a source receives one minus point.
- We are not aware of any press council rulings against this source to date.
Are these sources reliable?
theguardian.com
@theguardian.com
Metro.co.uk
@metro.co.uk
Mail Online
@dailymail.co.uk
dw.com
@dw.com
Financial Times
@ft.com
The Wall Street Journal
@wsj.com
thetimes.co.uk
@thetimes.co.uk
The Sun
@thesun.co.uk
The Mirror
@mirror.co.uk
thebureauinvestigates.com
@thebureauinvestigates.com
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