How we rate news sources

Trust ratings on every news source.

Three axes, 1–5 each. Hand-curated, not AI-derived. Updated as we observe new evidence.

The three axes

Transparency · 1–5

Are sourcing standards public? Are bylines + dates present? Is methodology documented? Are corrections visible?

Accuracy track record · 1–5

How often does the outlet correct errors? Are claims fact-checked? Is opinion clearly separated from reporting?

Conflicts disclosed · 1–5

Are ownership relationships, sponsored content, and paid placements disclosed? Is there clear ad/editorial separation?

Composite formula: ROUND((transparency + accuracy + conflicts) × 100 / 15). Max sum (5+5+5 = 15) maps to 100; min (1+1+1 = 3) maps to 20. Color band: ≥80 high, 60–79 medium, <60 low.

Current ratings

Publisher	Score	T	A	C	Notes
Reuters	100	5/5	5/5	5/5	Public Trust Principles; decades of corrections track record; Thomson Reuters ownership disclosed; strict ad/editorial separation.
Bloomberg	93	5/5	5/5	4/5	Tier-1 financial newsroom with documented methodology. Bloomberg LP also runs the Terminal (a product the news covers); disclosed but structural overlap.
MarketWatch	80	4/5	4/5	4/5	Dow Jones / News Corp property. Editorial standards + corrections; clear ad/editorial separation.
CNBC	73	4/5	4/5	3/5	Solid market reporting; cable opinion shows (Cramer, etc.) carry a lower accuracy bar. NBCU/Comcast ownership; on-air picks may overlap parent holdings.
ChartMill	73	3/5	4/5	4/5	Algorithmic screening + methodology explained. Output is data not opinion; limited inaccuracy surface. SaaS product (paid screening).
CoinDesk	73	4/5	4/5	3/5	Acquired by Bullish (crypto exchange); ownership conflict disclosed in coverage notes.
Investing.com	60	3/5	3/5	3/5	Wire-republishing + originals mixed; ad-heavy; affiliate marketing for brokerages disclosed.
Yahoo aka: Yahoo Finance, Yahoo!	60	3/5	3/5	3/5	Aggregator: republishes Reuters/Bloomberg/AP + originals. Quality as good as the underlying source. Ad-heavy; ownership history (Verizon/Apollo).
Benzinga	60	3/5	3/5	3/5	Earnings recaps solid; analysis weaker; programmatic SEO content + affiliate disclosures present. Appears in both Polygon and Finnhub feeds.
Forexlive	60	3/5	3/5	3/5	FX-specific; data + commentary; ad-supported.
SeekingAlpha aka: Seeking Alpha	53	3/5	3/5	2/5	Author bios + mandatory position disclosures, but quality varies widely across contributors. Structural conflict: authors benefit from price action.
Cointelegraph	53	3/5	3/5	2/5	Crypto-specific; advocacy lean for the sector itself.
The Motley Fool	53	3/5	3/5	2/5	Public bylines + methodology, but heavy editorial advocacy for premium stock-pick subscriptions is a structural conflict.
GlobeNewswire aka: GlobeNewswire Inc., GlobalNewswire	47	3/5	2/5	2/5	PR wire — companies distribute their own releases. Accuracy unverified; conflict is inherent (paid placement from subject company). GlobalNewswire alias covers a Finnhub-side spelling drift.
BusinessWire aka: Business Wire	47	3/5	2/5	2/5	Berkshire-owned PR wire, parallel to GlobeNewswire. Same dynamics.
Finnhub	47	2/5	3/5	2/5	API-provider self-reference; their data feed surfaces some items with source="Finnhub". Rating the API itself is structurally weird; included for completeness — owner may delete after S54c.
Cryptocurrency News	40	2/5	2/5	2/5	Low-information aggregator; minimal editorial signals.

Last updated: July 14, 2026 · 17 outlets rated.

What these scores are — and aren't

Scores rate the outlet, not any single article. A high-rated outlet still publishes weak pieces; a low-rated one still publishes solid reporting.
Scores are not predictions of whether a specific article's claim is true. Use the article's sources, your own reading, and time.
Scores will change as we observe new evidence — corrections, ownership shifts, methodology changes. The methodology won't.
We never use these scores to filter what news surfaces on TrustFirst. Every article that comes through our feeds is shown; the badge is informational only.

See a score you disagree with? Let us know — we review feedback with the original sourcing rationale.