Washington Examiner (opinion)
U.S. right
Background
The Washington Examiner was founded in 2005 when Philip Anschutz acquired the parent company of the Journal Newspapers and relaunched the publication as a free daily tabloid distributed in the Washington, D.C., metro area. From the outset, Anschutz directed the editorial and opinion pages to carry exclusively conservative content, a policy confirmed by Politico reporting on former staff accounts. In June 2013, the daily print newspaper ceased publication; the outlet then pivoted to national political coverage, relaunching as a weekly print magazine while expanding its digital operation. Hugo Gurdon became editor-in-chief in 2014 and oversaw significant growth in web traffic, cementing the outlet's role as a prominent destination for right-of-center commentary and reporting. Media bias trackers—AllSides, Media Bias/Fact Check, and Ad Fontes Media—consistently rate the Washington Examiner as leaning right, with story selection and opinion content that almost exclusively favors conservative positions. The opinion section in particular serves as a platform for Republican officials and conservative commentators; during the second Trump term it has published op-eds from administration figures such as EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and editorials broadly supportive of Trump's policy agenda. No ownership changes have occurred in recent years; the outlet remains wholly within the Anschutz private media portfolio.
Sources
- Washington Examiner – Wikipedia
- Washington Examiner – Media Bias/Fact Check
- Washington Examiner – AllSides Media Bias
- Washington Examiner Bias and Reliability – Ad Fontes Media
- How the Washington Examiner became a traffic monster – Columbia Journalism Review
- Washington Examiner – Grokipedia
Profile compiled 2026-07-05; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.