Conservative watchdog irked by teachers union-NewsGuard pact to combat 'disinformation': 'Worse' than CRT

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Media top headlines January 27

In media news today, CNN’s Jim Acosta compares Virginia to a ‘Soviet-style police state’ under Glenn Youngkin, Deadspin updates a Mike McDaniel hit piece after knocking the biracial 49ers coach as ‘another young, white guy,’ and Stephen Breyer's Supreme Court retirement is touted as a political opportunity for Biden

The American Federation of Teachers announced a partnership this week with NewsGuard claiming the tool will help shield students from "online disinformation," but a conservative watchdog is peeved that "leftist ideology" will be pushed on children as a result of the pact. 

NewsGuard bills itself as a tool that allows internet users to access "trust ratings for more than 7,500 news and information websites" by adding a browser extension to aimed ot combat misinformation online. NewsGuard’s browser extension will be added to the computers of "the AFT’s 1.7 million members, tens of millions of kids they teach, and their families," under terms of the agreement. However, the Media Research Center doesn’t think the "biased online ratings firm" will treat both sides equally. 

NewsGuard’s browser extension will be added to the computers of "the AFT’s 1.7 million members, tens of millions of kids they teach, and their families," under terms of a new agreement.  (iStock)

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"The left has found a dangerous and equally disingenuous new way to indoctrinate our children, without their parents knowing," MRC president Brent Bozell said. 

"NewsGuard is partnering with a national teacher's union to bring their biased ratings into classrooms nationwide. This is as bad as CRT. In fact, it's worse," Bozell continued. "Like CRT, it is designed to push a leftist ideology on children, but unlike CRT, the left is not going to give it a name this time. This is purposely designed to go under the radar of public scrutiny."

Last month, MRC associate editor Joseph Vazquez analyzed NewsGuard and found "extraordinary left-wing bias" of its ratings. 

Media Research Center President Brent Bozell thinks the teacher’s union relying on NewsGuard is as harmful as teaching critical race theory.

"Liberal outlets were rated 27 points higher on average than news organizations on the right," Vazquez wrote. 

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The study, based on a list compiled by AllSides classified by their "bias" on a left-to-right scale, indicated that 93% of liberal sites were deemed credible compared to only 66% percent of right-leaning outlets. 

"According to NewsGuard’s skewed ratings, left-leaning outlets have substantially more "credibility" on average than right-leaning outlets," Vazquez wrote. "The trend is very disturbing."

When reached for comment, NewsGuard general manager Matt Skibinski dismissed the Media Research Center’s criticism. 

"The Media Research Center’s so-called study of NewsGuard's ratings cannot be taken seriously by anyone who looks even briefly at the ridiculous methodology on which it was based," Skibinski said. 

"NewsGuard has rated many conservative-leaning websites as highly credible--including the MRC's own website, NewsBusters.org, which receives a high Green score of 92.5 out of 100 points," Skibinski continued. "Dozens of sites on both the right and the left have achieved perfect NewsGuard scores… NewsGuard’s rating process is designed to be strictly apolitical and to review every site using the same standards. We do that by assessing each site using nine basic criteria that have nothing to do with politics."

AFT President Randi Weingarten praised the deal as a "game-changer for teachers and families drowning in an ocean of online dishonesty" in a press release distributed by the union. 

American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten praised the deal as a "game-changer for teachers and families drowning in an ocean of online dishonesty." (REUTERS/Aaron P. Bernstein)

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"We are constantly trying to help our students, particularly our middle, high school and postsecondary students, separate fact from fiction, as we help them develop their critical-thinking and analytical skills," Weingarten said. 

"NewsGuard is a great tool in this regard. It is a beacon of clarity to expose the dark depths of the internet and uplift those outlets committed to truth and honesty rather than falsehoods and fabrications," Weingarten continued. "This historic deal will not only help us steer clear of increasingly fetid waters—it will provide a valuable lesson in media literacy and a discussion point for teachers in class on what can, and can’t, be trusted."

This article was updated with comment from NewsGuard.