Alpha News – Bias and Credibility

Detailed Report

Questionable Reasoning: Propaganda, Conspiracy, Anti-Muslim and Anti-Somali Framing, False or Misleading Claims
Bias Rating: FAR RIGHT (+8.7)
Factual Reporting: MIXED (6.1)
Country: USA
MBFC’s Country Freedom Rating: MOSTLY FREE
Media Type: Organization/Foundation
Traffic/Popularity: Medium Traffic
MBFC Credibility Rating: LOW CREDIBILITY

History

Alpha News is a Minnesota-based nonprofit digital news organization founded in 2015. It primarily covers Minnesota politics, crime, government spending, immigration, public corruption, elections, and national political issues. The outlet says its mission is to report stories Minnesota’s mainstream media overlooks.

The Minnesota Tea Party Alliance initially promoted Alpha News, and many of its early stories focused on issues championed by conservative activists. It has since grown into a larger nonprofit newsroom that produces original reporting, podcasts, documentaries, commentary, and syndicated material for conservative organizations.

Anthony Gockowski, Editor-in-Chief, leads the newsroom. Other prominent staff include investigative reporter and senior producer Liz Collin and Executive Managing Editor Dr. JC Chaix. Alpha News also publishes reporting from Crime Watch Minnesota and syndicated material from organizations including the Daily Caller News Foundation, The Daily Signal, and The Center Square.

Alpha News now publishes a detailed Statement of Journalistic Standards covering accuracy, corrections, anonymous sources, editorial independence, attribution, and donor relations. This represents a significant improvement in transparency compared with earlier versions of the publication.

Read our profile on the United States government and media.

Location: Minnetonka, Minnesota

Funded by / Ownership

Alpha News operates as an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, EIN 47-3178268. As a nonprofit, it has no private shareholders or conventional owner and is overseen by a board of directors. Its public filings identify Alex Kharam as president.

Alpha News states that nearly 3,000 donors fund it and that donors do not participate in editorial decisions. Its Donor Relations Policy says a volunteer board of directors governs the organization, oversees its finances, and notes that, as a 501(c)(3), its tax returns are publicly available. However, Alpha News does not publish a comprehensive list of individual donors on its website.

Public nonprofit records show grants from donor-advised funds and foundations, including the Pine Rock Foundation, Schwab Charitable Fund, Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund, Minneapolis Foundation, Goldman Sachs Philanthropy Fund, and others. Alpha News has also received financial support from the conservative Center of the American Experiment. While it does not fully disclose individual donors, its nonprofit status, leadership, address, finances, and editorial policies are far more transparent than when MBFC first reviewed the outlet.

Analysis / Bias

Alpha News demonstrates a far-right editorial perspective through its selection of stories, framing, syndicated content, and commentary. The outlet’s coverage is generally favorable toward conservative politicians, law enforcement, immigration enforcement, reduced government spending, and Republican policy positions. In contrast, Democrats, progressive officials, activists, and Minnesota’s DFL government are typically portrayed negatively.

The publication’s treatment of Rep. Ilhan Omar remains a significant credibility concern. Alpha News helped amplify allegations beginning in 2016 that Omar legally married her brother, Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, to facilitate immigration fraud, despite the claim never being proven. In Alpha News’ retrospective on the original investigation, the allegation is still described as a “scandal” based largely on social-media connections, photographs, and circumstantial family information rather than evidence proving that Omar and Elmi are siblings.

Likewise, Breaking down the Ilhan Omar investigation acknowledges that “nothing adverse has been proven” but continues to list the claim that Omar “married her brother” alongside other speculative allegations. Recent New York Times reporting about renewed federal scrutiny of Omar also does not establish that Elmi is her brother. Alpha News has therefore continued promoting an extraordinary allegation for roughly a decade without conclusive evidence.

Alpha News also demonstrates recurring anti-Muslim and anti-Somali framing. Minnesota has experienced major documented fraud cases involving defendants of Somali descent, including Feeding Our Future, but Alpha News frequently foregrounds ethnicity and immigration status even when they are not necessary to establish the underlying allegations.

For example, Former Minnesota employee reveals suspected fraud scheme of ‘fake injuries’ at Somali businesses centers on a former state employee’s suspicions about Somali-owned businesses despite no criminal findings being presented regarding those businesses. Similarly, a Maple Grove homeowner says Somali neighbors approached him and bragged about profits from Medicaid businesses, prominently emphasizing ethnicity while relying heavily on anecdotal suspicions.

During the 2026 ICE surge in Minnesota, Alpha News consistently framed immigration enforcement from a sympathetic law-enforcement perspective. ICE remains committed to mission in Minnesota after surge despite attacks, field director says gives ICE’s field director extensive space to defend the operation, while Somali leader demands reparations, blames ICE for ‘economic costs’ emphasizes controversy surrounding requests for relief from Somali community leaders.

Alpha News also often highlights alleged connections between Muslim figures and extremism in headlines. For example, Flanagan defends $7,000 donation from man once imprisoned in Egypt for alleged Muslim Brotherhood ties emphasizes these alleged connections, while also noting that Flanagan’s campaign described the Egyptian prosecution as politically motivated. The repeated focus on Somali crime and fraud, Muslim Brotherhood allegations, and controversies involving Muslim-associated political figures contributes to a pattern of critical editorial framing.

Factual reporting has nevertheless improved since MBFC’s earlier reviews. Many current straight-news articles cite court filings, criminal complaints, legislative records, state financial data, interviews, government statements, and other primary materials. Alpha News also clearly labels opinion content and publishes formal corrections and sourcing policies.

However, consistently one-sided coverage, ideologically aligned syndicated content, headlines that use emotionally charged language, speculative reporting, and the ongoing publication of unsubstantiated allegations continue to affect the outlet’s factual reliability. These factors contribute to a Mixed factual rating and support Alpha News remaining in the Questionable category.

Failed Fact Checks

• “Data from around the world suggests that omicron favors the fully vaccinated.” – FALSE

Alpha News has also repeatedly promoted the claim that Ilhan Omar married her brother. Although older formal fact checks fall outside MBFC’s current five-year failed-fact-check window, the allegation continues to be published and promoted in 2026 despite no publicly established evidence proving that Ahmed Elmi is Omar’s sibling.

In summary, Alpha News is rated as Far Right and Questionable due to consistently partisan story selection, the repeated publication of allegations that are not supported by available evidence, and a pattern of anti-Muslim and anti-Somali framing. Its factual reporting is considered Mixed, as the outlet’s straight-news articles often use credible primary sources and have improved transparency. These strengths are limited by ongoing one-sided coverage, speculative reporting, and the continued publication of claims that have not been conclusively established. (M. Huitsing 8/16/2017) Updated (D. Van Zandt 10/29/2026)

Source: https://alphanews.org/