RIGHT BIAS
These media sources are moderately to strongly biased toward conservative causes through story selection and/or political affiliation. They may utilize strong loaded words (wording that attempts to influence an audience by using appeal to emotion or stereotypes), publish misleading reports, and omit information that may damage conservative causes. Some sources in this category may be untrustworthy. See all Right Bias sources.
- Overall, we rate the Freedom Foundation Right Biased due to its explicit anti-union mission, free-market ideological alignment, and consistently adversarial framing of progressive organizations. We rate it Mixed for factual reporting because, while it references real legal cases and financial disclosures, its content is advocacy-driven, selectively framed, and often employs strongly charged rhetoric.
Detailed Report
Bias Rating: RIGHT (6.4)
Factual Reporting: MIXED (5.0)
Country: USA
MBFC’s Country Freedom Rank: MOSTLY FREE
Media Type: Organization/Foundation
Traffic/Popularity: Minimal Traffic
MBFC Credibility Rating: MEDIUM CREDIBILITY
History
The Freedom Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1991 (originally as the Evergreen Freedom Foundation) in Washington State. According to its About page, the organization promotes free markets and limited government and describes itself as actively opposing public-sector unions, which it characterizes as advancing “radical political agendas.”
The foundation expanded nationally following major Supreme Court decisions such as Harris v. Quinn (2014) and Janus v. AFSCME (2018), which limited compulsory union fee arrangements for public employees.
Read our profile on the United States government and media.
Funded by / Ownership
The Freedom Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and does not disclose donors on its website. However, it is a member of the State Policy Network, which has received millions of dollars in funding from fossil fuel interests and conservative donor-advised funds, including DonorsTrust, the Searle Freedom Trust, the Walton Family Foundation, and the Bradley Foundation. SPN-affiliated groups often receive direct grants and share messaging infrastructure. Notably, SPN has promoted climate denial and partnered with organizations like the Heartland Institute, Cato Institute, and Heritage Foundation that question the scientific consensus on climate change.
Analysis / Bias
The Freedom Foundation is an advocacy organization rather than a neutral news outlet. Its mission explicitly targets public-sector unions and promotes anti-union, free-market ideology.
For example, in Freedom Foundation Files Unfair Labor Practice Complaint Against AFSCME After Union Refuses to Stop Dues Deductions for Toledo School Secretary, the framing presents unions as improperly withholding funds and emphasizes litigation strategy.
In Does the Montana teachers union support racist organizations?, the language includes repeated references to “Marxist,” “far-left,” and “woke,” reflecting strong ideological framing.
Similarly, For teachers’ unions, back to school means a return to leftist indoctrination uses charged language such as “radical left-wing agenda” and “indoctrination centers,” indicating advocacy rather than neutral reporting.
Story selection overwhelmingly focuses on criticizing public-sector unions and progressive policies. Language is frequently inflammatory and adversarial. While some factual claims rely on publicly available financial disclosures or legal filings, the presentation is consistently one-sided.
Failed Fact Checks
- The Freedom Foundation itself has not been the subject of formal IFCN fact checks. However, its alignment with SPN and its publication of climate-skeptic and highly partisan education content raise concerns regarding reliability. Several CPC claims, particularly about climate science and CRT, are inconsistent with mainstream academic consensus.
Overall, we rate the Freedom Foundation Right Biased due to its explicit anti-union mission, free-market ideological alignment, and consistently adversarial framing of progressive organizations. We rate it Mixed for factual reporting because, while it references real legal cases and financial disclosures, its content is advocacy-driven, selectively framed, and often employs strongly charged rhetoric. (D. Van Zandt 02/19/2026)
Source: https://www.freedomfoundation.com/
Last Updated on February 19, 2026 by Media Bias Fact Check
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Left vs. Right Bias: How we rate the bias of media sources