Is USA Today a Republican newspaper? Here's what the facts show

Is USA Today a Republican newspaper? The short answer is no - and it never has been. But the question isn’t as simple as it sounds. People ask this because they’re trying to figure out where USA Today stands in today’s polarized media world. Is it biased? Is it fair? And why do some conservatives say it’s liberal while others think it’s just trying to stay neutral?

It started as a middle-ground paper

USA Today launched in 1982 with a clear mission: make national news easy to read for everyday Americans. Its founder, Al Neuharth, wanted to avoid the partisan shouting matches that dominated other papers. So they made a bold rule - no presidential endorsements. Not for Reagan, not for Clinton, not for Bush. For 32 years, they stuck to that. That wasn’t because they were afraid to take a stand. It was because they believed their job was to report facts, not pick sides.

That approach worked. By the early 2000s, USA Today had become one of the most widely read newspapers in the U.S., with a mix of sports, business, and national news. Its audience wasn’t just Democrats or Republicans - it was independents. People who didn’t want to be preached to. People who just wanted to know what happened.

Everything changed in 2016

In September 2016, USA Today broke its own rule. The editorial board published a rare, blunt op-ed titled “Donald Trump is unfit for the presidency.” They didn’t endorse Hillary Clinton. They didn’t even say who to vote for. They just said Trump was dangerous. It was the first time in their history they’d publicly condemned a candidate like that.

Why? Because they believed the campaign had crossed a line. The language, the attacks, the disregard for norms - it wasn’t politics as usual. The board said they’d spent years debating this. They’d voted multiple times to keep the no-endorsement policy. But in 2016, they felt they had no choice.

Then, in 2020, they did something even more historic: they formally endorsed Joe Biden. It was their first-ever presidential endorsement. That shocked a lot of people. Conservatives saw it as proof the paper had turned liberal. Liberals cheered it as a long-overdue stand.

But then they pulled back - in 2024

Fast forward to October 2024. USA Today announced they wouldn’t endorse any candidate in the presidential election. Not Trump. Not Biden. Not anyone.

This wasn’t a flip-flop. It was a strategic retreat. After the backlash from endorsing Biden, they realized their credibility was eroding - especially among Republicans. Their audience was shrinking on the right. So they decided to go back to what they once did best: report without picking a winner.

They didn’t say they were becoming conservative. They said they were returning to their roots. “America’s future is decided locally - one race at a time,” said their spokesperson. That meant focusing on local elections, not national ones. They still cover politics. They still write editorials. But they won’t say who should be president.

What do the experts say about bias?

Media bias isn’t just about who they endorse. It’s about how they frame stories, which sources they use, what they highlight, and what they leave out.

Ad Fontes Media, a research group that uses panels of left, right, and center analysts to rate news outlets, gave USA Today a bias score of -3.77 on a scale from -42 (very left) to +42 (very right). That puts them solidly in the “Middle” category. They also gave USA Today a reliability score of 40.91 - meaning they’re considered trustworthy in how they report facts.

Compare that to The New York Times (-19.8) or The Wall Street Journal (+3.4). USA Today is closer to the center than both. It’s not leaning right. It’s not Republican-aligned. It’s just… less extreme.

AllSides, another media bias tracker, labels USA Today as “Lean Left.” But even they admit it’s one of the least polarized major outlets. Their data shows USA Today’s headlines are less emotionally charged than CNN’s or Fox News’s.

Who reads USA Today?

The people who read USA Today aren’t just Democrats or Republicans. According to a 2024 YouGov survey, 48% of their readers identify as independents. That’s more than Democrats (28%) or Republicans (24%).

That’s unusual. Most major news outlets have audiences that are 70%+ aligned with one party. USA Today’s audience is split - and that’s why they’ve tried so hard to stay neutral.

But here’s the catch: even when you try to be neutral, people still see bias. A Reddit user from October 2024 said, “Their ‘neutral’ coverage still has subtle left framing, especially on social issues.” Another said, “They endorsed Biden in 2020 but went back to no endorsement this year - more neutral than WaPo but not exactly Fox News.”

That’s the reality. If you’re a conservative, you’ll notice when they cover climate change or abortion rights. If you’re a liberal, you’ll notice when they give airtime to Republican voices. Neither side feels fully represented - because the paper is trying to serve both.

How does it compare to Republican papers?

If you want a Republican newspaper, you’d look at The Washington Times or The Daily Caller. Those outlets regularly endorse GOP candidates, run stories with headlines like “Biden’s Border Collapse” or “Democrats Are Destroying America,” and rely heavily on conservative commentators.

USA Today doesn’t do that. They don’t use inflammatory language. They don’t push conspiracy theories. They don’t frame every Democratic policy as a disaster. Even when they criticize Republicans - like during the 2013 government shutdown or John Boehner’s resignation - they do it with data, not drama.

They’ve called out both parties. They’ve criticized Obama’s drone policy. They’ve questioned Trump’s tax returns. They’ve challenged Biden’s inflation numbers. That’s not partisan. That’s journalism.

Why do people think it’s Republican?

Some conservatives say USA Today is “Republican” because they don’t scream as loudly as CNN or MSNBC. That’s not bias - that’s restraint. But in today’s media world, silence gets misread as alignment.

Also, USA Today’s business section and sports coverage are solid and apolitical. If you only read those parts, you might think the whole paper is neutral. Then you click on a political story and see a headline like “Republicans Block Voting Rights Bill” - and suddenly, it feels biased.

It’s not that the paper is lying. It’s that people now expect news to be a mirror of their own beliefs. When it doesn’t reflect that, they assume it’s working against them.

The future of USA Today

USA Today is caught in a trap. Their audience is mostly independent - but independents are getting rarer. More people are choosing sides. More outlets are picking teams. And the ones that don’t? They get accused of being weak. Or worse - dishonest.

Some inside the paper are frustrated. In November 2024, opinion fellow Dace Potas wrote an article titled “Trump is president again and Democrats can blame Biden’s ego.” That kind of piece doesn’t come from a Republican paper. It comes from someone inside trying to push the paper toward a more critical view of Democrats.

Meanwhile, liberal groups like Media Matters called the 2024 non-endorsement decision “cowardly.” Conservative outlets called it “too little, too late.”

So where does that leave USA Today? Still in the middle. Still trying to be fair. Still reporting facts. Still not a Republican paper. But also not the paper it used to be.

They’re not perfect. They’re not always clear. But they’re not trying to sell you a political agenda. They’re trying to give you the information to make your own decision - even if that’s harder now than it was in 1982.

What’s the bottom line?

USA Today is not a Republican newspaper. It never has been. It’s a centrist paper that occasionally leans left - especially on social issues - but consistently avoids the extremes. Their 2016 and 2020 endorsements were exceptions, not the rule. Their 2024 decision to stop endorsing candidates was a return to their original identity, not a shift to the right.

If you’re looking for a paper that’s clearly on one side, there are plenty of options. If you want one that tries to be balanced, even when it’s unpopular - USA Today is still one of the few left.