08/10/2023

NewsGuard Expands Reliability Ratings to Connected TV, Enabling Advertisers and Streaming TV Providers to Target High Quality News Channels

Advertisers can use NewsGuard’s CTV Reliability Ratings to avoid placing ads on news channels that regularly convey false information, remove heavily biased or politically slanted news channels from their inventory, and target trustworthy news sources.

(August 10, 2023 — New York) NewsGuard announced that its Reliability Ratings for news sources will now cover top Connected TV (CTV) and over-the-top (OTT) news channels, going beyond its TV Reliability Ratings for traditional broadcast and cable news programs and networks. The CTV Reliability Ratings, sourced by NewsGuard’s misinformation analysts, can be used to facilitate safe, responsible advertising across news content on CTV and OTT, including direct and programmatic ad buys.

The same ratings can be used by CTV and OTT providers to moderate content and promote trustworthy news content to their viewers.

“Advertisers and brands are increasingly looking for omnichannel protections to ensure brand safety across all types of news media, including CTV, OTT, and podcasts,” said Sruthi Palaniappan, VP Operations and New Products at NewsGuard. “As more ad dollars shift from linear TV to Connected TV, it’s become more and more important for brands and advertisers to access tools that enable them to safely advertise on CTV and OTT news content. NewsGuard is now proud to offer that solution.” NewsGuard launched ratings for linear TV news programs and networks in 2022.

The CTV Reliability Ratings include a trust score from 0-10, overall risk level, metadata fields, and a detailed written explanation of the channel’s content and credibility practices.

CTV Reliability Ratings criteria

CTV channels are rated based on the following weighted criteria specific to the television medium (these are adapted from the nine basic, apolitical criteria of journalistic practice NewsGuard applies to news and information websites):

Does not repeatedly convey false information (4 points): This network or program does not regularly allow clearly false facts of significant importance to be conveyed by the on-air talent or an interviewee in a way that is unchallenged by other on-air talent or another interviewee.
Conveys news on important topics responsibly (3 points): This network or program rarely if ever conveys unchallenged false facts, presents unsubstantiated claims as fact, or distorts or misrepresents information regarding important issues.
Presents multiple viewpoints (2 points): When the on-air talent or guests offer opinions on significant issues, care is generally taken by this network or program to present alternative viewpoints.
News organization associated with this program adheres strongly to journalistic standards (1 point): The website of the network that airs this program passes all NewsGuard’s credibility criteria.

Risk levels and safety scores

Based on a program or network’s performance on the four criteria, it is assigned a red, yellow or green rating — a risk level; and a safety score from 0-10, indicating its credibility. These scores can be used by SSPs as they curate their inventory to ensure all CTV news content is brand safe.

0-5 points: High risk advertising environment
6-7 points: Some risk advertising environment
8-10 points: Low risk advertising environment

Sample CTV Reliability Ratings and Nutrition Labels have been made publicly available for the following streaming news channels: Scripps News, which scores 10/10, The Young Turks, which scores 4/10, and CGTN, a global network operated by the Chinese government’s Propaganda Department, which scores 0/10.

To learn more about NewsGuard’s CTV Reliability Ratings and access data samples, reach out to partnerships@newsguardtech.com.

About NewsGuard

Founded by media entrepreneur and award-winning journalist Steven Brill and former Wall Street Journal publisher Gordon Crovitz, NewsGuard provides transparent tools to counter misinformation for readers, brands, and democracies. Since launching in 2018, its global staff of trained journalists and information specialists has collected, updated, and deployed more than 6.9 million data points on more than 35,000 news and information sources, and to catalog and track all of the top false narratives spreading online.

NewsGuard’s analysts, powered by multiple AI tools, operate the trust industry’s most accountable and largest dataset on news. These data are deployed to fine-tune and provide guardrails for generative AI models, enable brands to advertise on quality news sites and avoid propaganda or hoax sites, provide media literacy guidance for individuals, and support democratic governments in countering hostile disinformation operations targeting their citizens.

Among other indicators of the scale of its operations is that NewsGuard’s apolitical and transparent criteria have been applied by its analysts to rate news sources accounting for 95% of online engagement with news across nine countries.