Apple News continues to feature significantly more stories from left-leaning news organizations than conservative outlets, according to a new study by the Media Research Center, a conservative media watchdog group.
The study examined the news aggregator during October, the second month under new Apple CEO John Ternus, who took over for longtime CEO Tim Cook on September 1. Researchers say the findings show little change in the political balance of stories featured on the platform.
During the first 27 days of October, Apple News promoted 504 stories. Of those, 339, or about 67%, came from publications rated as left-leaning by media bias rating organization AllSides. Just 11 stories, or 2%, came from right-leaning outlets.
The study also examined how Apple News presented coverage involving President Donald Trump. Between October 1 and October 28, researchers identified 96 featured headlines containing Trump's name. They classified 49 as negative, 47 as neutral and none as positive.
The Media Research Center says nearly half of the 11 stories from conservative outlets were also framed negatively toward Trump, his administration or Republicans.
MRC officials argue the findings show Apple News continues to provide an unbalanced selection of political coverage, particularly heading into the November midterm elections.
The organization has previously compared Apple News coverage under Cook and Ternus. Its research found that left-leaning publications accounted for 65% of featured stories in August, Cook's final month, compared with 67% in September, Ternus' first month. Conservative outlets accounted for just 2% in August and less than 1% in September.
Apple has faced growing criticism from conservative groups and Republican lawmakers over the political balance of its news app. The Federal Trade Commission also previously raised questions about allegations of bias.
Apple did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
The findings are based on the Media Research Center's analysis and its classification of news organizations using AllSides ratings. They represent the watchdog group's assessment, not an independent determination of political bias.
