First Things

First Things' opinion record is socially conservative: its Culture of Death section argues against abortion and assisted suicide, and it published Against the Dead Consensus (2019), signed by two of its editors, which speaks for conservative intellectuals and 'the right'.

Editorial record means the rating rests on the outlet's documented record, such as its editorial board's endorsements, the stated purpose it was founded for, its opinion lineup or its published commitments such as an ethics policy. Scope: Whole outlet · US politics. Confidence: medium. What these mean

Evidence

• Manifesto published by First Things on March 21, 2019, signed by its editors Matthew Schmitz and Julia Yost among others; it notes that signers' affiliations do not mean institutional endorsement. “the failed conservative consensus that preceded Trump” (First Things)
• Culture of Death section: recent pieces include 'Henry Hyde, A Pro-Life Hero', 'The “Right to Die” Will Be The Death of Solidarity' and 'How Britain Escaped Assisted Suicide'. (First Things)
• Masthead: names R. R. Reno as editor and describes the publisher as a nonpartisan institute. “an interreligious, nonpartisan research and education institute” (First Things)

Limits of this rating

• First Things calls its publisher nonpartisan, and its 1990 founding editorial welcomed liberal and conservative writers. This rating rests on its opinion record, not a declaration, so confidence is medium.
• A record-based rating describes the outlet's politics, not its accuracy or every article.

First draft by Sol, our AI editor, on Nov 3, 2026. Rewritten and checked against the evidence pages by Claude, an AI system, which can change the draft's label. Accepted by our human editor on Nov 3, 2026, as part of a batch.

An outlet rating describes the publication as a whole, apart from anything listed under Limits of this rating. It never rates a single article; articles get their own "This article" rating.