“It’s surprising that Truth Social’s traffic dropped so dramatically,” said Howard Polskin, President, TheRighting. “The president uses that platform as a powerful megaphone to communicate policy, batter opponents, and praise and promote politicians who toe the MAGA line. The decline suggests that traffic to Truth Social is starting to parallel his cratering polling numbers owing to war in Iran.”
Publication: A Righting Research Exclusive
Ben Shapiro Ranks as Right-Wing Media’s Top YouTube Creator in Q2
The daily show from the popular right-wing commentator attracted 7 million subscribers through the end of 2026’s second quarter, more than any other right-wing program. It far exceeded the #2 program, “Candace,” from extremist pundit Candace Owens, which had 6 million subscribers through the same period.
Program from Extremist Candace Owens Ranks as Q3’s Fastest-Growing Right-Wing Podcast
But TheRighting found evidence that remarkable growth of “Candace” may be slowing. “The declining numbers of new subscribers suggest that audiences are finally beginning to turn away from her outrageously offensive commentary,” said Howard Polskin, President, TheRighting. “Although she still has a huge base of subscribers, it’s likely that extraordinary growth may have peaked.”
Traffic to All Right-Wing News Websites Drop for Second Straight Month
“The ongoing negative trend in traffic is bad news for news websites,” said Howard Polskin, President, TheRighting. “It’s surprising because a war with Iran and volatile gas prices should be driving more visits to news outlets.” The Trump-controlled Truth Social lost almost half of its traffic from a year ago.
All Top Right-Wing News Websites Suffer Declines in May Visits
“It’s certainly an alarming development, but not a surprising one,” noted Howard Polskin, President, TheRighting. “The trend in 2026 has definitely been downward, but it feels like the descent is accelerating despite major events like the war with Iran which should have attracted visits.”
Traffic to Trump’s Truth Social Soars 45% While Other News Websites Decline in April
“Truth Social seems to be benefiting by positioning itself as one of President Trump’s main channels for communicating his increasingly erratic strategy about the war and his often chaotic world view,” said Howard Polskin, President, TheRighting.
War in Iran Fails to Drive Traffic to Right-Wing News Websites in March
“It’s surprising that more eyeballs weren’t driven to right-wing news websites after the February 28 start of the war with Iran,” said Howard Polskin, President, TheRighting. “This could represent a wave of consumer news avoidance signifying that audiences are fatigued from the constant noise and drama of the Trump administration.”
Program from Right-Wing Extremist Candace Owens Ranks as Q1’s Fastest-Growing Conservative Podcast
Exclusive research conducted by TheRighting found that the number of year-over-year subscribers to “Candace” on the Castbox platform soared 59% in the first quarter compared to Q1, 2025. “The Charlie Kirk Show” was another fast-growing podcast, despite the death of the popular activist last year.
Traffic Plunges at All Right-Wing News Websites in February
Every right-wing news website tracked by TheRighting experienced significant declines in February traffic according to TheRighting’s exclusive analysis of Similarweb data. Even fast-growing right-wing stalwarts like Truth Social saw year-over-year (YOY) declines.
Visits to Trump’s Truth Social Climb 27%, More Than Any Right-Wing News Websites
The audience growth of the president’s Truth Social platform was surprisingly strong in January 2026. It demonstrates his skill in using Truth Social as one of his main channels to express his often polarizing views. For legions of Trump watchers – both professionals and amateurs – it’s turned into a must-read.
Only One Right-Wing News Website Posts Traffic Increase in Dismal December
PJ Media was the only right-wing news website tracked by TheRighting that increased its year-over-year visits in December. “Trafffic-wise, it was a lousy month for all websites, right, left and mainstream,” said Howard Polskin, President, TheRighting.
“Candace” Ranks as Q4’s Fastest-Growing Right-Wing Podcast
“The remarkable growth of Candace Owens’ podcast in the past year shows that there’s a large, receptive audience for her ugly conspiracy theories and outrageous rhetoric,” said Howard Polskin, President, TheRighting.
Traffic Rises at Trump’s Truth Social While Other News Sites Crater
Year-over-year traffic to all right-wing news websites plunged in November according to Similarweb data. The only news outlet that TheRighting monitors that posted a traffic increase was the Trump-controlled social media platform Truth Social. More than half of the right-wing news websites surveyed by TheRighting had traffic declines of 30% or higher.
Visits to Trump’s Truth Social Skyrocket in October, While Most News Websites Decline
Truth Social’s robust year-over-year gains last month are remarkable, especially when they’re compared with October 2024, the final full month of the galvanizing presidential campaign, It’s a clear demonstration of the growing strength of a relatively new right-wing media brand.”
Charlie Kirk Program is Q3’s Fastest-Growing Right-Wing Podcast
Despite Charlie Kirk’s death last month, his eponymous podcast has remained active with new programs available every day attracting thousands of new subscribers. It’s a clear indication of his growing appeal to an ever-widening circle of listeners.
Visits to The Free Press Soar 44% in September
Traffic to the site, which was just acquired by the Trump-friendly Paramount, rose more than any right-wing news outlet in September except for the Trump-controlled Truth Social (+51%). Since September 2023, The Free Press’s first full year of operation, visits swelled 134%, more than any other website TheRighting monitors.
The Free Press Among Only 3 Right-Wing News Outlets to Post August Traffic Gains
The Free Press, the right-tilting company co-founded by former New York Times journalist Bari Weiss in 2022, generated a 4% increase in YOY visits. It had more visits than established right-wing news brands like the National Review, the Washington Free Beacon and The Federalist.
Fox News and NY Post Receive Most White House Links in August
The two Murdoch-controlled news outlets continued to get the most links from the White House Wire, the daily mini-aggregation newsletter produced by the Trump administration.
White House Wire Ignores WSJ in July, But Showers Fox News with Links
The White House Wire (WWW) disregarded the Wall Street Journal in July, after the respected news outlet published coarse details about a birthday note it claimed Trump sent in 2003 to financier Jeffrey Epstein. According to TheRighting’s exclusive research, the WWW didn’t link once to the Journal in July
White House Wire Links Most to Murdoch-Controlled New Outlets in June
TheRighting’s research found that in June, the White House Wire linked to Fox News 22 times, followed by Fox Business, 13 times, and Murdoch’s New York Post, 10 times. In a surprising development, the Canadian-based Post-Millennial had nine links. It was more than many other right-wing stalwarts.
New Political Podcasts Show Dramatic Growth
Recently launched programs across the political spectrum from personalties like Michelle Obama, Dasha Burns and Jon Stewart leapfrog more established podcasts, according to research from TheRighting.
Megyn Kelly Podcast Dominates Q1 Right-Wing Podcasting
Since endorsing Donald Trump the night before the November 2024 election, the popularity of Megyn Kelly’s podcast has soared exponentially and it shows in hockey stick growth on the Castbox platform. There’s clearly a growing audience for her MAGA-friendly point-of-view and she has ridden the Trump wave perfectly since his January 20 inauguration.
Audiences Flee News Websites Over Four-Year Period
“TheRighting’s four-year comparison indicates that massive audience erosion continues to plague news websites on the right and left,” said Howard Polskin, President, TheRighting. “It’s abundantly clear that this problem is not going away. I am not sure where the bottom lies.”
Bluesky Captures More Unique Visitors Than Truth Social in November
For the fifth consecutive month, the Donald-Trump-controlled Truth Social platform generated significant year-over-year growth in unique visitors. However, the upstart Bluesky, which has been offering a progressive-friendly alternative to the more rightward-leaning X since early 2024, generated 5,352,000 unique visitors in November, surpassing Truth Social.