Outlet profile

Common Dreams

U.S. left / progressive

Owned byIndependent 501(c)(3) nonprofit; founded by Craig Brown; no corporate parent

FundingReader donations (tens of thousands of small gifts averaging roughly $28) and grants from progressive foundations such as the Park Foundation, Schumann Media Center, Lear Family Foundation, and Fonda Family Foundation; no advertising, no corporate or government funding

On the administrationbroadly critical

Background

Common Dreams was founded in 1996 by Craig Brown, a political consultant and former director of the Maine Public Interest Research Group, and his wife Lina Newhouser; the site launched in May 1997 in Portland, Maine. Brown drew on his earlier experience compiling news for U.S. Representative Tom Andrews to build one of the web's early progressive news aggregators. Over time the outlet evolved from a news wire into a full publication featuring original reporting, opinion pieces, and commentary from prominent left-leaning voices such as Ralph Nader, Noam Chomsky, Naomi Klein, and Paul Krugman. It has operated continuously as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, deliberately refusing advertising, corporate sponsorship, and government funding in order to maintain editorial independence. Media bias trackers including Media Bias/Fact Check, AllSides, and Ad Fontes Media consistently rate Common Dreams as left-leaning, while also giving it high marks for factual accuracy and sourcing. The outlet's stated mission is to serve 'the progressive community,' and its story selection and framing reflect consistent commitments to social justice, labor rights, environmental protection, and skepticism of corporate and military power. Common Dreams has no major ownership controversies, but it draws criticism from conservative and centrist observers for its overtly ideological framing of news coverage.

Sources

Profile compiled 2026-06-25; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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