Lawfare
U.S. center-left
Background
Lawfare was founded in September 2010 by Benjamin Wittes (then an editorial writer at The Washington Post), Harvard Law professor Jack Goldsmith, and University of Texas law professor Robert Chesney. The name draws on a term popularized by Air Force General Charles Dunlap in 2001, referring to the use of law as an instrument of conflict, as well as ongoing American debates over the legal rules governing national security. The Lawfare Institute, the nonprofit entity that formally publishes the site, was established in 2014, with Wittes serving as its president. From early on, Lawfare operated in cooperation with the Brookings Institution, and Wittes holds a senior fellowship there in governance studies. The publication grew from a niche legal blog into a widely cited multimedia outlet covering courts, intelligence, surveillance, and executive power — attracting contributors from across the ideological spectrum within the national security legal community, including figures with both Republican and Democratic government backgrounds. Media bias trackers such as Media Bias/Fact Check and AllSides have generally rated Lawfare as center to slightly left-leaning, with very high factual reliability. During the Trump administration's second term (beginning January 2025), Lawfare has concentrated heavily on litigation against executive actions, press freedom issues, and legal constraints on presidential power, positioning its coverage in a critically analytical posture toward the administration.
Sources
- Lawfare (website) — Wikipedia
- About Lawfare | Lawfare
- Lawfare Media — InfluenceWatch
- Lawfare Blog – Bias and Credibility — Media Bias/Fact Check
- Lawfare Media Bias — AllSides
- The Lawfare Podcast Bias and Reliability — Ad Fontes Media
- Welcome to the new Lawfare | Brookings
- US Media in the Crosshairs — Nieman Reports
Profile compiled 2026-08-08; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.