There are estimated over 1.7 billion websites globally, although the figure fluctuates every day as new websites come up or go down. In addition, over 4.5 billion people globally contribute to online interactions, which means that at least 65% of the global population uses the internet.

The statistics reveal that the internet is a powerful tool many people use to keep in touch with loved ones, find out information, connect with new people or keep updated with the world’s current happenings.

However, because there are many platforms offering information, some don’t provide accurate or factual information. This forces online users to prefer some websites over others. Here are the most popular and best news websites worldwide

  • The New York Times
  • The BBC News
  • The Washington Post
  • The Wall Street Journal
  • The Economist

The New York Times

The New York Times is arguably a business culture and politics coverage. Yet, it has maintained ethical standards in its reporting over the years, which is a classic element of journalism in America.

It is one of the most influential websites in the US and covers information and news worldwide. It’s also a place where the news stories are well researched, information-packed, and factual.

The New York Times encourages intelligent commentary, enhancing the quality of news and information. It has an active social media presence and boosts over 50M Twitter followers and over 17M Facebook likes. Currently, the website has a 106 Alexa ranking.

The BBC News

Based in London, England, BBC World News is an international news feature and analysis website that reports breaking news and other information. It covers Africa, Europe, Latin America, Middle East, South Asia, Asia Pacific, the United States, and Canada.

BBC is well known for its articulate radio and TV broadcasting, and it’s a standard-bearer where you are assured of factual, timely, and ethical broadcastings and information.

Its Twitter handle has 32.2M followers, while the Facebook platform has 6.8M likes. BBC website and has an Alexa ranking of 104 and a user engagement time of 3.44 minutes.

The Washington Post

The Washington Post is currently owned by Jeff Bezos, founder of amazon.com. It’s a force to reckon with as the website is a solid and fearless platform and the most digitized publication currently.

Its world news section analyzes world-breaking news and offers an interactive platform for its users. Currently, it has 18million Twitter followers.

Washington Post World Facebook page has over 500000 likes and an Alexa website ranking of 215. The average time people spend on the site is 2.6 minutes every day.

The Wall Street Journal

A Dow Jones & Company publication, Wall Street Journal is an international coverage newspaper with a robust online presence. It is business focused with all its publications backed by facts and unbiased arguments.

It has an Alexa ranking of 396 and an engagement time of 2:56. Its Twitter has 18.8 M followers, while the Facebook page has 6.5 likes.

The Economist

The Economist is a British magazine with a lot of online popularity because of its highly dependable factual pieces. It’s backed but highly trained economists and journalists who give a weekly account of the happenings worldwide from an economist viewpoint.

The Economist has an active social media presence with 25.6 M Twitter followers and 10M likes on Facebook. It has an Alexa ranking of 2540 and an engagement time of 2:55 minutes.

What do all these sites have in common? As you realize, all these sites attract heavy traffic every day and keep growing by the minute. Here are the characteristics you will find in all popular news websites worldwide

They Have Dependable News Stories

A major problem many people find online is trusting the sources of the information they get. Many people don’t want to verify facts, truths, or findings after reading a news story.

Many opt for dependable websites where they know that information is factual, well-researched, and on point to avoid confusion and unnecessary worry. You are sure that whatever you read on this site is 100% authentic and backed by heavy research and facts.

The News Sites are Dependable

Most of these news websites are owned by mega-media houses with extensive journalist roots worldwide. They can publish news as it happens. So you get fresh and dependable information from anywhere globally, and they are great resources for breaking news.

You don’t have to wait for days to know what’s happening in a particular area or country. Browsing through the sites gives you access to all the information you need. It’s even better when you subscribe to their email listing, which means that you get the top stories of the day direct to your email box.

They are Ethical

These news websites hire highly trained journalists who have to follow strict rules and guidelines and adhere to the company’s reporting style. Therefore, you will not find vulgar, inappropriate, or disturbing news reporting, and when they do have scary stories, they warn the audience.

You won’t be afraid when your child is browsing through these sites because all their content is clean and highly ethical. They are also not after clicks or views but providing factual, reliable, and well-researched news that will benefit their target audience.

Before they publish any story, they verify and have all the facts ready, even when it’s a breaking news story.

They are Unique and Work Hard to Keep the Audience Engaged

You don’t have to wait for days or weeks to get meaningful reporting, and you’ll always get a fresh angle to a story, even when it’s a breaking news story. It means that they don’t copy other websites or media houses but do their journalism research to provide new, original and factual news stories that keep the audience entertained or engaged.

The news websites also keep up with the digital enhancements in the industry, making sure the audience has access to information at any time of the day or night. They also keep active engagement platforms where readers can engage each other, making the whole process more lively, enlightening, and connecting.

If you want to know what’s happening globally, you no longer have to switch on your TV or wait for the news bulletin, but you get live reportings as news stream into their headquarters. As a result, their audience is always a step ahead of those who rely on print media or TV news reporting.