Trends in Public Opinion about News Media

When analyzing the evolution of journalism through time, one possibility is to examine the dynamics of media outlets from the inside out: to see their biases, political affiliation, and other editorial compromises as characteristics directed to external, moldeable audiences. Yet, it is also possible to see this progression through an alternate lens, where news organizations morph in response to a changing public. As expected, this second model necessitates knowledge about current trends of public perception towards news production. So it is worth asking, how does the public perception of the news media look like in 2022. Do people trust what they read in the news?

The digitalization of audiences has brought with it a radical change in how the news media industry operates. In the era of Twitter, fake news, and Covid-19, public opinion towards news sources has been observed to change rapidly. In the United States, for example, trust in national news organizations is at its lowest point in the last five years, with only 58% of the population reporting they “have a lot or some trust [in the information].” A recent investigation by the Pew Research Center suggests such attitudes are linked to four phenomena: the explosion and dominance of online news consumption, the shift to online-based revenue streams, the strong affinity of Republicans and Democrats with particular sources, and the impact of misinformation.

Most interestingly, the research shows statistically significant differences in appreciation for good journalism, in those stories which attempt to “value” readers and make them feel as part of the conversation.

However, outside of the United States, the pandemic has interestingly seen a general trend towards more trust in the news. According to the Reuters Institute at Oxford University, trust “… has grown by six percentage points in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic.” It can be argued that this very recent change in behavior is fueled by the abundance of false information in the web pertaining to Covid-19, which prompts the public to look for more credible, “institutionalized” sources. Also, popularized global initiatives, like the United Nations’ Verified campaign have received commitments to combat misinformation from both government and large news organizations alike. Finally, in a comparative study, the above-cited report shows what impartiality in journalism means for inhabitants of Brazil, Germany, the UK, and the US. A big takeaway from the study is how differences in opinions are not as big as one might expect from the different cultures: across all four countries, people mostly think that “equal time should be given to different sides of debates” and that “news outlets [should] present a range of views and let them decide,” among other conclusions.

As you prepare to participate as a member of HNMUN’s Press Corps, you should always keep in mind how the public perception is shifting with respect to the news media. Are the readers of your cable or newspaper’s content skeptical about all news organizations, or is there notable non-uniformity as to where they place their trust? Can you incorporate in your journalistic work elements that people identify as giving them more trust in what they read?

Best,

Ricardo Skewes

Assistant Director