Countering distrust in local news
By Bob Papper and Keren Henderson
July 30, 2024 — The latest Gallup Survey puts Americans’ trust in the mass media tied for the lowest level ever recorded. Thirty-two percent say they trust the media “a great deal” or “a fair amount” — putting the 2023 level tied with 2016 as the low point in Gallup results. Gallup started tracking trust in American mass media in 1972, when 68% said they had “a great deal” or “a fair amount” of trust. And “none at all” came in at 6%. In 2023, “none at all” hit a record high of 39%.
The question asks how much confidence people have in the mass media — such as newspapers, TV and radio — for “reporting the news fully, accurately and fairly.” The choices are: a great deal, a fair amount, not very much and none at all.
In a new question last year, the RTDNA/Newhouse School at Syracuse University Survey asked news directors what, if anything, they were doing to address concerns about audience trust in their news.
Nearly 200 TV news directors responded to the question with nearly two-thirds of them (61.2%) saying they had done something to help improve trust in their station. The larger the news department, the more likely that the station had done something; and two-thirds of the news directors in markets 150 and larger report having addressed the issue. Markets 151+ came in at 44.7%.
This year, over half the TV news directors say they’re dealing with trust. Interestingly, a year ago, FOX affiliate news directors lagged well behind most of the others; this year, they’re at the forefront.
About the Authors
Bob Papper is Research Professor of Broadcast and Digital Journalism at Syracuse University and has worked extensively in radio and TV news.
Keren Henderson is Associate Professor of Broadcast and Digital Journalism at Syracuse University.
This research was supported by the S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University and the Radio Television Digital News Association.
About the Survey
The RTDNA/Newhouse School at Syracuse University Survey was conducted in the fourth quarter of 2023 among all 1,876 operating, non-satellite television stations and a random sample of 4,764 radio stations. The television response rate is different for every question, but Valid responses came from as many as 1,387 television stations (73.9%) and 631 radio news directors and general managers representing 1,902 radio stations. Some data sets (e.g. the number of TV stations originating local news, getting news from others and women TV news directors) are based on a complete census and are not projected from a smaller sample.