Media trust in Australia shows one of the biggest drops, says Edelman’s latest survey
Just one in two people trust the media, a new survey has shown, with feedback from more than 36,000 people in 28 markets globally.
PR firm Edelman’s Annual Trust Barometer for 2022 found 56% of people said the media was a divisive force in society. And just one-third (35%) said the media contributed to making societies more cohesive.
Two-thirds (67%) of people globally said they believe journalists and reporters purposely try to mislead people by saying things they know are false or grossly exaggerated – up 8 percentage points on last year’s report.
Faith in the media fell in 15 countries, with the US and Australia among those reporting the biggest drops.
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A majority of people around the world are concerned that they are being lied to by journalists, according to the latest trust survey from PR firm Edelman.
Just 37% of people said that they trusted social media – down 8 percentage points.
Traditional media fell too, with less than 6 in 10 (57%) people saying they trusted mainstream sources, a drop of 5 percentage points from last year.
Russia, Japan and the US are among the countries where traditional media is least trusted.
“Owned media” was slightly up, but its trust score of 43% was still behind traditional media.
“This vicious cycle of distrust threatens societal stability,” Edelman said. “It’s a death grip where media is chasing clicks and government is chasing votes, both feeding a cycle of disinformation and division and exploiting it for commercial and political gain.”
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