Distrust Profiles: Identifying the Factors That Shape Journalism’s Credibility Crisis

Thomas B. Ksiazek, Su Jung Kim, Jacob L. Nelson, Ahran Park, Sushobhan Patankar, Olivia Sabalaskey and Harsh Taneja
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Thomas B. Ksiazek: Department of Communication, Villanova University, USA
Su Jung Kim: Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, University of Southern California, USA
Jacob L. Nelson: Department of Communication, University of Utah, USA
Ahran Park: School of Media & Communication, Korea University, Republic of Korea
Sushobhan Patankar: Symbiosis International (Deemed University), India
Olivia Sabalaskey: Department of Communication, Villanova University, USA
Harsh Taneja: Institute of Communications Research, University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign, USA

Media and Communication, 2023, vol. 11, issue 4, 308-319

Abstract: Trust in news is declining globally and has been for some time a phenomenon that has been amplified in the context of a global pandemic, the rise in anti-media populism, and social and political unrest. Overall, public trust in journalism remains low (44% globally), according to the Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2021 . Building on a growing body of research on predictors of (dis)trust among news audiences, this study examines survey data from the Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2021 to explore distrust profiles—comparative profiles of users based on their relative distrust in news in general, news they consume, and news accessed through digital intermediaries like social and search—across distinct news environments: India, South Korea, and the US. We conclude that, across all three countries, there are large segments who either trust everything or distrust everything, suggesting a trust polarization phenomenon. Moreover, the results identify segments of swing trusters, users who trust some news and distrust other types but do not indicate a blanket tendency to trust or distrust everything. Normative expectations about the institution of journalism (i.e., folk theories) seem to be the most powerful factors in explaining the relative likelihood of membership in all profiles, where expectations regarding impartiality, concern about fake news, and fair coverage were important indicators of (dis)trust, with varying degrees depending on the media, political, and technological contexts in which they are situated. These findings suggest that to regain trust, journalists should consider how they can change people’s folk theories when it comes to news by comprehensively taking into account the unique trajectory of a given country’s media system.

Keywords: digital intermediaries; distrust profiles; journalism folk theories; media systems; news audiences; news distrust; swing trusters; trust polarization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cog:meanco:v11:y:2023:i:4:p:308-319

DOI: 10.17645/mac.v11i4.7071

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