Trust in news has grown by six percent over the last year in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2021, with 44% saying they trust most news most of the time. With trust in news from search and social media relatively stable, audiences are placing increasing value on accurate and reliable news sources.
News consumers are also increasingly looking to impartial news outlets that allow them to make their own decisions, with the majority (74%) saying they prefer news outlets that reflect a range of views versus news outlets that argue for the views they think are best. A full 66% also want news outlets to remain neutral in their news coverage.
Other highlights from the Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2021 include:
- Concerns about false and misleading information have risen slightly this year, ranging from 82% in Brazil to just 37% in Germany;
- Respondents pay most attention to mainstream media outlets when consuming news on Twitter (31%) and Facebook (28%) – more so than politicians, alternative news sources or other influencers;
- Almost three-quarters of respondents (73%) now access news via a smartphone – up from 69% in 2020;
- Smart speakers now reach more than a fifth of the UK adult population (22%) and 15% in the United States and Germany.
The Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2021 surveyed people from six continents and 46 markets around the world, with an aim to provide insight on the key issues facing the news industry.
The results of the survey reflect a growing trust in and desire for unbiased and accurate news. Regularly recognized as one the world’s most trusted and unbiased news organizations–including by Ad Fontes Media, The Economist, GlobalWebIndex and Reynolds Journalism Institute–the findings of the report reflect an increasing demand for the objective and reliable news coverage that Reuters has delivered for 170 years. Governed by the Thomson Reuters Trust Principles, Reuters is deeply committed to independence, integrity and freedom from bias, working relentlessly to bring news from the source and from every corner of the world.
You can read the full Reuters Institute Digital News Report here. For access to Reuters’ trusted and unbiased coverage of the most important news stories around the world, register for the newly relaunched Reuters.com.
Media Contact:
Heather Carpenter
heather.carpenter @ tr.com