Americans trust news organizations less than ever. That’s the conclusion of the most recent Gallup survey on trust in the major news providers.
Both newspapers and television news lost an average of 5% of those who say they have a “great deal” of trust in them.
Television news is the second least-trusted institution in America, after Congress, with only 11% of survey respondents saying they have “quite a lot” of trust in television news. Only 16 percent of those surveyed have “quite a lot” of trust in newspapers.
The survey shows significant declines for 11 of the 16 institutions tested, and no improvements for any major institution, Gallup said.
Republicans went from 8% confidence in newspapers in 2020 to 5% confidence in 2022. Democrats went from 38% confidence in newspapers to 35%.
Republicans went from 6% confidence in television news in 2020 to 8% confidence in 2022. But Democrats went from 26% confidence in television news to 20% during the same period.
Small business and the military were most positively rated by each of the three party groups (Republican, Democrat, Independent), while Congress tied for the lowest.
Democrats are more confident than Republicans in most of the major institutions, with notable exceptions being the low confidence Democrats have in the police, the U.S. Supreme Court, and organized religion, all of which Democrats rate low.
Gallup said Americans’ confidence in institutions has been lacking for the past 15 years, but trust in key institutions has hit a new low this year.
“Most of the institutions Gallup tracks are at historic lows, and average confidence across all institutions is now four points lower than the prior low,” the survey company said. “Notably, confidence in the major institutions of the federal government is at a low point, at a time when the president and Congress are struggling to address high inflation, record gas prices, increased crime and gun violence, continued illegal immigration, and significant foreign policy challenges from Russia and China. Confidence in the Supreme Court had already dropped even before it overturned Roe v. Wade, though that ruling was expected after a draft opinion was leaked in May.”
Gallup said that a near-record low of 13% of Americans are satisfied with the way things are going in the U.S.
