The annual Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism report on news consumption shows that Finland remains the country with the highest level of trust in news, at 69%, and Greece has the lowest trust at 19%.
About four out of 10 people surveyed worldwide said they trust the news they consume most of the time. In the United States, about 32% said they trust the news most of the time. The latest edition was based on surveys of more than 93,000 people in 46 countries. Overall, trust in news has slid downwards by two percentage points in the past year.
The share of citizens in all countries surveyed who are “very” or “extremely” interested in news and consume it regularly fell from 51 percent in 2022 to 48 percent in 2023, a possible sign of news fatigue.
According to the report, with the abundance of news outlets now available, “it is not surprising that news consumers are increasingly feeling overwhelmed and confused, and many are turning away temporarily or permanently. Selective news avoidance and news fatigue have been exacerbated by the challenging times we live in.”
The study shows that social networks that lean on on videos such as TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube are becoming increasingly important for news.
Statista notes “it is clear that most consumers are not looking for more news, but for the news that seems most relevant to them and helps them make sense of the complex issues we face. The new technological disruption of artificial intelligence is just around the corner, threatening to unleash a new wave of personalized, but potentially unreliable, content.”
The data is based on citizens’ perceptions of the trustworthiness of media or news brands. The scores are aggregates of subjective opinions that change over time and can be influenced by “political and social factors as with the news itself.” Statista writes.
The chart above shows the share of respondents agreeing “you can trust news most of the time” in selected countries.
