A new report from the European Broadcasting Union has found that levels of trust in traditional media across Europe has risen over the last year.
According to the EBU’s Trust in Media 2017 report, broadcast media remains the most trusted media throughout Europe. Radio is the most trusted medium, trusted by 59 per cent of EU citizens, closely followed by TV at 50 per cent. In the last five years, trust in both media has continued to grow across Europe.
However, trust in the internet and social networks has fallen – with trust in social networks is at its lowest ever level. Only 36 per cent of EU citizens tend to trust the internet and 21 per cent of EU citizens say they trust social networks. Those who did not trust social networks outnumbered those who did in all 33 countries surveyed.
The report found that people living in south-eastern Europe and the UK have the least trust in the written press, while western Europe showed the least trust in social media. Trust in TV and radio is at its highest in the Nordic regions.
Roberto Suarez, head, EBU Media Intelligence Service, said: “It is reassuring that the public’s level of trust in broadcast media is actually increasing across Europe.
“In this post-truth world, it is encouraging to see the public can differentiate between competing sources of news and have chosen to put their trust in more traditional media.
“As public service broadcasters, it is the job of our Members to cherish and maintain that level of trust and continue to provide impartial, independent reporting to counter the spread of fake news and the limitation of filter bubbles on social media.”
The full infographic can be found here.
