In the past few decades researchers have found a significant decline in the American people’s trust of social media, news, radio, etc to convey the full story.
Graph from Gallup Poll Done in October 2025
In the most recent poll taken in October of last year only 28% of Americans expressed a “great deal” or a “fair amount” of confidence in newspapers, television, and radio to report the news completely, accurately, and fairly. This is a 3% decrease from last year and a 12% decrease from five years ago. The study also revealed that seven in 10 of adults or 70% say that they have “not very much” trust (36%) or “none at all” (34%).
The study was done by Gallup, a global analytics and advisory firm known for its public opinion surveys, management consulting, and data-driven solutions that strive to help organizations improve employee engagement, overall performance, and leadership by maximizing potential. When Gallup began measuring trust in the news and later on social media in the 1970s, between 68% and 72% of Americans expressed confidence in news media and honest reporting. By the next survey in 1997, around 17 years later, the public’s faith had fallen roughly 19%, to 53%, just over half the respondents. The confidence results remained barely above 50% until it dropped to 44% in 2004, and has not regained the majority since. In the past decade, the highest reading was 45% in 2018, which came just two years after confidence had taken a nosedive amid the divisive presidential campaign of 2016.
What is interesting is, according to an analysis of three-year compiled data, there is a visible generational divide in trust in the media that has developed over the past decade. In the most recent three-year period starting in 2023 and ending in 2025, 43% of adults age 65 and older trust the media, compared with no more than 28% in any younger age group.
In the early 2000s, Americans in all stages of life expressed rather similar levels of confidence in the media, at just above 50%. Since then overall confidence has gradually declined, the decline of confidence has been less severe amongst the older generations.
A different survey conducted by Peak Insights in July of 2025 found that the American people hold more trust in public media sources than in larger media organizations and have a more favorable opinion of public media compared to “for-profit” media. According to a poll conducted among around 1,000 Americans, people highly value the public media’s main services and programs.
The survey revealed that people trust public media more widely than the media in general when it comes to reporting the news completely and honestly. The study showed that only 35% of voters place their trust in general media, whereas 53% of people trust public media, networks, and local channels.
In addition, a 65% majority favors local public television and radio stations, with 61% trusting PBS and 54% trusting NPR.
The survey displayed strong support for public media benefiting, 68% believe public media is essential for rural and underserved communities; 62% believe public media should remain available for everyone, free of charge.
The bottom line, though, is that confidence in the mass media is at a historic low currently, with fewer than three in 10 Americans placing their trust in the news, television, radio, and social media to report the news fully, fairly, and accurately. The generational divide furthers, with older adults holding significantly more confidence than younger generations.
With public confidence fragmented across all age groups, the challenge for news organizations is not only to deliver fair and accurate information but also to regain credibility over an increasingly skeptical public.
Citations
Brenan, Megan. “Trust in Media at New Low of 28% in U.S.” Gallup.Com, Gallup, 2 Oct. 2025, news.gallup.com/poll/695762/trust-media-new-low.aspx.
Harrison, Patricia. “New National Poll: Majority of Voters Trust Public Media More than Media Overall and Highly Value Core Services and Programs.” Corporation for Public Broadcasting, cpb.org/pressroom/new-national-poll-majority-voters-trust-public-media-more-media-overall-and-highly-value. Accessed 8 Jan. 2026.
Baydoun, Bilal. “Americans’ Trust in Media Hit a Record Low This Week. Only Public Media Can Restore It.” Roosevelt Institute, 3 Oct. 2025, rooseveltinstitute.org/blog/trust-in-media-hits-record-low/.
