Trust Misplaced?

• Author: Bricker, Darrell
• Position: WORLD IMAGES

AROUND THE GLOBE, 82% of adults indicate that the news they read, watch, or listen to comes from trustworthy sources, according to 'Trust Misplaced?", a report from Ipsos and the Trust Project. The report is grounded by two Ipsos Global Advisor surveys spanning 29 nations. Moreover, two-thirds of respondents say they have easy access to news they have faith in.

Behind these encouraging signs, however, lies possible fertile ground for the continued spread of disinformation. Globally, 67% of adults say they only read news they can access for free, while just 29% say they are able and a mere 27% are willing to pay for news from sources they trust. Many are confident in their ability to spot "fake news" (58%) although they are less confident in their fellow citizens' ability to do so (30%). Forty-six percent of all respondents believe other countries target people in their country with disinformation. This especially is true in the U.S. (58%) and Great Britain (54%).

The percentage of adults who seek out sources of trustworthy news at least occasionally ranges from as much as 94% in Peru and 92% in Colombia, Chile, and South Africa to a low of 65% in Japan and 66% in South Korea.

Every country surveyed shows a majority agreeing they have easy access to news they trust and fewer than one in five disagreeing with the sole exception of Japan (25% agree vs. 23% disagree while 53% neither agree nor disagree).

Globally, most adults surveyed frequently get news from a variety of media sources. Seventy-four percent report getting their news at least three times a week from television; 72% from social media; 62% from news websites; 61 % from news apps; 42% from radio; and 24% from print papers and magazines.

Reported ability to pay for news from trustworthy sources varies widely across countries, from as much as 57% in India, 48% in China, and 43% in the Netherlands to just 13% in Japan, 15% in Russia, and 18% in Spain and France. Willingness to do so shows a very similar pattern.

Confidence in one's ability to tell "real news from fake news" is highest in Latin America, the Middle East, and English-speaking countries and lowest in Japan, South Korea, continental Europe, and Russia.

Globally, the percentage of those confident in their own ability to tell real news...