NewsBeat

18 NewsBeat June 2016 or more than a generation, research has tried to identify the qualities that lead people to trust news. The work has concluded that in general people want journalism to be fair, balanced, accurate, and complete. It can be unclear, however, what these broad factors mean or how news organizations can achieve them. Even more challenging, these traditional conceptions of trust were formulated before the advent of the Internet and did not account for all the ways that consumers today encounter news and publishers can deliver it. A new comprehensive study, conducted by The Media Insight Project, shows that trust and reliability in news can be broken down into specific factors that publishers can put into action and consumers can recognize. The study also finds that in the digital age, several new factors largely unexamined before — such as the intrusiveness of ads, navigability, load times, and having the latest details — also are critical in determining whether consumers consider a publisher competent and worthy of trust. A new understanding: What makes people trust and rely on news The specific factors that lead people to trust and rely on a news source also vary by topic, the study finds. How much consumers value a specific component related to trust depends, for instance, on whether they are seeking news about politics or traffic and weather, let alone lifestyle. On some topics, consumers rate in-depth reporting and expert sources more highly. In others, ease of use is of higher value. For still others, being entertained is more important. And in social media, consumers are fairly skeptical of content and want cues of trustworthiness such as clear identification of the original reporting source. Finally, the study sheds new light on why trust should matter to today's publishers: It's not only a journalistic aspiration, but a business imperative. People who put a higher premium on trust related factors are more engaged with news, are more likely to pay for it, install news apps, or share and promote news with their friends. F Over the last two decades, research shows the public has grown increasingly skeptical of the news industry. Designed for today's saturated media environment, this new study from The Media Insight Project, a collaboration of the American Press Institute and the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, helps establish that trust is an important differentiator for building an audience. This research was conducted by the Media Insight Project — an initiative of the American Press Institute and the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research Introduction What factors drive people to trust news reporting sources? Adults who say accuracy is a critical reason they trust a news source.............85% Adults who say having the latest details is a critical reason they trust a news source.........................................76% Adults who value news reporting that's concise and gets to the point........72% Digital news consumers who believe it is vital ads not interfere......................63% Political news consumers who highly value experts and data in reporting........79% Lifestyle news consumers who say it's important their source is entertaining....53% Facebook news consumers with a lot of trust in the news they see there......................12% MEDIA INSIGHT PROJECT

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