While people in the U.S. value journalists, the declining trust and influence in the eyes of the American people is the fault of both journalists and the people consuming news.
In a poll done by Gallup, only 32% of Americans say they have a “great deal” or “fair amount” of trust in media’s news reporting, with 39% saying they have no confidence at all.
The result of this decline is due to many factors, but the biggest ones include less good faith reporting, the spread of misinformation and the shift from informing the public to entertaining them.
In an increasingly polarizing political climate, there seems to be a shift in focus of most legacy media outlets and independent journalists where good faith reporting has gone by the wayside. Now, making money by getting clicks off polarizing content – even if it hurts marginalized communities – is more important.
Over the years the blend of information and entertainment has become more prominent, people want news which confirms their own biases and entertains them. For example, most of Fox News’ news content relies on fear mongering to be successful.
In a headline from Fox News about the coverage of the Charlie Kirk assassination, “Charlie Kirk’s alleged assassin lived with transgender partner who is now cooperating with FBI: Officials,” it makes it seem that transgender people have something to with this instance of political violence
This type of behavior from news organizations can only lead to further distrust from the public, while also spreading harmful rhetoric endangering those in marginalized communities.
Although, the onus of this kind of behavior is just on the news networks platforming this kind of behavior. The public’s desire for partisan content affirming what they already believe and sensationalized headlines enables journalists to produce more content that will polarize its viewers.
The reason this is the case is simply because bad news sells, and while it isn’t a bad thing to make money, it is when it’s the entire goal.
Michael Uribe, a junior biology major, while overall trustful of news in the U.S. described his level of trust of news in the U.S. as “eight out of 10.” He also recognized that news in the U.S. doesn’t do a good job at being unbiased.
“I’d say no, because obviously some people are more biased toward some things, other news agencies are more biased toward,” Uribe said.
In “It Is Journalism’s Sacred Duty To Endanger The Lives Of As Many Trans People As Possible” – an editorial by the satirical organization The Onion – it shows that when big news outlets post sensational and often misleading headlines about not just trans people but other minorities, the goal isn’t to inform people but create a greater divide.
Polarization created by the media creates a distrust in news among consumers, and journalists have to do better to close that divide by producing fair and unbiased content.
Journalism will always be important, but when the focus shifts from entertaining people rather than informing, there is no question as to why people no longer trust news media. But it’s also on the public to consume news in a way that doesn’t just confirm their beliefs but also not reject news that doesn’t.
