Trust By The Numbers

 

Over the weekend, I noted this graphic....which was a study done between 1997 and 2020 (so it's not UP to 2024 timeframe, a key point).

The question is....depending on your political feelings....how much trust do you put into the mass media (news print, TV news, etc).

Even in 1997....it wasn't great.  

In the 2004-2010 timeframe, you can tell.....if you were a Republican or Independent.....it slipped badly.  Same timeframe, for a Democratic-likely voter....it went and improved.

So by the numbers....in 2020....just 10-perent of Republicans trust the media.  I would imagine from the 10-percent trusting...if you laid out the questions in careful order....most folks would admit that they aren't that trusting.

Independents....same trend.

73-percent of Democrats trusting?  That's the story in 2020.

So my question....a lot of crap has happened since 2020....a lot of negative crap.  Does the trend line continue?

If a overwhelming number of the public doesn't believe what they see in the media....where does reality divide up?  

If you were some local TV station in Tulsa, and your viewer numbers were on the decline, with advertising paying less to keep the station operating.....what's the strategy going ahead?  Could you get viewers to come back?  Would the income levels be such that you give up on the 10 PM local news, and just air some half-an-hour episode of Barney Miller instead?

It's hard to find any episode in American history, or even world history....where so  many people lack a trust in news.