The Democracy Group Hey, Journalists. Does the Public Trust You? Joy Mayer | How Do We Fix It?
Only four in 10 Americans say they have a lot of trust in the news media. That's a big problem for our democracy. While journalists are supposed to tell the truth and get the story right, just 35 percent of right-of-center voters have some trust in what they see in the news.
Democrats and independents are much more likely to trust journalists, but Americans of almost all shades of opinion are skeptical toward the news media, questioning not only the quality of journalists’ work but their intentions behind it.
Our guest is Joy Mayer, Director of the non-profit Trusting News, which is working with local newsrooms around the country to help journalists earn consumers' trust.
While many reporters, writers and editors are reluctant to discuss their political views, most journalists have liberal or progressive views. "I think it's something we need to talk about more openly," Joy tells us.
In this episode, we look at bias, transparency, and constructive steps that the news media can take to improve its reputation with a broad cross-section of Americans.