WNY NEWS NOW – Over the past few years, Americans trust in media has dropped to near record low levels. A recent poll done by the The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights found Americans are still likelier to say the media is doing more harm than good.
Nearly 75% of American adults say the news media is increasing polarization in this country with just under half saying they have little to no trust in the media’s ability to report the news fairly.
Republicans view the news media less favorably than Democrats, with 61% of Republicans saying the news media is hurting democracy. That compared to only 23% of Democrats and 36% of independents. A majority in both parties say the news media fuels political division, but Republicans are much more likely than Democrats to say that’s happening a lot.
When it comes to misinformation in the media, about 9 in 10 Americans across both parties say misinformation is a problem.
The poll of 1,002 adults was conducted March 30-April 3 using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population.
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