EP 26: How much do Filipinos trust the news media?

A new study by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism has revealed some interesting if not, alarming data about how we consume news here in the Philippines.

Overall, more Filipinos trust their news - that’s 32 percent of the online respondents included in the Philippine version of the study done by journalist and educator Yvonne Chua. 

But this overall trust in the news media was still below the global average of 44 percent. 

Trust in ABS-CBN and Rappler also dropped by 4 percent each.

Not surprising given the relentless attacks from President Duterte and well-funded troll armies and enablers on social media.

Imagine: more respondents said they trust the government-run PTV and Radyo Pilipinas more than they trust ABS-CBN and Rappler.  

Interestingly, overall trust in news on social media went down by two percentage points probably because of concerns over misinformation and disinformation.

Newspapers are also losing more readers during the pandemic. 

Print consumption dropped from 22 percent last year  to 16 percent this year — a reality made even worse by prolonged lockdowns. 

This explains why at least a dozen community papers were forced to close down temporarily during the pandemic. 

In this episode, we take a deeper look at how news organizations are coping during this health crisis — especially those that fell victim to the double whammy of the pandemic and Rodrigo Duterte.