Half of young adults say they have some level of trust in the information they see on social media, almost as many as say the same about the news media, according to a new survey.
Pew Research Center reported this week half of young adults age 18 to 29 indicated they “have some or a lot of trust in the information they get from social media sites,” which the survey noted is only slightly less than the 56 percent who said the same about information from national news organizations.
Among all adults, 77 percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents said they have at least some trust in the information they get from national news outlets, compared to just 42 percent of Republicans, the survey found.
The level of trust was highest among all age groups when it came to local media outlets, the survey reported.
Democrats were 16 points more likely than Republicans to express some trust in the information they get from local news outlets and 11 points more likely to say the same about information on social media sites.
Studies for years have shown a nationwide decline in trust in the news media, elections and other public institutions.
A recent New York Times/Siena Poll found 60 percent of all Americans view the mainstream media as a threat to Democracy.
A recent Gallup poll found only 34 percent of Americans indicated they believe major news organizations will report “fully, accurately and fairly” on current events.
Source: The Hill