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Dorothy Neufeld
2024-10-09 08:22:00
www.visualcapitalist.com
America’s Most Trusted Sources for Government Information
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As the media landscape has transformed over the last decade, so have the ways people access government data.
In 2024, 40% of Americans turn to social media for government information—the highest among all sources. However, levels of trust in these platforms remains limited. Today, just 10% of Americans have a great deal of trust in social media for getting government data. More broadly, trust in mass media is near all-time lows, declining across each of the past five years.
This graphic shows the most trusted sources for government data, based on surveys from USAFacts.
Which Sources Have the Highest Levels of Trust?
Below, we show America’s trust in media sources for government information, based on surveys conducted from July 29 to August 8, 2024:
| Information Source | Great Deal/Quite a Bit | A Moderate Amount | Only a Little/Not at All |
|---|---|---|---|
| Public TV/Radio | 23% | 30% | 46% |
| National TV News | 22% | 32% | 45% |
| Local TV News | 21% | 39% | 39% |
| The President | 19% | 25% | 55% |
| State Government | 19% | 38% | 42% |
| National Newspapers | 18% | 32% | 50% |
| Federal Government Agencies | 18% | 30% | 51% |
| Cable News Networks | 17% | 30% | 46% |
| Local Newspapers | 16% | 37% | 47% |
| Podcasts | 12% | 23% | 64% |
| YouTube/Online Video Platforms | 11% | 24% | 63% |
| Online-Only News Sites | 11% | 28% | 61% |
| Social Media | 10% | 23% | 66% |
| Businesses | 7% | 31% | 61% |
| AI/Chatbot | 3% | 15% | 81% |
As we can see, traditional media, such as public TV, radio, and TV news are trusted more than the president as sources for government data.
Public TV and radio ranked highest overall, with 23% of Americans saying they trust these sources a great deal—more than double social media platforms. Yet, overall trust is low, with nearly half expressing little to no trust in these outlets.
Meanwhile, national and local TV news were considered more trustworthy than national and local newspapers. A separate survey found that ABC News and BBC News were among the most trusted news sources overall, while Yahoo News and the Huffington Post fell near the bottom.
Ranking last was AI, likely due to concerns over deepfakes, inaccuracies, and bias. Also falling among the least-trusted sources were businesses and social media.
Most Trusted Sources for the 2024 Presidential Election
For the election outcome, 40% of Americans trust government certifications a great deal, making it the most trusted source overall:
| Information Source | Great Deal/Quite a Bit | Moderate Amount | Little/Not at All |
|---|---|---|---|
| Government Certifications of Election Results | 40% | 29% | 30% |
| National TV News Networks | 31% | 30% | 37% |
| Kamala Harris and Her Campaign | 30% | 21% | 47% |
| Local TV News Networks | 29% | 36% | 32% |
| National Newspapers | 29% | 31% | 39% |
| Cable News Networks | 27% | 30% | 41% |
| Local Newspaper | 27% | 35% | 36% |
| Donald Trump and His Campaign | 16% | 21% | 61% |
| Social Media | 11% | 25% | 63% |
| AI/Chatbot | 7% | 20% | 70% |
However, clear differences exist across parties, with 87% of Democrats saying they trust official government sources compared to 51% of Republicans.
Going further, trust drops sharply when it comes to the presidential candidates. While 29% of Americans have a great deal of trust in Kamala Harris and her campaign, only 16% feel the same about Donald Trump.
Learn More on the Voronoi App 
To learn more about this topic from an institutional perspective, check out this graphic on trust in institutions across G7 countries.
The post America’s Most Trusted Sources for Government Information appeared first on Visual Capitalist.
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