Here is the headline – journalists are first-least trusted professionals in the country, according to a survey by Ipsos.
But there’s hope. Things could be looking up for scribes. The 2022 Veracity Index records a that 29 percent of the public trust journalists. That number was 23 percent in the year 2000 and 19 percent in 1983.
Interestingly, 70 percent of people trusted TV newsreaders in 1983. Over the years that trust has fallen and this year it stood at 58 percent.
Young people didn’t poll favourably. A whopping 60 percent in the 18-25 category said they don’t trust journalists.
Also, quite interestingly, working class or uneducated people were most likely to not place their trust in journalists, as opposed to a higher level of trust among the educated classes.
Who shares the honour of being in the least trusted professions with journalists?
Well, unsurprisingly, politicians, estate agents and advertising executives are not trusted very much by the public.
The most trusted professionals are – nurses, engineers and doctors. They’re followed by scientists and teachers.
“This year we have seen public trust drop gently across a wide range of professions. The biggest drop is in trust in politicians, which has fallen to levels last seen during the 2009 expenses crisis,” said Mike Clemence, a researcher at Ipsos Trends & Foresight.
Ipsos interviewed a representative quota sample of 1,004 and 1,005 British adults aged 16+. Interviews were conducted by telephone in two waves between 19 and 26 October and 26 October and 1 November 2022. The Ipsos website contains more information.
