Most Trusted Media Sources in the EU

Never before have news spread faster than they do today. The speed of dissemination combined with the incredible amount of different headlines leads to information overload for many consumers and this in turn leads to a conscious decision to consume only certain media - and others less or not at all.

Which media consumers prefer is not only interesting for media companies and content producers, but also for advertisers and PR professionals who need a suitable advertising environment for their brands. In order to be able to make a decision here, various aspects must be taken into account, and the media selection of the respective target group oftentimes plays the biggest role here.

The consumers‘ choice is usually a subjective one and depends on many different factors. A key criterion, however, is the trust placed in the medium. A new Eurobarometer survey provides valuable insights into media consumption in the EU and the trust placed in the respective medium.

Preferred Media

By far, the most popular medium is television (75%), and especially for citizens over 55. Second place goes to online news platforms at 43 percent, followed by radio (39%), social media/blogs (26%) and print media, which 21 percent of respondents use for news consumption.

But even though other media sources are the go-to source for information, 88% of the people interviewed consume online news via a mobile device every now and then. This underlines the trend of digitalization and consumers’ interest in obtaining information while on the move – which is much more convenient via smartphone & co.

Public Broadcast Wins most Trust

According to the survey, almost half of the citizens expect public TV and Radio to publish truthful information and 39% assume the same from printed press. Private broadcast stations were only chosen by a third of the respondents, which seems to be influenced by the obvious economic interest of these companies.

The question of what drives online-news consumers to opening an article also reveals interesting insights: For 37 percent of the people interviewed it is important that they trust the news source sharing the article. When it comes to online news portals, the most trusted ones are those that are online versions of traditional broadcasters or print publishers.

Fake News Awareness

Especially since the boom of social media platforms, fake news have become a pesky part of information consumption – especially online. Unfortunately, fake news not only travel just as fast as reliable ones and oftentimes have the power to attract a lot of attention, they also come with a range of dangers. So, being aware of fake news is crucial for consumers nowadays, which seems to be the case: More than half of the people asked statet that they were at least somewhat confident to be able to recognize disinformation. The level of education seems to be one of the most influencial factors of the ability to distinguish fake news from genuine ones.

Investigating News Content

However, it is not only revealing which media consumers trust, but also what information they receive through the respective medium and how they are received by consumers. There are several ways to investigate the actual news content, the most convenient of them being automated media monitoring solutions that combine a diverse palette of sources and channels. Modern tools even offer sentiment analysis and reporting, creating a holistic understanding of what content viewers, listeners and readers consume - because trust is good, control is better.