Declining trust in the news media is a growing concern for journalism—and for the functioning of democracy. To restore trust in journalism, journalists employ so-called paradigm repair strategies, such as fact-checking or increased transparency. However, the effectiveness of these strategies remains unknown. A multi-country online experiment was conducted in 34 countries/regions to develop a new international measurement instrument for the concept of media trust, while simultaneously testing the effect of journalistic repair strategies on public trust in the media. Thereby, this project aims to provide practical insights for both scholars and media professionals.

Funder: NWO XS grant

Reseachers: Mark Boukes, David Blanco Herrero; Abby Qin

Start date: 1-1-2024

End date: 31-12-2027