The future of independent high-quality journalism is at stake. The fragmenting digital media landscape has drastically reduced the revenues of journalistic organizations; simultaneously, an atmosphere of distrust has been fostered regarding the “mainstream” news media. This project investigates the causes, consequences, and solutions for the declining trust in journalism as well as the public’s reduced willingness to pay for its news. We examine these processes on the micro- (individual citizens), meso- (type of news media) and macro-level (differences between countries). The findings of this project contribute to the preservation of journalism’s crucial role in our democratic society.

Funder: NWO – Vidi

Researchers: Mark Boukes, Abby Qin

Start date: 15-6-2023

End date: 14-6-2028