Fri Jun 17, 2022 – 9:00 pm EDT
(LifeSiteNews) – A recent Oxford University study shows that Canadians’ trust in the media has plummeted to record lows since the onset of the so-called COVID-19 pandemic.
In the study by Oxford’s Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism titled “Digital News Report 2022,” researchers found that only 42 percent of Canadians trust the news, the lowest figure in recorded history. For English-speaking Canadians specifically, the number was even lower at 39 percent.
“Trust in news overall didn’t benefit from the global ‘pandemic boost’ last year and fell three percentage points this year, reaching, at 42%, its lowest score yet,” the researchers reported.
“Growing dissatisfaction towards government and pandemic fatigue may have led to negative attitudes toward the media and perceptions that they are not critical enough of official sources such as public health authorities,” the study added.
Despite the plummeting public trust, the study does mention that news outlets are doing better financially than in past years, “in part thanks to government support and a boost in advertising revenue during the pandemic.”
“Government support programmes have been criticised but they have allowed Canadian media some breathing space,” the
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