In the era of ‘fake news’, news audiences are increasingly aware of their susceptibility to misinformation, disinformation, and/or mal-information. In response, many Canadians turn to more sources for news to offset their mistrust of certain media outlets. To better understand this behaviour in news audiences, Vividata and Kantar partnered to complete Canada’s first Trust in News study. The study examines how Canadians feel about their news sources in the era of ‘fake news’, their preferred and trusted sources, and the importance of quality journalism. The study also tried to uncover areas of strength and opportunity for news organizations in Canada.
Methodology
Using a representative subset of 2,000 respondents from Vividata’s highly regarded Survey of the Canadian Consumer, the Trust in News survey was conducted in April 2018. These respondents completed a specially designed 15-minute survey that was statistically linked to the Survey of the Canadian Consumer providing the full suite of variables for extended analysis.