Bolstering trust in public service media

Trust in media tends to peak during times of crisis. But how do public service media (PSM) maintain this degree of trust when society is not at crisis-point? Last week, the panel “Trust in Public Service Media in Shifting Times – Ways to Make It Better” at the International Press Institute (IPI)’s 2019 World Congress […]

Bolstering trust in public service media
Bolstering trust in public service media

Trust in media tends to peak during times of crisis. But how do public service media (PSM) maintain this degree of trust when society is not at crisis-point? Last week, the panel “Trust in Public Service Media in Shifting Times – Ways to Make It Better” at the International Press Institute (IPI)’s 2019 World Congress in Geneva, Switzerland, dissected strategies to cement trust and offered participants key insights into the European Broadcasting Union (EBU)’s 2019 “Trust in Media” report.

EBU’s report revealed that trust in PSM in Europe is already very high; PSM are among the top five most trusted news brands in over 80 percent of Northern and Central European markets. During their discussion on how to strengthen this existing trust, panelists Ginna Lindberg, head of Foreign News at Sveriges Radio in Sweden; Professor Atte Jääskeläinen of Finland’s LUT University; Inge Vrancken, editor-in-chief of VRT TV News in Belgium; and Carina Haupt, an EBU media analyst focused their comments on the importance of ascertaining audience needs and resisting complacency.

Four themes permeated the conversation: self-reflection, innovation, meeting your audience, and story-telling. Self-reflection is crucial to building public trust on solid ground. “We are human and we make mistakes. We just have to say: this is where we went wrong, and correct it”, Vrancken said. She pointed out that VRT TV News added an ombudsman in 2017 who answers reader questions or criticisms and thus “keeps people sharp in the newsroom.”

Other important points to reflect on are the use of technical language that risks alienating some readers, and newsroom diversity. Jääskeläinen pointed out that diversity is a layered and complex issue that cannot be reduced to gender or socio-economic status: “Even with a diverse newsroom, there can still be shadows. Watch for the shadows, be sensitive, and listen”, he advised. Innovation is also fundamental to trust in PSM during shifting times, panellists said. As Lindberg summarized, “We have to constantly fight to gain trust. And we need resources to do that kind of in-depth journalism.” (IPI)