PR Insights from the 2017 Trust Barometer

The 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer has some interesting data for PR practitioners.

These are the top 10 insights from the report:

• Trust in Authorities is Eroding Worldwide.  Trust in business, government, NGOs and the media all declined this year. Trust in media is now at an all time low.
• The Trust Gap Widens. The measure of trust between the well-informed public and the general population is getting further apart.  This year it is at 15 points, a three-point increase from last year.
• The System is Broken. Globally, 53% feel that the system is no longer working.  38% are uncertain.  They have no faith that their leaders will fix it.
• Fears and Concerns. Corruption tops this list globally at 69%.  Next comes globalization (62%) followed by eroding social values (56%). Then comes immigration (55%) and the pace of innovation at 51%;
• A Failing System + Fears = Action. In countries where there was a loss of faith in the system and an increase in fears and concerns, there was populist action:  France, Italy, Mexico, South Africa, Spain, Brazil, Colombia, the U.K., Australia and the U.S.
• The Rapidly Growing Media Echo Chamber.  People are now four times more likely to ignore information that doesn’t fit their view of events.  More than half (53%) don’t listen to others with whom they disagree. People are more likely to believe search engines (59%) than human editors (41%.)

• Peers are Highly Credible.   For the first time “someone like me” is just as credible a source for information about a company as a technical or academic expert. (All three ranked at 60%.)  Trust in CEO’s took a dive – down 12 points.