A new study from Media Studies and Journalism, published in the academic journal Nordicom Review, shows that users of alternative news media in Denmark on average have slightly lower trust in established news media than the population as a whole.

The most marked difference, however, concerns which media outlets users distrust, and here users of right- and left-wing alternative news media differ clearly from one another.

Differences in trust

“The results show that users of left-wing alternative media only have lower trust in established news outlets that have — or are sometimes accused of having — a conservative political stance. When it comes to established news outlets that have — or are accused of having — a left-wing stance, their level of trust is on par with that of the rest of the population,” says Miriam Kroman Brems, author of the study and postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Media Studies and Journalism at Aarhus University.

Users of right-wing alternative media, by contrast, display lower trust in established news outlets with both left- and right-wing political orientations. This suggests that their lower level of trust in news media is more pervasive. At the same time, the study shows that users of alternative news media in many cases continue to have relatively high trust in established news media, particularly public service media.

A democratic challenge

Trust in news media is often highlighted as a fundamental prerequisite for a well-functioning democracy. From this perspective, the study points to different types of potential democratic challenges associated with right- and left-wing alternative news media.

“On the one hand, right-wing alternative news media may have a more negative impact if they contribute to a more general erosion of trust in established media. On the other hand, it may also be seen as problematic if left-wing alternative news media contribute to a more polarised pattern of media trust, where trust increasingly follows political dividing lines,” says Miriam Kroman Brems.

At the same time, she emphasises that the study suggests that the Danish media system is generally well equipped to withstand the challenges posed by alternative news media.

Facts

The study examined trust in the following Danish news media: DR, TV 2, Politiken, Berlingske, Jyllands-Posten, Ekstra Bladet, and B.T.

The study is published by Nordicom, a centre for Nordic media research at the University of Gothenburg.

Read more: The study Do alternative media users distrust all mainstream news or only some? Assessing Danish left-wing and right-wing alternative media users’ trust in news at the outlet-specific level by Miriam Kroman Brems has been published in the academic journal Nordicom Review, published by Nordicom at the University of Gothenburg.

The text was produced by the University of Gothenburg.

Contact

Miriam Kroman Brems
Postdoc, Media Studies and Journalism
School of Communication and Culture
Aarhus Universitet

Mail: miriam.brems@cc.au.dk