Media trust in the digital world
Final Report Abstract
Trust in the media is considered a prerequisite for social coexistence and the functioning of a democracy, because even in today's “high-choice” media environment, journalistic media play a central role in what the public learns about other social systems such as politics, business or science. For some time now, however, a dramatic loss of trust in journalistic media has been noted and discussed in public discourse. This debate and the changes in the media system triggered by the digitalization have boosted research about the causes, mechanisms and consequences of media trust. However, the field of research continues to suffer from intradisciplinary fragmentation: even within communication studies, a wide variety of research directions on media trust and related constructs - especially credibility - largely exist concurrently. Against this backdrop, the aim of the network was to structure and systematize the field of communication science research on media trust, taking particular account of developments in digitalization, and to promote the transfer of knowledge within the discipline. In addition, the different perspectives of the research fields should be identified and brought together in order to counteract the fragmentation of current research. The literature review “Concepts, causes and consequences of trust in news media - a literature review and framework” published jointly by the members makes a key contribution to this. Thematic workshops, the intensive exchange between members and a qualitative study conducted by the network with young people on their understanding and development of media trust also served this purpose. A concluding “World Café” on the topic of "Media trust crisis? Causes, trends and solutions" promoted networking between academia, politics and journalism.
Publications
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A Literature Review of Trust in News Media. 8th European Communication Conference (ECREA), Virtual Conference.
Fawzi, N., Steindl, N., Obermaier, M., Prochazka, F., Arlt, D., Blöbaum, B., Dohle, M., Engelke, K. M., Hanitzsch, T., Jackob, N., Jakobs, I., Klawier, T., Post, S., Reinemann, C., Schweiger, W. & Ziegele, M.
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Concepts, causes and consequences of trust in news media – a literature review and framework. Annals of the International Communication Association, 45(2), 154-174.
Fawzi, Nayla; Steindl, Nina; Obermaier, Magdalena; Prochazka, Fabian; Arlt, Dorothee; Blöbaum, Bernd; Dohle, Marco; Engelke, Katherine M.; Hanitzsch, Thomas; Jackob, Nikolaus; Jakobs, Ilka; Klawier, Tilman; Post, Senja; Reinemann, Carsten; Schweiger, Wolfgang & Ziegele, Marc
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Don’t Trust the Lying Press!? Exposure to Media Criticism and Trust in Different Media. 8th European Communication Conference (ECREA), Virtual Conference
Obermaier, M. & Fawzi, N.
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Independent or a political pawn? How recipients perceive influences on journalistic work compared to journalists and what explains their perceptions. Journalism, 24(4), 857-876.
Obermaier, Magdalena; Steindl, Nina & Fawzi, Nayla
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Trust through Transparency? How Journalistic Reactions to Media-Critical User Comments Affect Quality Perceptions and Behavior Intentions. Digital Journalism, 10(3), 452-472.
Prochazka, Fabian & Obermaier, Magdalena
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Explaining media trust among journalists and recipients: Different experiences, different predictors?. Journalism, 25(8), 1657-1676.
Steindl, Nina; Obermaier, Magdalena; Fawzi, Nayla & Lauerer, Corinna
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Glaubwürdigkeitsheuristiken und die Entstehung von Medienmisstrauen – Erkenntnisse aus qualitativen Interviews mit Jugendlichen. Tagung Medien-Misstrauen der DGPuK- Fachgruppe Soziologie der Medienkommunikation, Mannheim, Germany
Fawzi, N., Jakobs, I., Steindl, N., Obermaier, M., Arlt, D., Dohle, M., Engelke, K. M., Jackob, N., Klawier, T., Pohle, H., Prochazka, F., Schweiger, W. & Ziegele, M.
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Exploring young media users’ understandings and origins of media trust. Evidence from qualitative interviews with German adolescents. 10th European Communication Conference (ECREA), Ljubljana, Slovenia
Fawzi, N., Obermaier, M., Dohle, M., Steindl, N., Arlt, D., Schweiger, W., Ziegele, M., Klawier, T., Pohle, H. & Prochazka, F.
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Reasons for Trust. General and Situation-specific Reasons for Media Trust among Adolescents in Germany. ICA 2025 Preconference: Media, Trust & Technology, Boulder, CO
Steindl, N., Fawzi, N., Obermaier, M., Dohle, M., Arlt, D., Ziegele, M., Jackob, N., Engelke, K. M., Schweiger, W., Jakobs, I., Klawier, T., Pohle, H. & Prochazka, F.
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The Role of Socialization-Related Factors for Adolescents’ Trust in News Media. ICA 2025 Preconference: Media, Trust & Technology, Boulder, CO
Jakobs, I. Pohle, H., Klawier, T. & Prochazka, F., Fawzi, N., Steindl, N., Arlt, D., Dohle, M., Engelke, K. M., Jackob, N., Obermaier, M., Schweiger, W. & Ziegele, M.
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VII. Journalismus und Vertrauen. Journalismusforschung, 143-162. Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG.
Fawzi, Nayla & Obermaier, Magdalena
