A Perspective on Trust

Politics are divisive. In recent years, the media has made it considerably worse by placing massive distrust in the press that is felt by the American people.

In my lifetime, this country’s political divide has only widened, including the distrust Americans have for the media.

In all honesty, this is heartbreaking. As a kid, I always loved writing. As I started applying to colleges, I became aware of my passion for journalism and for storytelling.

After I began my first year at the University of Northern Colorado, I learned many things about journalism that my mind hadn’t opened up to before. There was style, methods and general lessons, but one thing that I ran with was the idea that the press is designed to serve as a check to governmental power.

In nearly every class, I wrote many papers where I referred to this idea as I feel it highlights the importance of what I wish to do as a journalist. The issue is that Americans don’t trust the media like they used to.

According to Gallup, an analytics company, only one third of all Americans report a fair amount or more of confidence in the media to report the news is “fully, accurately and fairly.” This means that two thirds of the population don’t have trust or confidence in the media, meaning that the way people are supposed to be informed has lost its credibility.

This lack of faith from the American people in the press extends to politics as well. The Pew Research Center published a report just weeks before election day, stating that just 4% of Americans believe that the political system is working “extremely” or “very well.” Contrasted to the 63% of people not having much or any confidence in the future of the political system.

But it’s not just a partisan divide either. 28% of people said they have unfavorable views of both parties and about a quarter of people said neither party represents them, with nearly two thirds of Americans being “dissatisfied” with the presidential candidate options.

And for someone like me, who has heard older generations reference great journalists of the past, like Walter Cronkite or Barbara Walters and the trust that they earned from the people, it becomes difficult to figure out who that is in my generation.

Sure, this could be viewed as a positive for me, and perhaps it does give an opportunity for a young journalist, like me, to become this figure, but I think it better illustrates the issue at hand.

The question could be asked where did it go wrong, but it’s not that simple. My initial thoughts were the polarization of politics and the huge role they play in the news. This is true, but so is the growth of media and the role of social media.

For example, I’m barely old enough to remember the 2012 election, but I do recall the respect between Obama and Romney in their debates. I have since seen clips of the debate in reference to the point I’ll make: Politics have become increasingly more disrespectful. The idea of being a better policymaker or leader is what should drive a presidential campaign, not the idea that your opponent is a worse person than you. Demonizing your opponent has become the "norm", and the media is guilty of playing into this, perhaps even responsible for the change.

The press serves to check the government, and when it fails to do so it fails the people. Take The ABC News Presidential debate as an example. The moderators constantly, and correctly, fact-checked Trump. What they didn’t do, at least to the same extent, was pressure Harris the same way. Outside sources, particularly NPR, did a good job of this, but most people won’t see this. This uneven coverage feeds into the media’s credibility problem.

On the contrary, Trump’s relentless crusade of “fake news” is also bad for the media. While the idea of the press telling the truth is a good, even great idea, Trump’s truth is not reflective of the actual truth and his constant attacks undermine the very idea of an objective press.

As I look towards my life following college and beginning my professional career, I often wonder if this trust can be rebuilt. 

Can the press continue to be a check on the government or will a new method rise? 

Independent journalism seems to be a method to do so, but can writers gain enough attention and traction to build up influence? Can the country conquer its obvious political divide? 

I don’t have all the answers, but I think that the media must return to serving the people rather than just the politicians. The media has to remedy the mistakes it has made, not just hope for improvement.

Jameson Rembert is a third-year journalism major at the University of Northern Colorado.