Raleigh, N.C. – For the second straight year, PPP finds more voters trust PBS than any other television news source. PBS is once again the only outlet trusted by a majority of voters with 52% saying they trust PBS and 30% distrusting. NBC (44/38), CNN (43/39) and Fox News (45/42) are all now trusted by a plurality of voters. CBS (40/42) and ABC (37/40) dip into negative territory with MSNBC (38/43) close behind. Comedy Central (28/46), tested along with MNSBC for the first time in our poll, is least trusted, perhaps to be expected from a self-described comedy network.
This year’s poll finds a year-over-year increase in trust for every news outlet tested in 2011. PBS is up 2 points, NBC +6, CNN and Fox News + 7, and CBS and ABC experiencing a +5 jump in trust from 2011.
When asked which news outlets they trust the most and least of all on the list, Fox News tops both most trusted and most distrusted at 34% each. PBS came in as second most trusted with 17%, CNN at 12%, ABC at 11% and no other outlets breaking double digits. When asked which outlet they trust the least, voters again cite Fox News at 34%, followed by Comedy Central at 16%, MSNBC at 15%, CNN at 11% and no others breaking double digits.
Across the ideological spectrum, majorities of liberals and moderates trust ABC, CBS, CNN, NBC, and PBS. Moderate voters also trust MSNBC (49/27) and even Comedy Central (36/34) by a small margin. “Somewhat conservative” and “very conservative” voters trust only Fox News, with moderates distrusting by a 28-55 margin.
“Television news has become just as polarizing as the politicians themselves,” said Dean Debnam, President of Public Policy Polling. “Democrats trust everything except Fox News, while Republicans trust nothing except Fox News.”
PPP surveyed 700 likely voters from January 13th to 16th. The survey’s margin of error is +/-3.7%. This poll was not paid for or authorized by any campaign or political organization. PPP surveys are conducted through automated telephone interviews. PPP is a Democratic polling company, but polling expert Nate Silver of the New York Times found that its surveys in 2010 actually exhibited a slight bias toward Republican candidates.
Topline results are below. Full results, including crosstabs, can be found here.
Q1 Do you trust ABC News, or not?
Trust it ……………………………………………………. 37%
Do not trust it ………………………………………….. 40%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 22%
Q2 Do you trust CBS News, or not?
Trust it ……………………………………………………. 40%
Do not trust it ………………………………………….. 42%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 18%
Q3 Do you trust CNN, or not?
Trust it ……………………………………………………. 43%
Do not trust it ………………………………………….. 39%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 18%
Q4 Do you trust Comedy Central, or not?
Trust it ……………………………………………………. 28%
Do not trust it ………………………………………….. 46%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 26%
Q5 Do you trust Fox News, or not?
Trust it ……………………………………………………. 45%
Do not trust it ………………………………………….. 42%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 13%
Q6 Do you trust MSNBC, or not?
Trust it ……………………………………………………. 38%
Do not trust it ………………………………………….. 43%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 19%
Q7 Do you trust NBC News, or not?
Trust it ……………………………………………………. 44%
Do not trust it ………………………………………….. 38%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 17%
Q8 Do you trust PBS, or not?
Trust it ……………………………………………………. 52%
Do not trust it ………………………………………….. 30%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 17%
Q9 Which TV news outlet do you trust the most:
ABC News, CBS News, CNN, Comedy Central,
Fox News, MSNBC, NBC News, or PBS?
ABC News ……………………………………………… 11%
CBS News ……………………………………………… 8%
CNN………………………………………………………. 12%
Comedy Central………………………………………. 4%
Fox News……………………………………………….. 34%
MSNBC………………………………………………….. 5%
NBC News ……………………………………………… 4%
PBS ………………………………………………………. 17%
Someone else/Not sure ……………………………. 4%
Q10 Working from the same list of choices, which
TV news outlet do you trust the least?
ABC News ……………………………………………… 7%
CBS News ……………………………………………… 5%
CNN………………………………………………………. 11%
Comedy Central………………………………………. 16%
Fox News……………………………………………….. 34%
MSNBC………………………………………………….. 15%
NBC News ……………………………………………… 1%
PBS ………………………………………………………. 2%
Someone else/Not sure ……………………………. 9%
Q11 Would you describe yourself as very liberal,
somewhat liberal, moderate, somewhat
conservative, or very conservative?
Very liberal ……………………………………………… 8%
Somewhat liberal …………………………………….. 20%
Moderate………………………………………………… 27%
Somewhat conservative……………………………. 25%
Very conservative ……………………………………. 19%
Q12 If you are a woman, press 1. If a man, press 2.
Woman ………………………………………………….. 52%
Man……………………………………………………….. 48%
Q13 If you are a Democrat, press 1. If a Republican,
press 2. If you are an independent or identify
with another party, press 3.
Democrat ……………………………………………….. 41%
Republican……………………………………………… 35%
Independent/Other…………………………………… 24%
Q14 If you are Hispanic, press 1. If white, press 2.
If African-American, press 3. If other, press 4.
Hispanic…………………………………………………. 9%
White …………………………………………………….. 73%
African-American …………………………………….. 12%
Other……………………………………………………… 6%
Q15 If you are 18 to 45 years old, press 1. If 46 to
65, press 2. If you are older than 65, press 3.
18 to 29………………………………………………….. 36%
30 to 45………………………………………………….. 44%
46 to 65………………………………………………….. 20%
