Trust and Distrust in Public Service Media : A Case Study from
the Czech Republic

p 2023

Trust and Distrust in Public Service Media : A Case Study from the Czech Republic

URBÁNIKOVÁ, Marína

Basic information

Original name

Trust and Distrust in Public Service Media : A Case Study from the Czech Republic

Authors

URBÁNIKOVÁ, Marína (703 Slovakia, guarantor, belonging to the institution)

Edition

IESIR Research seminar (Institute of European Studies and International Relations, Comenius University Bratislava), 2023

Other information

Language

English

Type of outcome

Vyžádané přednášky

Field of Study

50800 5.8 Media and communications

Country of publisher

Slovakia

Confidentiality degree

není předmětem státního či obchodního tajemství

References:

URL

RIV identification code

RIV/00216224:14230/23:00134129

Organization unit

Faculty of Social Studies

Keywords in English

audience; Czech Radio; Czech Television; media quality assessment; distrust; public service media; trust

Abstract

V originále

Although in many countries, public service media (PSM) is a trusted island in their media landscape (European Broadcasting Union, 2022), this does not mean that trust in PSM is absolute and universal. This study adopts a qualitative approach to explore what trust and distrust entail for the public, a perspective rarely applied in trust research. It focuses on the case of the Czech Republic, where the level of trust in the news is among the lowest in the world but, at the same time, where PSM is the most trusted national news source (Newman et al., 2022). Based on four focus group discussions with participants (N=24) from the general Czech population, this study explores the reasons for the audience’s trust and distrust in Czech PSM. These can be grouped into three main categories: trust in message (people trust PSM if, in their view, it provides objective, truthful, reliable, relevant, and fast information without sensationalism and anti-system views); trust in source (people trust PSM if they perceive the PSM journalists as professional, i.e., impartial and with high expertise); and trust in PSM organizations (people trust PSM if they perceive the regulatory framework as effective in ensuring systemic independence from politics and oversight boards as a guarantee of quality standards). In addition to these reasons, satisfaction with non-news PSM content and a personal tendency towards media skepticism seem to be important in shaping trust in PSM.

Links

GA22-30563S, research and development project

Name: Re-konceptualizace role českých médií veřejné služby: očekávání, výzvy a příležitosti

Investor: Czech Science Foundation, Rethinking the Role of Czech Public Service Media: Expectations, Challenges, and Opportunities

Citovat

URBÁNIKOVÁ, Marína. Trust and Distrust in Public Service Media : A Case Study from the Czech Republic. In IESIR Research seminar (Institute of European Studies and International Relations, Comenius University Bratislava). 2023.

@misc{2285038,
   author = {Urbániková, Marína},
   booktitle = {IESIR Research seminar (Institute of European Studies and International Relations, Comenius University Bratislava)},
   keywords = {audience; Czech Radio; Czech Television; media quality assessment; distrust; public service media; trust},
   language = {eng},
   title = {Trust and Distrust in Public Service Media : A Case Study from the Czech Republic},
   url = {https://fses.uniba.sk/fileadmin/fsev/uesmv/dokumenty_2022_23/IESIR_Research_seminars_Summer_2023__1_.pdf},
   year = {2023}
}

TY  - SLIDE
ID  - 2285038
AU  - Urbániková, Marína
PY  - 2023
TI  - Trust and Distrust in Public Service Media : A Case Study from the Czech Republic
KW  - audience
KW  - Czech Radio
KW  - Czech Television
KW  - media quality assessment
KW  - distrust
KW  - public service media
KW  - trust
UR  - https://fses.uniba.sk/fileadmin/fsev/uesmv/dokumenty_2022_23/IESIR_Research_seminars_Summer_2023__1_.pdf
N2  - Although in many countries, public service media (PSM) is a trusted island in their media landscape (European Broadcasting Union, 2022), this does not mean that trust in PSM is absolute and universal. This study adopts a qualitative approach to explore what trust and distrust entail for the public, a perspective rarely applied in trust research. It focuses on the case of the Czech Republic, where the level of trust in the news is among the lowest in the world but, at the same time, where PSM is the most trusted national news source (Newman et al., 2022). Based on four focus group discussions with participants (N=24) from the general Czech population, this study explores the reasons for the audience’s trust and distrust in Czech PSM. These can be grouped into three main categories: trust in message (people trust PSM if, in their view, it provides objective, truthful, reliable, relevant, and fast information without sensationalism and anti-system views); trust in source (people trust PSM if they perceive the PSM journalists as professional, i.e., impartial and with high expertise); and trust in PSM organizations (people trust PSM if they perceive the regulatory framework as effective in ensuring systemic independence from politics and oversight boards as a guarantee of quality standards). In addition to these reasons, satisfaction with non-news PSM content and a personal tendency towards media skepticism seem to be important in shaping trust in PSM.
ER  -

URBÁNIKOVÁ, Marína. Trust and Distrust in Public Service Media : A Case Study from the Czech Republic. In \textit{IESIR Research seminar (Institute of European Studies and International Relations, Comenius University Bratislava)}. 2023.

Detailed Information on Publication Record