NewsWire: 1/22/21
- For the first time in the 21-year history of the Edelman Trust Barometer, business is now the most trusted institution and the only one seen as both competent and ethical. However, this trust does not extend to CEOs in general; people are much more likely to trust their own employers and other local figures. (Edelman)
- NH: It’s no secret that Americans’ trust in institutions has tanked in recent years. Declines in trust have been documented year after year by two sources: the Pew Research Center, which regularly surveys Americans’ trust in major institutions and in each other, and Gallup, which tracks confidence in several major institutions, such as government, media, big business, banks, and the health care system.
- In 2019, both Pew and Gallup reported that trust in many institutions and public figures were at record or near-record lows. Elected officials, big business leaders, and media outlets like newspapers and TV fared the worst (with around 10-30% of respondents trusting them), while the military, scientists, and school principals fared the best (with around 60-80% trusting them).
- But after Covid-19 hit, a new trend in trust emerged. Americans still didn’t trust the federal government, but they expressed high levels of trust in state and local officials to make public health-related decisions. People were also more likely to say that they trusted their employers more than government websites for information about the pandemic. (See “Worried about Coronavirus? Trust the Boss, Not the Man.”) Trust was going “local.”
- The latest Edelman Trust Barometer, with result from 28 countries, tells us more about how these trends have played out globally over the last year.
- According to Edelman, trust in most institutions--especially government--surged in the early months of the pandemic (through May) but has since ebbed. By the end of the year, global trust in business again remained higher than trust in NGOs, government, or media. For the first time, business is now the only institution that is seen on balance as both ethical and competent. Government is seen as neither.
- Trust in virtually every type of media source--including search engines and social media--has declined to record lows. Perceived credibility of spokespeople has also declined across the board, with the exception of government officials who ended the year down from their May high but still higher than in any prior year. In a blow to the populist tide, the credibility of "a person like yourself" was also down along with social media.
- Yet one aspect of populism shows no sign of abating. That is the trust gap between the affluent and informed public versus everybody else. The United States has one of the widest trust gaps between the elites and masses in the world--and a lower overall level of trust than in any developed country except Spain, South Korea, UK, and Japan. Russia is at the very bottom on both counts. A majority in all countries agrees that the less affluent and educated are bearing most of the brunt of the pandemic.
- But now let's return to perceptions of business. While national CEOs are only marginally more trusted than leaders in other sectors, "my employer's" CEO is much more trusted along with other "people in my local community" and scientists. In the United States, employer CEOs are the only people who have the confidence of the majority of both Biden and Trump voters.
- These findings are similar to those in Gallup’s latest trust poll from August 2020, which found that trust in small businesses among Americans has climbed to its highest level (75%) since 1997. It’s now the most trusted of all the institutions Gallup tracks, outranking the military.
- What explains this upsurge in trust toward businesses and employers? Much of it comes from efficacy: Who can you really count on to be there for you when the chips are down. It’s easier to trust institutions and individuals when you see them succeeding. Netflix is always there when you want to watch it, Amazon packages are continuing to show up like clockwork, and your favorite mom-and-pop restaurant pivoted to outdoor dining. Businesses appear to be doing well where governments or media outlets have stumbled or failed. And this sense of trust is even greater when you feel a personal connection to a business struggling to surmount challenges--like your own workplace.
