Americans Trust Traditional News Sources Most.

When it comes to Americans’ reliance upon news, what’s “new and hot” is not the choice for many consumers, business executives and Washington insiders, according to the findings of a groundbreaking survey developed jointly by Harris Interactive and the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Foundation.

The national survey, titled Executive, Congressional and Consumer Attitudes Toward Media, Marketing and the Public Relations Profession, compares attitudes and opinions about media, marketing and public relations among American adult consumers, Fortune 1000 executives, and congressional staffers. And while there were marked differences among the three groups, one of the survey’s major findings was that substantial majorities of each group are interested in the news and they tend to trust traditional news sources most.

Contrary to oft-repeated assessments that Americans are losing interest in the news, the survey found that majorities of all three groups polled say they use news, pay attention to it, want to keep up with it, and have a distinct set of news sources they depend on.

* At least seven in 10 general consumers (71%), congressional staffers (77%) and executives (87%) agree that they have a defined set of news sources that they trust to provide them with fair and balanced coverage and that they largely ignore other sources.

* Majorities (53% to 71%) of the three groups surveyed say they like to keep up with the news, but it’s just one of the many ways they spend their leisure time. However, some (15% to 43%) say they are “news junkies,” asserting that keeping up with the news is a favorite leisure time activity.

* Sixty-five percent of general consumers, 75 percent of executives and 80 percent of congressional staffers actively look for news and information that challenges their political opinions and social beliefs.

* Minorities (21% to 42%) of each of the groups surveyed rely heavily on independent sources like Internet chat rooms, blogs or other alternative media to get news and information.

Most Trusted: Tried and True Traditional Media

Despite some talk of a media landscape dominated by blogs and Internet chat rooms, the survey finds that the most trusted news sources are the tried and true — public TV and radio programming, national newspapers and commercial broadcast news.

* Sixty-one percent of general consumers, along with 70 percent of congressional staffers and 75 percent of executives, trust news shows on public television or National Public Radio.

* More than half (56%) of general consumers and more than three-quarters of both executives and congressional staffers (78% each) say they trust national newspapers like The New York Times, The Washington Post or The Wall Street Journal.

* Majorities (53% to 62%) of the three groups surveyed say they trust commercial broadcast news, including network television, cable and commercial radio networks.

However, trusting news sources doesn’t necessarily imply blind loyalty or a lack of skepticism as minorities of general consumers (43%), congressional staffers (33%) and executives (28%) agree that most of the news they see is accurate and unbiased.

There are a number of news sources that garner somewhat lower trust among respondents, including advocacy groups (18% to 44% of the three groups surveyed say they completely or somewhat trust this source), pollsters (37% to 51%) and elected or appointed government officials (31% to 53%). Interestingly, only about half (53%) of congressional staffers say they completely or somewhat trust public officials.

The least-trusted information sources among the 11 included in the survey are entertainers or celebrities who support particular causes (8% to 30% of the three groups surveyed say they completely or somewhat trust them), liberal (18% to 31%) and conservative (29% to 35%) talk radio hosts, and people who work in the advertising industry (20% to 25%).

“All of this is important information for professionals who daily are challenged about which channels and sources they should use to reach consumers and business/political decision-makers,” said Judith T. Phair, president and CEO of the Public Relations Society of America. “It’s easy to read the headlines in trade and business press about all of the hot ‘new’ media channels and start to believe that the traditional press is passe, but this survey confirms that despite some new entrants, Americans still use news, seek news and place their trust in the traditional sources.”

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For more information at http://www.harrisinteractive.com