Americans are more likely than they were a year ago to trust information from national and local news organizations, according to a new Pew Research Center survey conducted in September 2026. Trust has increased modestly among supporters of both major political parties and across age groups.
| Feb. 2016 | March 2017 | March 2018 | July 2019 | Nov. 2019 | June 2021 | Aug. 2022 | Sept. 2024 | March 2025 | Sept. 2025 | Sept. 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National news organizations | |||||||||||
| All U.S. adults | 76 | 72 | 71 | 75 | 65 | 58 | 61 | 59 | 67 | 56 | 62 |
| Dem/Lean Dem | 83 | 84 | 83 | 86 | 81 | 78 | 77 | 78 | 81 | 69 | 73 |
| Rep/Lean Rep | 70 | 56 | 57 | 64 | 49 | 35 | 42 | 40 | 53 | 44 | 50 |
| Local news organizations | |||||||||||
| All U.S. adults | 82 | 85 | 82 | 85 | 79 | 75 | 71 | 74 | 80 | 70 | 75 |
| Dem/Lean Dem | 85 | 87 | 86 | 89 | 84 | 84 | 79 | 83 | 87 | 78 | 81 |
| Rep/Lean Rep | 79 | 84 | 79 | 83 | 74 | 66 | 63 | 66 | 75 | 64 | 69 |
| Social media sites | |||||||||||
| All U.S. adults | 34 | 35 | 33 | 39 | 26 | 27 | 33 | 37 | 41 | 37 | 38 |
| Dem/Lean Dem | 36 | 37 | 36 | 43 | 30 | 34 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 37 | 40 |
| Rep/Lean Rep | 32 | 33 | 29 | 35 | 22 | 19 | 27 | 37 | 45 | 37 | 37 |
Overall, 62% of U.S. adults say they have a lot of or some trust in the information they get from national news organizations, a share that’s up 6 percentage points since September 2025 but still lower than a decade ago. Trust in local news organizations remains higher: 75% now say they have at least some trust in information from local outlets, up 5 points from a year ago.
By contrast, 38% of Americans say they have at least some trust in information from social media sites, virtually unchanged from 37% in 2025.
Trust in news organizations has risen among both Republicans and Democrats
Today, 50% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents say they have at least some trust in information from national news organizations, up from 44% in 2025. Among Democrats and Democratic leaners, 73% express at least some trust, up slightly from 69% last year.
Trust in local news organizations has also risen slightly among Republicans over the past year, up from 64% in 2025 to 69% today. Among Democrats, 81% say they trust local news, up slightly from 78% in 2025.
Meanwhile, trust in social media sites remains comparable across both parties. Roughly four-in-ten Republicans (37%) and Democrats (40%) say they have at least some trust in information from these sites.
Moderate and liberal Republicans are more likely than conservative Republicans to trust national news organizations (57% vs. 46%). No major ideological differences appear among Democrats or in either party’s trust in local news organizations or social media sites.
Trust in national and local news increases across most age groups
Trust in national news organizations has increased across most age groups. Six-in-ten U.S. adults under 30 now say they have at least some trust in information from national news organizations, up from 51% in 2025. Adults 65 and older remain the most trusting: 70% express at least some trust, up from 62% a year ago.
| Feb. 2016 | March 2017 | March 2018 | July 2019 | Nov. 2019 | June 2021 | Aug. 2022 | Sept. 2024 | March 2025 | Sept. 2025 | Sept. 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National news organizations | |||||||||||
| All U.S. adults | 76 | 72 | 71 | 75 | 65 | 58 | 61 | 59 | 67 | 56 | 62 |
| Dem/Lean Dem | 83 | 84 | 83 | 86 | 81 | 78 | 77 | 78 | 81 | 69 | 73 |
| Rep/Lean Rep | 70 | 56 | 57 | 64 | 49 | 35 | 42 | 40 | 53 | 44 | 50 |
| Local news organizations | |||||||||||
| All U.S. adults | 82 | 85 | 82 | 85 | 79 | 75 | 71 | 74 | 80 | 70 | 75 |
| Dem/Lean Dem | 85 | 87 | 86 | 89 | 84 | 84 | 79 | 83 | 87 | 78 | 81 |
| Rep/Lean Rep | 79 | 84 | 79 | 83 | 74 | 66 | 63 | 66 | 75 | 64 | 69 |
| Social media sites | |||||||||||
| All U.S. adults | 34 | 35 | 33 | 39 | 26 | 27 | 33 | 37 | 41 | 37 | 38 |
| Dem/Lean Dem | 36 | 37 | 36 | 43 | 30 | 34 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 37 | 40 |
| Rep/Lean Rep | 32 | 33 | 29 | 35 | 22 | 19 | 27 | 37 | 45 | 37 | 37 |
Trust in local news organizations has also risen across all age groups. Older Americans continue to be the most trusting of local news: 81% of adults ages 65 and older now say they have at least some trust in information from local news outlets, up from 76% in 2025. Trust has also risen among adults ages 18 to 29: 72% now express trust, up from 65% last year.
Trust in information from social media sites has changed little over the past year but continues to vary widely by age. About half of Americans ages 18 to 29 have at least some trust in information from social media, around twice the share among those ages 65 and older (52% vs. 25%). Younger adults are also more likely than older adults to use social media for news in general.
Republicans’ trust in national news organizations is now similar across age groups
When considering party and age together, trust in national news organizations has increased across most age groups in both parties.
| Party | National news organizations | Local news organizations | Social media sites | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ages 18-29 | Rep/Lean Rep | 54 | 70 | 47 |
| 30-49 | Rep/Lean Rep | 46 | 65 | 44 |
| 50-64 | Rep/Lean Rep | 50 | 72 | 34 |
| 65+ | Rep/Lean Rep | 54 | 71 | 24 |
| Ages 18-29 | Dem/Lean Dem | 65 | 74 | 55 |
| 30-49 | Dem/Lean Dem | 69 | 79 | 43 |
| 50-64 | Dem/Lean Dem | 77 | 83 | 33 |
| 65+ | Dem/Lean Dem | 86 | 90 | 26 |
Among Democrats, older adults remain more likely than younger adults to trust national news organizations. A large majority of Democrats ages 65 and older (86%) say they have at least some trust in national news outlets, compared with 65% of Democrats ages 18 to 29.
Republicans across all age groups are now more similar in their levels of trust in national news than they were a year ago. Just over half of Republicans ages 18 to 29 (54%) now say they have at least some trust in information from national news organizations, up 12 percentage points from 42% in 2025. Trust in national news has also increased among Republicans in older age groups.
Note: This is an update of an analysis originally published on Oct. 27, 2022. Here are the questions used for this analysis, the detailed responses and the methodology.
