International Encyclopedia of Communication Online

Extract

Almost everything the general public knows of corporations and other organizations is mediated by the mass media. This is especially the case regarding strategic decisions, policymaking, and managerial behaviors. Consequently, the mass media seem to be used by organizations as key publics for →  Public Relations in building trust, especially since people tend to trust the media more than they do corporations or political parties (→  Corporate Reputation ; Trust of Publics ). Eurobarometer 61 ( European Commission 2004 ) shows that 71 percent of the European public trusts the radio (up from 63 percent in 2001), 61 percent trust television (up from 56 percent in 2001), and 56 percent trust newspapers (up from 40 percent in 2001). Despite booming public relations efforts in all European countries ( Van Ruler & Verčč 2005 ), 60 percent (in 2004, up from 57 percent in 2003) of the public in the European Union countries said that they do not trust big corporations. Only political parties ranked lower in this Eurobarometer ( European Commission 2004 ). In the USA, trust in the news media is lower; Gallup polls show that only about 50 percent (in 2003) of the American public has confidence in the news media, down from about 70 percent in the 1970s. In 2004 only 30 percent of the American public said they had trust in newspapers and television news. Although these numbers are lower ... log in or subscribe to read full text