The Internet contains a wealth of knowledge, or does it? How do we know who to trust? For this week’s Fact Box I’ve looked at statistics surrounding a comparison between digital and traditional media sources, the credibility of online advertising and the corporate versus the consumer voice online.
From Edelman - The 2009 Edelman Trust Barometer (2009)
- Trust in digital media sources such as free content sources (Wikipedia and Web portals) and social networking sites (such as MySpace and Facebook) are losing ground. Statistics show that they are dropping globally among 35 year-olds from 38% to 27% and among 64 year-olds from 20% to 15%.
- A survey of 35 to 64 year olds showed that search engines were the most trusted of all digital channels as a source of company information, with 35%. There was a markedly lower level of trust for business and non-business blogs, with 19% and 16% respectively.
From The Media Manager - World Internet Project 2009: Online credibility still an issue (Nov 2008)
The World Internet Project, led by the USC Annenberg School of Communication, has released its 2009 report. The project has been instrumental in tracking the usage and attitudes about the Internet in several countries.
- In this year’s report, a majority still feel that only about half of the information they consume online is credible.
- With the above having been said, studies showed that people do see the Internet as an important source of information, in the health sector specifically.
- Studies also showed that online purchasing is not prevalent yet, this may be due to a lack of trust and credibility of online companies.
From The Digital Centre - 2008 Digital Report (Media Use and Trust) (2008)
- After seven years of studying online behaviour and attitudes, the Digital Future Report found that the Internet is seen to be the most important source of information, ahead of all other media (TV, Radio, Newspapers etc).
- 46% of Internet users said that all or most of the information online is generally reliable. 43% of non-users gave the same response.
- Steadily increasing percentages of Internet users find their favourite frequently visited websites to have the highest degrees of reliability and accuracy.
- 83% of Internet users said that most or all of the information on websites they visit regularly is reliable and accurate. This percentage was the same in 2006 and slightly higher than 81% in 2005.
- 80 % of Internet users said that most or all of the information posted on media websites such the New York Times and CNN is reliable and accurate. This percentage is up from 77% in 2006.
From the Future Buzz - 5 Blogs Winning the Numbers Game vs. Traditional Counterparts (Nov 2008)
"All blogs are represented in blue, traditional media organizations in red and green (numbers courtesy of Compete.com)"
Gossip/pop culture/celebrities: PerezHilton.com vs CosmoGirl.com
Public Relations: MicroPersuasion.com vs. PRWeekus.com
Below is a final and interesting find that highlights a case that deviates from the conventional findings; a traditional media outlet (that’s not so traditional) winning the numbers game.
"An example of the shift in trust to consumer generated media: Wired has evolved their publication into a web powerhouse and has more traffic than the most influential tech blog, TechCrunch."
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