No loss of credibility for Swiss media brands
The public discussions about "fake news," "lying press" or a general loss of credibility of the media miss the reality - at least in Switzerland.
Swiss media brands have not lost credibility with their audience in recent years. This is one of the findings of Publicom's latest MediaBrands study.
Publicom has been measuring the brand images of Swiss media brands annually since 2013. With over 5,000 interviews and 180 integrated media brands, mediaBrands is the largest qualitative media study in Switzerland and maps general trends in addition to individual brand profiles.
The study cannot confirm the often claimed loss of credibility of the media. Although fluctuations can certainly be observed for individual brands, the trust of the audience in the media brands they use - viewed across the board - proves to be surprisingly stable. However, there are sometimes striking differences between the individual brands and media types. For example, regional subscription newspapers and publicly financed radio and television stations are among the most credible media brands. However, the Swiss rate tabloids and social networks as much less credible. The latter, on the other hand, score highly in other image dimensions, such as entertainment value.
The most credible regional language brands: NZZ, La Première and Rete Uno
In the current survey year 2017, the Neue Zürcher Zeitung is the most credible national medium in German-speaking Switzerland. In French-speaking Switzerland, the SRG radio program La Première occupies the top position, and in Italian-speaking Switzerland, Rete Uno, an SRG radio station, is also ahead. Somewhat surprisingly, these assessments are independent of the age of the respondents, i.e. the younger generation also trusts the established quality media far more than the new digital media brands.
With the MediaBrands study, Publicom annually determines the brand performance of media brands among the Swiss population. The 2017 survey was conducted in April and May and is based on a representative sample of 5,098 people aged 15-79. The statistical margin of error is +/- 1.4 percent.
Further details on the study can be found at Publicom.ch/mediabrands.
