Search

Home > People, Places, Power > Episode 23: Trust: The Linchpin of Reputation
Podcast: People, Places, Power
Episode:

Episode 23: Trust: The Linchpin of Reputation
Category: News & Politics
Duration: 00:30:20
Publish Date: 2021-09-17 05:28:03
Description:

This episode examines the crucial category of trust in communication and reputation with especial reference to the findings of the Edelman Trust Barometer for 2021 [https://www.edelman.com/trust/2021-trust-barometer]. The findings of this survey are alarming, being summarized as 'information bankruptcy'. Unlike national images, trust seems volatile with the highest degree of trust shifting from NGOs to 'people like the audience' to employers and businesses over the twenty years that the barometer has surveyed publics around the world. Simon points out that the decline of trust in government presents a crisis for democracy. Nick softens the blow by arguing that trust in local government is increasing. The pair consider the impact of COVID on trust, which seems to have boosted trust in one's own government but decreased trust in in media. The local nature of trust is seen as a problem for the UN and EU. The diffusion of trust suggests that the only way to bring people together to address large issues is through a partnership of different kinds of actors with the ability to elicit trust from different sorts of people. Simon and Nick conclude that the best way to rebuild trust is to develop critical thinking, ironic perhaps given that this process includes a reasoned mistrust. Such a process is essential for a healthy democratic future.
Total Play: 0