Filipinos’ trust in news drops to 28% amid political issue, threats — group

Leonard Macapia

The 2026 Reuters Institute Digital News Report revealed that only 28% of Filipino respondents trust most news most of the time, as political polarization and threats against media continue to affect the country’s information environment.

In a statistics released on June 16, the Philippines recorded the steepest decline in news trust among 48 countries surveyed.

Trust fell by 10-percentage points, from 38% in 2025 to 28% in 2026, placing the country among the lowest-ranking markets globally.

The country also fell below the global average of 37%, the lowest recorded level since the Reuters Institute began tracking news trust in 2015.

However, the report stressed that declining trust should not be interpreted solely as a reflection of newsroom performance.

Instead, it linked low trust to broader issues like political instability, divisive elections, online harassment, and threats against journalists and media organizations.

The Philippines reflects many of these conditions, such as the recent heated political divisions ahead of the 2028 elections, the ongoing multi-billion-peso flood control scandal, senate drama, and the investigation of the ‘Maleta Boys’ cash-delivery allegations.

“In countries with some of the biggest drops in trust such as the Philippines, Thailand, Peru, and Poland, recent events point to a likely sense of deterioration in the broader information environment,” the report said.

Moreover, the study highlighted the growing influence of social media, video platforms, content creators, and artificial intelligence in shaping how audiences encounter news.

“News is becoming more video-led, more creator-shaped, and starting to be more intermediated by AI. Audiences [are] drifting away from traditional sources to a more ‘platformized’ news experience,” the report said.

The survey, conducted online by YouGov in January and early February, gathered responses from 97,520 adults worldwide, including 2,021 from the Philippines.