Three fundamental ways to invest in trust

Here are some principles that form the foundation of our work at Trusting News — some basics we return to routinely, to ground ourselves in what we’re trying to accomplish.

As you look them over, we invite you to reflect on the relationship you hope to have with the people you aim to serve and think about what you could do to strengthen it.

1. Understand what gets in the way of trust

If we have one piece of advice for every newsroom, it’s this: Spend time really exploring perceptions of your work.

1. Invite questions and feedback on social media in an AMA-style post (either live video or text). And/or conduct a simple audience survey.
2. You could also invest in a community advisory board. Or find other ways to talk to people in-depth, such as calling people who express frustration and really listening to them.
3. Then collect and assess what you hear, looking for themes and patterns. Articulate for yourselves and your colleagues what attitudes, misassumptions and frustrations you need to address.
4. Use that knowledge to set goals and build strategies. If one of the themes is that you have a liberal bias, you’re definitely not alone. Here are questions our team is asking about that, and a way you can get involved.

2. Defend your credibility and ethics

Journalists often decline to engage in conversations about their work. That’s sometimes because they don’t feel they can spare the time to respond to comments or complaints. And it’s sometimes because they don’t want to wade into a conversation that feels uncivil, unreasonable and full of people unlikely to change their minds. Both reasons are valid.

The unfortunate result, however, is that journalists are not present in public conversations about their work — even conversations they are officially hosting on their website or social media. And that means the narrative about journalism is being dictated by their critics, and an erroneous public record goes uncorrected.

We know you’re busy, but we hope you see the value in defending your reputation in key conversations. Here’s how you can do it:

1. Talk as a newsroom about effective ways to respond.
2. Consider writing up and saving sample comments so they’re handy when needed.
3. Use “fake news” accusations as a chance to explain how you fact-check or how you work to be fair.
4. Remind people that you cover a whole range of issues (it’s less typical to claim “fake news” about coverage of traffic, the arts and growth).
5. Tell them what motivates your work and why you need financial support.
6. Try discussing the different types of information people might be viewing (opinion vs. news, for example) and educating them on how to tell if a news website is trustworthy.

Especially when public conversations are getting a lot of attention, it’s worth it to be present and to stand up for your integrity.

3. Explain your processes and decision making

As you make a list of what you wish people understood about your work, figure out ways to proactively tell the story of your work. Answer questions like:

1. How do you decide what stories to cover or which sources to include in a story?
2. Who writes opinion content, and is it separate from news coverage?
3. Why do you trust and publish stories from the AP or other partners?
4. Who is coming and going from your staff?

When you don’t explain those things, your audience jumps to their own (often unflattering) conclusions. And when you DO explain them, you might be surprised by how appreciative your audience is, as WCPO found out when they explained their changing use of mugshots with crime stories.

Make those explanations part of your routine in whatever way works for you: with editor’s columns, boxes with stories, italicized notes at the top of stories, social media posts, newsletters or simple on-air language. (This post has examples of each collected.)

What do you need help with?

We’d love to hear about what support you need and how we can help strengthen the relationship you have with your community. Contact us at info@TrustingNews.org or on Twitter at @TrustingNews.

Trusting News is designed to demystify the issue of trust in journalism. We research how people decide what news is credible, then turn that knowledge into actionable strategies for journalists. We’re funded by the Reynolds Journalism Institute, the American Press Institute, Democracy Fund and the Knight Foundation. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Subscribe to our Trust Tips newsletter. Read more about our work at TrustingNews.org.