Publishers’ “trusted media” slogans have a hollow ring to them this week, with Edelman research showing Australians are the least trusting of traditional media.

This year’s Edelman Trust Barometer shows sharp declines in trust across all Australian institutions, eroding the record-high levels recorded in 2021.

Almost two thirds of people (65 per cent) think journalists are “actively trying to mislead them by saying things they know are false or grossly exaggerated”, worse even than politicians and business leaders, rated at 61 per cent.

The research shows trust in all media sources has fallen, with traditional media falling five points to 48 per cent, just ahead of search engines (47 per cent). Owned media, down five points, was trusted by only a third of Australians, with social media rating only 24 per cent (down eight points).

Of all the world, that makes Australians the least trusting of traditional media and means that most don’t trust the medium. Next worst countries were Japan (47 per cent) and the US (45 per cent).

Concerns about disinformation and fake news remain high, with 73 per cent worried about false information or fake news being used as a weapon.

After a surge in trust in 2021, media has become the only Australian institution distrusted by a majority of the population. A majority of Australians (55 per cent) said their default tendency was to distrust something until they see evidence it is trustworthy, while another 61 per cent said it has reached a point where Australians are incapable of having constructive and civil debates about issues they disagree on.

Most trusted are communications from the business you work for, with nearly three-quarters of Australian employees (74 per cent) saying they trust their employer, compared to 58 per cent who trust business in general. Employers’ communications generally are also highly trusted (70 per cent), eclipsing communications from government (63 per cent), media reports with named sources (58 per cent) and advertising (51 per cent).