Credibility is one of the foundations of what modern newspapers have to offer. Look at the marketing materials newspaper companies produce: billboards, posters on newspaper boxes, taglines… invariably, newspaper content is marketed as credible and authoritative.
In the three countries surveyed thus far for Youth Media DNA, this message does not appear to be overwhelmingly accepted. In the U.S., for example newspapers are far less likely to be seen as credible as television news sources. In Finland and the Netherlands, newspapers are, at best, seen as equally credible as television.
These findings indicate that a key component of the value of newspaper content is not currently understood by younger populations. Clearly, more needs to be done to educate the public about the value of the newspaper organization as a news gathering entity.
Current research is being supported in the U.S. by the Newspaper Association of America Foundation, in Finland by Helsingin Sanomat Foundation , and in the Netherlands by Stimuleringsfonds voor de Pers , Stichting Democratie en Media , and the Windesheim School of Media.
Future country studies will provide a valuable insight into different patters across the world.