Trust in media brands dips as Marcos-Duterte rift spreads disinfo
The public’s trust in individual news outlets declined amid a surge in online disinformation and harmful content fueled by the “widening political rift” between President Marcos and Vice President Sara Duterte, according to the annual review of the media landscape conducted by Reuters.
According to the 2025 edition of the Reuters Digital News Report, overall trust in news “remained steady” at 38 percent, compared to last year’s 37 percent. It also improved near the end of former President Rodrigo Duterte’s term in 2022.
However, individual media brands experienced a decline in public trust as the “fallout” between the country’s two top officials fuelled the spread of disinformation and attacks against the press itself.
This “information disorder,” according to the report, is “often amplified by political influencers and partisan media.”
“[T]rust in nearly all media brands covered in this report slid over the past year amid intensified political disinformation, at least some of which is aimed at mainstream outlets for allegedly biased coverage,” Reuters said.
The study also noted that “some outlets critical of those in power are often actively distrusted by supporters of the politicians in question and subject to coordinated harassment.”
GMA, Inquirer
The report included a survey that measured the level of public trust in 15 different media brands.
GMA Network continued to be the most trusted, with 67 percent of the respondents saying that they trust the brand, followed by the Philippine Daily Inquirer at 63 percent.
Manila Bulletin ranked with 62 percent, while Super Radyo dzBB, which is operated by GMA Network, as well as the Philippine Star and TV5 all received the trust of 61 percent of respondents.
ABS-CBN, whose continuing lack of a franchise was noted in the report, was trusted by 60 percent of respondents.
The numbers are notably lower than the results of last year’s survey, with GMA Network receiving the trust of 72 percent of respondents, followed by TV5 with 67 percent.
The Philippine Daily Inquirer was the third most trusted brand in the 2024 report with 66 percent, while Super Radyo dzBB, Manila Bulletin and the Philippine Star were all trusted by 65 percent of respondents. ABS-CBN and dzRH were at 64.
Newsroom campaigns
“In response to disinformation some newsrooms stepped up verification efforts and launched deeper investigations into influence operations,” said Reuters.
GMA launched a multiplatform campaign against disinformation in partnership with more than 50 newsrooms, academic institutions, as well as the Commission on Elections (Comelec), it recalled.
Five more news organizations are now accredited by the International Fact-Checking Network.
Reuters cited the initiatives of the Comelec in combating election-related disinformation and misinformation, as well as the misuse of generative AI by candidates.
Public hearings, complaints
It also took note of the hearings conducted by the House of Representatives to investigate the spread of disinformation, where at least 40 vloggers and social media personalities were invited, many put on the spot for their content.
Law enforcement agencies have also begun to crack down individuals spreading falsehoods online. In March, the National Bureau of Investigation arrested a vlogger from Cebu who admitted to creating and posting fake content about President Marcos.
Four other vloggers based abroad are also facing multiple complaints at the Department of Justice for posting spliced videos and misrepresenting the statements of NBI Director Jaime Santiago.
“Amid this growing push to confront disinformation and AI risks, efforts to equip journalists with new tools also gained momentum,” said Reuters, noting Rappler’s AI chatbot, Rai, as well as VERA Files’ AI-assisted, fact-checking bot, VERA.
TV, print plateau
While social media remained as the preferred news source among Filipinos, the Reuters Digital News Report noted a “plateau” in the decline of TV and print.
According to another survey, 66 percent of respondents obtain their news from social media, with 85 percent getting their news from “any online” source, which includes news websites or apps, social or video networks, news podcasts and AI chatbots.
Meanwhile, 46 percent get their news from TV, and only 13 percent have print media as their source. These numbers, the report noted, were the same as the 2024 results.
“The decline of TV and print has plateaued as Filipinos seek news on the worsening political polarization. Social media, however, remains their preferred news source,” Reuters noted.
Downtrend since 2020
In comparison, the use of TV as a news source continuously declined from 2020 to 2024.
In 2020, 66 percent of respondents used TV as a news source. This dropped to 61 percent in 2021, 60 percent in 2022, 52 percent in 2023, and 46 percent in 2024.
Twenty-two percent of the respondents in the 2020 survey used print as their news source, 16 percent in 2021 and 2022, 14 percent in 2023, and 13 percent in 2024.
The Philippine entry in the Reuters Digital News Report was authored by multiawarded journalist Yvonne Chua, currently an associate professor of journalism at the University of the Philippines Diliman.
