Summary of Findings: Public More Critical of Press, But Goodwill Persists

Pew Research Survey, June 26, 2005

"A few of the findings: Most still have a favorable opinion of their daily newspaper, although that's down slightly from 2000, although slightly more than half believe they 'mostly report facts.' Almost three quarters believe news organizations favor one side politically and a third believe news organizations actually 'hurt democracy.' Forty-four percent believe at times it is 'OK to use anonymous sources,' although 52 percent say it is too risky. The study shows a growth in online reading of newspapers: While 40 percent say they rely on the printed newspaper as a main source of news, a growing number say they rely on online sources for news, including a version of the newspaper."

From Michael Walden