Characteristics of Media Audiences and Trust in the Media Cover Image

Osobine medijskih publika i povjerenje u medije
Characteristics of Media Audiences and Trust in the Media

Author(s): Antonija Čuvalo
Subject(s): Social Sciences, Media studies, Communication studies, Sociology, Sociology of Culture
Published by: Fakultet političkih znanosti u Zagrebu
Keywords: media; trust in media; media credibility; media consumption; audiences; cultural capital;

Summary/Abstract: This article analyzes elements of the social and demographic profile of Croatian media audiences in order to identify what may determine their perceptions of the Croatian media and their overall trust in the media. The analytical data that forms the foundation of this examination derives from the research project, “Trust in Media”, ordered by the Faculty of Political Science at the University in Zagreb and conducted in co-operation with the Zagreb-based research agency Media Metar, on nationally representative probability samples. The main assumption is that the differences in demographic characteristics and cultural capital within media audiences affect personal attitudes toward media institutions and overall trust in the media. Emphasis is allotted to the differences in professional qualifications, as an indicator of cultural capital, as well as on the differences in other social and demographic characteristics and on the relationship of media consumption and trust in media. Relying on the results of previous studies, this article examines the extent of which perception and trust in the media may be explained by differences in social and demographic characteristics.

  • Issue Year: 1/2010
  • Issue No: 1-2
  • Page Range: 40-54
  • Page Count: 15
  • Language: Croatian