In our current communication climate, trusted news sources have played an increasingly vital role in providing citizens with accurate information. The credibility of these sources or creators of trusted news has become critically important. News organizations publish fact-based content which is created by accredited, professional journalists who spend hours, days, and sometimes months researching stories, interviewing stakeholders and vetting facts. Fake news is the polar opposite of what trusted journalism looks like and is a relatively new phenomenon.
IAB Canada published an insightful article, Ten Reasons why (Canadian) News is Looking Good Right Now, based on research conducted by IAB that directly challenges the unfounded rationale behind brands’ hesitation to advertise against the news. The report finds that advertising within News is more than just safe for brands: it can increase ROI for their ads. This is the “News Trust Halo”
In this piece, we will explore the differences between credible and non-credible news, where people go to find their facts, and the effectiveness of premium news environments.
What is fake news?
- False news stories, often of a sensational nature, are created to be widely shared or distributed for the purpose of generating revenue or promoting or discrediting a public figure, political movement, company, etc.: It’s impossible to avoid clickbait and fake news on social media. [1]
- A parody that presents current events or other news topics for humorous effect in an obviously satirical imitation of journalism: The website publishes fake news that is hilarious and surprisingly insightful.
- Sometimes Facetious. (used as a conversational tactic to dispute or discredit information that is perceived as hostile or unflattering): The senator insisted that recent polls forecasting an election loss were just fake news.
What is credible news?
- Credible news is about information source reliability and fairness. Learn more in: Fake Online News: Rethinking News Credibility for the Changing Media Environment
- An evaluation of news in terms of, but not limited to, accuracy, fairness, objectiveness, trustworthiness, completeness, and the absence of biases. Learn more in: News Credibility and Media Literacy in the Digital Age
- A measure of how trustworthy and believable a piece of news appears to be to an audience. Learn more in: Political Advertising Effects on Perceived Bias, Value, and Credibility in Online News
Why do we visit social media?
- Only four in 10 Canadians were confident that the average person could tell the difference between real and fake news. Fake news, misinformation, and disinformation will be one of the biggest threats to the world in the next ten years. (World Economic Forum)
- Bad news: Facebook leads in news consumption among social feeds, but most don’t trust I, says Pew.
- Americans who rely on social media or word of mouth for news are the least likely to be registered to vote.
Where to find trusted news?
Canadians read and trust newspapers. Nine in 10 Canadians (88%) read newspapers each week across Canada– either in print or digital format, at least once a week (News Media Canada)
- Community newspapers are the number one source for LOCAL information
- Readers read and rely on newspaper advertising
- News media provide a trusted environment for ads
- News media readers take action after seeing advertising
66% of Canadians are getting most of their information about the Coronavirus from News Organizations
- News organization were the most relied on information source during the pandemic
- During the time of national crisis, when lockdown hit, when it was difficult to know who to trust, younger audiences rediscovered national newspaper brands.
- Part of the reason for this growth is surely the trust many readers have in news brands and that trust becomes even more important in times of national crisis.
- Trust in national newspapers grew 9% overall during lockdown but perhaps surprisingly, grew by 15% among 15-24s who’s trust for websites fell by 18% in those early weeks.
Premium Environments
The Halo Effect: How Advertising on Premium Publishers Drives Higher Ad Effectiveness
comScore conducted research to examine the branding effectiveness of digital display and video ads appearing on Digital Content Next (DCN) member sites compared to non-member sites. DCN is a consortium of digital publishers whose brands have a direct relationship with the consumer and therefore are more likely to be household names and are generally considered to be “premium publishers”; therefore, this study can be interpreted as a way of understanding the branding value of premium publishers vs. all other publishers. The study found that this segment of publishers delivered significantly better branding effectiveness results across a number of measures. The primary driver of this increased effectiveness is the halo effect that comes from the value of the contextual environment in which these ads are seen.
- Display and video ads on DCN premium publisher sites had an average of 67% higher brand lift than non-DCN publishers, confirming that premium sites deliver premium performance.
- Premium publishers are more than 3x more effective in driving mid-funnel brand lift metrics, such as favorability, consideration, and intent to recommend.
- Premium publisher effectiveness is driven in part by higher viewability rates which include lower levels of invalid traffic
Postmedia Editorial
- As one of Canada’s largest news media companies, our team of 700+ journalists across 100+ newsrooms produces over 200,000 pieces of original journalism to form one of Canada’s largest and most trustworthy news organizations.
- Delivering sound, trusted and high-quality journalism to Canadians across a variety of verticals – from news, finance, automotive, entertainment, sports, and more.
- Participating in the communities we serve as good corporate citizens.
- Delivering high-value audiences and data-driven solutions to Canadian marketers.
- Our portfolio of more than 120 brands gives you access to inventory and audiences at scale.
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