The Football World Cup and the death of the Queen of England are the subjects that the media talked about too much in 2022, according to the annual barometer of the newspaper ” the cross “which also shows a renewed interest of the French for current events and the growing role of social networks.
Highlight of this barometer carried out since 1987: the renewed interest in current events. 76% of respondents (1,500 adults questioned by internet or telephone according to the quota method) say they follow it “with great interest”compared to 62% last year.
“It is the fifth highest level in 35 years”, underlined Jean-Christophe Ploquin, editor-in-chief of “la Croix”, during a press conference. However, this proportion is lower among those under 35 (66%).
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In addition, four out of ten respondents say they are more interested in news than a few years ago. It coincides with “rich news in 2022” (Ukraine, presidential in France, etc.) after the Covid period, commented Guillaume Caline, of the Kantar Public institute, which produces this barometer.
However, this is to be qualified by the fact that one in five respondents (21%) is less interested in it than before, and even one in three (33%) among those under 35 years old. And half of respondents (51%) feel “often tired” towards the news, the famous “information fatigue” pointed out by several studies recently.
Too much Qatar and Queen of England
The World Cup in Qatar (for 48% of respondents), the death of the Queen of England (43%) and the fuel shortage (40%): these are the three subjects that the media talked about too much in 2022.
Conversely, 51% feel that the media have not talked enough about the end-of-life debate. According to Guillaume Caline, this shows “the interest of the French for subjects likely to affect them directly”.
The treatment of the war in Ukraine arouses mixed opinions: 41% think that the media covered it at the right level and 38% that they covered it too much.
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The barometer also looks at the channels used to get information: TV news, radio, news channels, websites, paper daily newspapers, social networks. The French use an average of 4 per day. But, in this “multiple sources of information”TV “keep a central place”, according to Guillaume Caline. Thus, the news is the channel that respondents prefer to get information on a daily basis, regardless of age (35% of the entire panel).
Among 18-24 year olds, social networks come second, while this place is occupied by news channels in all other age groups.
An ever-present loss of confidence
Even if the judgment is less severe than last year, the loss of confidence remains an underlying trend. More than half of respondents (54%) think that, “Most of the time, you have to be wary of what the media says on major news topics”.
However, “this reflex of mistrust” exists especially when we consider the media “globally”as’“institution”weighted Guillaume Caline: “Taken in isolation, it is much less negative”. Thus, among those polled who obtain information via the news, 73% trust them. This proportion is also 73% for radio, 66% for national dailies but only 46% for news and entertainment programs on TV and 40% for influencers.
Moreover, the image of journalists remains degraded: 59% of those polled think that they do not resist political pressure and 56% financial pressure.
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Social networks “made their hole” as a source of information, “especially among the youngest”, also noted Jean-Christophe Ploquin. All generations combined, 35% of respondents use them daily for this purpose. Paradoxically, only 36% of those who get information about the networks trust them.
And the relationship to this source of information highlights “a strong generational divide”, according to Guillaume Caline. Thus, after 35 years, 6 respondents out of 10 believe that the dissemination on the information networks by “people who are not media or journalists” is a bad thing. A proportion that is reversed among the youngest: half of those under 35 consider it to be a good thing.
