Media

     The chart below (Figure 1), from the Media Insight Project, illustrates how Democrats, Independents, and Republicans feel about the news media as a whole versus the news media they use most often.

Figure 1

Looking at this chart, we can see that Democrats typically hold the news media in a better regard than Independents and Republicans. For example, 47% of Democrats agree that the news media is willing to admit their mistakes, as opposed to 20% of Republicans. This trend continues when the study narrows its focus, asking participants about the specific news media that they consume. However, we see a rise in the numbers for both Independents and Republicans. When Republicans were asked whether "the news media" cares about the people they report on, only 13% said that they did. When asked the same question about the media they use most often, 43% of Republicans said that their sources were caring, a significant 30% increase. This shows that while these groups tend to be distrustful of media as a whole, they have a more positive opinion when it comes to news that reflects their own views. A Republican, for example, is more likely to trust Breitbart as a reliable news source than they are CNN.

Figure 2

Figure 2 demonstrates where some news sources fall on the political spectrum. Based on this image, it's clear that mainstream media these days tends to be saturated by more left-leaning outlets and ideas, which explains why the majority of Democrats in Figure 1 see news media in a positive light. On the other hand, Trump's never-ending "fake news" diatribe against left-wing sources has biased his supporters against the mainstream media, explaining the seemingly negative views from Republicans reflected in Figure 1.