Public view of press accuracy hits 20-year low

New Pew Research report says public's view of press accuracy is at its lowest point in two decades. Perception of accuracy, professionalism and willingness to admit mistakes are way down (-26%, -13 and -13 over the 20-year period covered), and the partisan split is much larger than ever with its usual results of Fox News and Wall Street Journal on one side and the rest of television and the New York Times on the other. Notable is that neither of the newspapers scores well. In fact, newspapers are hit hard in the survey with respondents believing that local television stations are much more likely to uncover local news than local newspapers. I realize that contra-factual finding can cast doubt on the survey respondents' understanding of reality, but it's the perceptions that count.