As disinformation and social media fatigue reshape America’s relationship with news, traditional news radio is experiencing a resurgence. According to a new report, local all-news stations now rank as the nation’s most trusted source for credible information.
While social platforms struggle to combat misinformation and audience confidence in digital news declines 16% year over year, radio’s blend of immediacy, context, and human reporting offers an antidote to algorithmic distortion. An Alter Agents study commissioned by Audacy found that 84% of Americans place their confidence in local news radio—outpacing broadcast TV (82%), national news radio (79%), and social media (74%).
That credibility extends to the commercial breaks, too.
The research reveals that 77% of listeners find all-news station advertising trustworthy, making the format particularly attractive to brands targeting informed, affluent consumers in an increasingly polarized media landscape. Audacy’s internal metrics demonstrate this advantage: news radio advertisers see a 20% lift in website traffic compared to baseline campaign performance, proving that trusted environments generate measurable results.
The momentum is translating into audience growth. Across major US markets, Audacy reports double-digit year-over-year increases for its all-news station portfolio, even following the 2024 Presidential election.
A similar 2024 Katz Radio Group study found that traditional radio remains America’s most trusted mass medium, although its results placed radio’s overall trust at nearly three times that of social media.
Surveying 1,000 US adults, the study showed nearly 80% consider radio “very trustworthy” or “trustworthy,” placing it slightly ahead of newspapers and more than ten points above television and magazines. In stark contrast, only 27% of respondents trust social media, making it the least reliable medium.
Radio’s credibility was found to spans generations, peaking among adults 55 and older at 83%, though younger listeners also rank it above digital platforms. Separate Morning Consult data released in 2024 showed similar results, with over-the-air radio maintaining the highest credibility of any US news source and trust levels rising from 60% to 63% in four years.
