Which news source or sources do you think are the most trustworthy?
If I were asked offhandedly, I’d probably say something like, “New York Times, The Guardian, AP …” and trail off in thought.
Your answer would likely depend on what news you’re looking for, or what sources you subscribe to, or what your political leanings happen to be. But which source do you think Americans in general rate as the most trustworthy?
I was startled to read on YouGov that the most trusted source, by a large margin, is The Weather Channel. Of course it would be, if you’re looking for weather information in particular, but it ranked well above all general news sources.
In May 2026, YouGov conducted a survey of 2,102 adult US citizens. The ranking of 48 major news outlets and 17 online sources is displayed in an easy-to-read graph. The questions posed and a breakdown of the answers are also provided. And although the Weather Channel is mentioned only twice in 39 questions and answers, it came out on top.
The graph shows the ranking of traditional news sources, while the survey questions and answers also included many references to social media platforms. The breakout of traditional news sources made it easier to see how they ranked; social media platforms are ranked in the survey questions (#17). Personally I found it discomfiting that social media are included at all, likely because I experienced decades of traditional news sources before the dawn of social media (late 1990s) and even the internet itself (1980s).
An example: “Have you consumed news from the following sources in the past month? Select all that apply.” The number one source, selected by 60% of respondents, was social media.
And of great concern, an observation about AI: “Since last year, there has been a 10-point increase in the share of Americans who say they see AI-generated information online every day (to 46% from 36%). Only 11% of Americans say they are very confident they can differentiate between people-generated news and AI-generated news.” I might spot AI in an image or a video, but if it’s text only???
For some reason, all discussion of the survey is on one page — the only page. A lengthy, difficult read. I found it easier and far more interesting to just browse the 39 survey questions and answers.
I’m greatly disappointed by seeing that trust in MS NOW has dwindled so much: personally, I trust those journos almost unlimitedly. Of course there’s no such thing as an always-correct news source; but for Americans to have either been confused by their new name (which would show them to be halfwitted) or to have simply stopped finding them credible (which would show them to be silly) is most unwelcome.
The Democratic National Convention was in Denver in 2008, and MSNBC’s coverage was so obnoxious (Mathews and Olbermann) that I swore off that network (see “MSNBC prez defends convention team” for a few details). I totally lost track of the network after that, and even more after they changed their name. Sometime in the last year, I saw that Rachel Maddow had a show there and since then I try to remember to watch her. Still haven’t paid much attention to what else they might offer, but I’ve always loved Maddow.