Exploring the Direct and Indirect Effects of Traditional and Social Media News Use on Media Trust and Journalism Error Tolerance

Accuracy, or getting the news right, has been viewed as a paramount journalism value. However, in the digital age, the pressure to disseminate news rapidly has increased the possibility that erroneous information may be published. Based on longitudinal survey data in the United States, this study investigates the factors that influence news users’ tolerance towards journalism errors. Alternative and competing theoretical models are tested to delimit the effects of traditional news use as opposed to social media news, and traditional versus social media news trust. The results showcase how traditional media news trust positively predicts people’s tolerance toward journalism errors. Similarly, traditional media news trust significantly mediates the relationship between traditional media news use and journalism error tolerance. However, social media news use and trust have either limited or null effects on journalism error tolerance, and social media news trust does not significantly mediate the relationship between social media news use and journalism error tolerance. Theoretical explanations and implications of these findings are discussed in the study.