Sixty-two percent of U.S. adults now say they have a lot of or some trust in the information they get from national news organizations, up from 56% in September 2025, according to a Pew Research Center survey of 5,193 adults conducted Sept. 14-20, 2026. Trust in local news rose 5 points to 75%. Trust in social media barely moved, at 38% vs. 37% a year ago. National news is still well short of the 76% who trusted it in early 2016.
Both parties moved the same direction
The rise was not a one-party story. Among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents, trust in national news went from 44% to 50%. Among Democrats and Democratic leaners, it went from 69% to 73%. Local news gained in both parties too: Republicans 64% to 69%, Democrats 78% to 81%.
The gap between the parties is still large, at 23 points on national news. But the biggest single jump Pew reported came from young Republicans: 54% of Republicans 18 to 29 now trust national news, up 12 points from 42%. Moderate and liberal Republicans are more trusting than conservative Republicans (57% vs. 46%).
Every age group trusts national news more than social media
Trust in national news rose among adults under 30 (51% to 60%) and among those 65 and older (62% to 70%). Local news gained across every age group.
Social media runs the other way. About half of adults 18 to 29 (52%) have at least some trust in information from social media sites, about twice the 25% of those 65 and older. Younger adults are also the most likely to get news from social media in the first place.
Where this sits in the longer trend
The September 2025 reading was a low point. Six months earlier, in March 2025, 67% trusted national news, so this year's 62% recovers part of that drop rather than setting a new high. Trust in national news fell hardest between July 2019 (75%) and June 2021 (58%) and has moved between the mid-50s and the high 60s since.
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The overall share is still 14 points below 2016, and a 6-point gain is within the range of swings Pew has recorded before. What stands out this time is that it showed up in both parties and across age groups, while local news stayed the most trusted of the three sources.
How we counted: Figures are Pew Research Center's share of U.S. adults who say they have "a lot of" or "some" trust in information from each source, from its American Trends Panel surveys between February 2016 and September 2026. The latest survey of 5,193 adults has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.6 points. Pew notes that question wording has changed over time and that the 2016 social media figure covers internet users only. Republicans and Democrats include independents who lean toward each party. The analysis updates one Pew first published Oct. 27, 2022. Pew's report. Download our data (CSV).