Despite popular perceptions that trust in news media is on the decline, trust may actually be ascendant. However, Rachel Moran argues, to understand trust in media today, one has to understand its relational nature. Relational trust is tied to hyper-individualized assessments of the authenticity of the journalist that give leverage to micro-celebrities and pseudo journalists on social media.
Rachel E. Moran
Rachel E. Moran is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for an Informed Public at the University of Washington’s Information School. Moran received her doctoral degree in 2020 from the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California. Her research explores the role of trust in digital information environments and is particularly concerned with how trust is implicated in the spread of mis- and disinformation. Moran’s research has been published in Information, Communication & Society, Digital Journalism, Journalism Practice, Media, Culture & Society, and Telecommunications Policy. Moran also holds a BA and an MA in social and political science from Cambridge University and an MA in political communications from Goldsmiths College, University of London.