Who Do You Trust?

PR firm Edelman have published their 2010 Global Trust Barometer today , it surveyed 1,000 people in the UK and many more around the world asking what they think about politicians, bankers, CEOs and media companies, providing a window on national and international levels of public trust.

At the BBC we know we have to work hard day-in day-out to earn the trust of our audiences, the report shows that Trust in the BBC TV as a provider of information is 72 per cent, ahead of any other British broadcaster.

These findings also mirror a poll by the Guardian/ICM last September which showed Trust in the BBC had grown from 60 to 69 per cent over the past five years, as well as our own research.

Audiences tell us the reason they trust the BBC is down to quality, impartiality and transparency.

High quality impartial news is central to the BBC remaining a trusted institution. When you watch, listen or read BBC News you can be sure that it is not influenced by any political or commercial interest. As a public service your trust in us, rather than profit, is our bottom line.

Many people surveyed cited 'transparency and honesty in how corporations conduct business' as a key factor in gaining trust. In recent years we have increased openness and accountability to audiences by introducing BBC Newswatch and the Editor's blog. This also confirms my view that the steps we are now taking to become even more transparent, including disclosing the salaries and expenses of our top decision makers each quarter, are the right ones. We will continue to put the BBC at the forefront of transparency in both broadcasting and the public sector.

We must also be honest and big enough to admit when we get things wrong, and take the appropriate action to put it right again.

Whilst this evidence is in contrast to the highly pitched noise you often hear about the BBC, it reinforces my view that we must never take public trust for granted.

It is important for the BBC to listen to our audiences and gain a thorough understanding of what you want and expect for your licence fee.

We must keep working hard to open up, become more transparent and continue to focus on quality programmes if we are to maintain your trust in us. As announced last week we are currently exploring the potential for spending an even higher proportion of the licence fee on quality UK originated content in our forthcoming Strategy Review.