Throughout the entire period of the existence of the media, newspapers and magazines have been the main source of information for people. Since the middle of the twentieth century, they have been supplanted by television. And now he is still trusted by the majority of Russians. But in recent years, the most reliable source of news has emerged and is rapidly gaining momentum - the Internet.
According to opinion polls, about 78% of the country's residents trust central and regional television. The same polls show that in 2008 about 49% of Russian residents trusted news from the Internet, and this year - almost 64%! These data were obtained during a survey conducted at the end of April in various regions of Russia.
It turns out that although Russians still trust television most of all, the Internet is rapidly gaining ground as a benchmark for news reliability. And, perhaps, in a few years, it will become equal to television, if not surpass it. Already now, the global global network has become the main source of information for the most active category of the population: students, high school students, creative and scientific intelligentsia, top and middle managers.
Why is this happening? There are many reasons for this phenomenon. Russians believe (and quite justifiably) that TV programs, especially news programs, are censored for one reason or another, therefore, their reliability is questionable. In addition, it is known that employees of TV channels are employees of their owners, therefore, they cannot speak on their own behalf, but are forced to voice what coincides with the political predilections of employers.
Information on the Internet is published, among other things, by direct eyewitnesses of the events (in social networks, blogs, forums). Their unbiased interpretation of events is often strikingly different from the officially disseminated news of any other media.
The credibility of the information broadcast on television was to a certain extent undermined after the lion's share of the screen time was devoted to one party, United Russia, during last year's December elections to the State Duma. The Russians saw this as a manifestation of an administrative resource aimed at ensuring the victory of the said party.
In a dynamic era, the speed of transmission of informational news using television does not suit many people: they prefer to find out the news immediately, without the slightest delay, and therefore resort to the help of the Internet.
