U.S. in “Era of Information Bankruptcy,” Says 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer

Richard Edelman says the U.S. is living in an “era of information bankruptcy” as leaders lie to the public, which views media outlets as politicized and biased, reports O’Dwyer’s.

“The result is a lack of quality information and increased divisiveness,” he said in releasing the 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer.

The O’Dwyer post adds that “Edelman believes the Jan. 6 invasion of the U.S. Capitol and the fact that only a third of Americans plan to get the COVID-19 vaccine highlights the dangers of misinformation. Fifty percent of Americans believe the country is in the grip of a “cold civil war,” according to the Barometer.

“Business (61 percent) replaced government (53 percent) as the most trusted institution since the mid-May update of the Barometer.

“The record-breaking time to develop the COVID-19 vaccine and ability to shift to a work-from-home environment sparked the upswing in business trust.”

More here.