MANILA, Philippines — Journalists remain the most trusted source of news among Filipinos, according to a survey.
The National Momentum Survey found that 76.5 percent of Filipino adults trusted news and information from journalists working for news organizations, compared with 31.3 percent from content creators and vloggers.
In contrast, 64.1 percent of respondents said they distrusted or strongly distrusted content creators and vloggers as against 18.4 percent of journalists.
The findings come amid the growing use of social media as a source of information and concerns over disinformation, including misleading content generated through artificial intelligence.
Trust in journalists was highest among Generation Z respondents, at 84.3 percent, followed by millennials at 78.9 percent and Generation X at 74 percent.
Among baby boomers and members of the Silent Generation, 55.8 percent said they trusted journalists, while 27.4 percent expressed distrust and 16.9 percent were unsure.
By comparison, trust in content creators and vloggers ranged from 28 percent to 33 percent across generations, while distrust ranged from 62 percent to 67 percent.
The survey also found that journalists remained a trusted source of news regardless of political affiliation, although the degree of trust varied among groups.
Respondents identified as pro-opposition recorded the highest trust in journalists, at 86.4 percent, followed by independents at 81.1 percent and pro-Marcos respondents at 78.9 percent.
Among pro-Duterte respondents, 68.6 percent expressed trust in journalists, although roughly one in four said they distrusted them.
The political divide was more pronounced in attitudes toward content creators and vloggers.
Only 22.1 percent of pro-opposition respondents said they trusted these sources, while about seven in 10 expressed distrust. Among independents, 28.7 percent trusted content creators and vloggers, while 68 percent said they did not.
Pro-Marcos and pro-Duterte respondents were comparatively more receptive, with more than a third in each group expressing trust in content creators and vloggers. However, about three in five in both groups said they distrusted them.
Regional results likewise showed that journalists remained the more trusted source across the country.
The rest of Luzon recorded the highest trust in journalists, at 82.2 percent, followed by the Visayas at 74.5 percent, Metro Manila at 73.6 percent and Mindanao at 68.4 percent.
Trust in content creators and vloggers was highest in Metro Manila, at 39.2 percent, and lowest in Mindanao, at 26.5 percent. Distrust of these sources ranged from 60.2 percent in Metro Manila to 66.4 percent in the Visayas.
Momentum Research conducted the non-commissioned survey through face-to-face interviews with 1,487 Filipino adults from Aug. 18 to 23, 2026.
The survey has a national margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level. The margins of error for regional estimates are plus or minus 6.9 percentage points for Metro Manila, 3.8 points for the rest of Luzon, 5.8 points for the Visayas and 5.5 points for Mindanao.
