International TV news is antidote for fake news: BBC survey

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TV remains the top platform for keeping up with international news in APAC, but most news consumers worry about fake news, and struggle to distinguish real news from fake news.

Those are the findings of a new study released by BBC World News on the value of news to pay TV subscribers across the APAC region.

The study – commissioned by BBC World News and conducted independently by BDRC Asia in March 2017 – found that despite the proliferation of digital news offerings, TV is still the most popular platform for staying up-to-date with international news (85%), followed by social media (76%), news apps (50%), websites (49%), newspapers (45%) and news aggregators (36%).

However, 79% of news consumers in APAC are concerned about fake news and 64% find it hard to distinguish between real and fake news, the survey found.

For those who use social media for breaking news, international news channels are the top alternate source for fact-checking, with 68% of respondents saying they do this, followed by international news websites or apps at 62%, national TV channels (57%) and national news websites (52%).

“In a world of fake news and increasing mistrust in the media, access to accurate, impartial news is more important than ever,” said Chris Davies, Commercial Director for BBC Global News. “Consumers are looking for news they can rely on.”

The study – The Value of News – and the Importance of Trust – relied on an online survey sample of 1,524 respondents and a vox pop sample of 90 respondents in Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and India.

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