COVID-19 sceptics’ attitudes and expectations toward the media: Understanding the role of moral judgements on trust and distrust in journalistic communication on COVID-19

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the German population has become polarised and distrust in social institutions has grown. Despite generally high levels of trust in sci- ence, we have witnessed the emergence of science and COVID-19 sceptics, who are critical of widely accepted scientific knowledge about COVID-19 health risks, treatment and vac- cines. While journalistic information on scientific topics is assumed to be central to knowl- edge formation, little is known thus far about the use of media and the formation of COVID-19 sceptics’ attitudes. This exploratory interview study therefore investigated the trust and distrust expressed by German COVID-19 sceptics regarding journalistic informa- tion on COVID-19. Results indicate that COVID-19 sceptics perceive themselves as criti- cal, responsible media users and informed recipients. They increasingly distrust journalistic science coverage due to what they view as moral failures in journalism; as a result, they prefer alternative media that they believe to be morally superior.