2026 Reader Survey: Hope, Trust, and Perspective

Breaking news: our readers are awesome. While we know that intuitively, we do like to consider ourselves data-driven professionals. So this summer we sent out a fresh reader survey to better understand: Who’s reading IMG publications? What do they value about our journalism? And what do they want to see from us in the future?

Today, I’m sharing some of the big-picture insights around that second question. What do people value about IMG publications?

Our readers trust us

88% of our readers trust our publications as a source of local news. In a time when only one third of Americans trust mass media, trust in local news has stayed higher—but dropped to 70% over the last decade or so. We don’t love the overall numbers, but we’re proud to beat the odds here.

Underscoring this trust, our readers are confident enough in our work to spread the word: most of them have shared at least one of our stories with someone else in their community, and 80% would recommend their local publication to someone in their community.

The hopescroll is real

Have you not heard about hopescrolling? We are making it happen. Anyway: 

Nearly half of our readers say that reading our reporting has made them feel more hopeful about the direction of their community. That’s a pretty big deal. 

People are more likely to feel sad, angry, scared, or confused as as result of the news they’re getting. We don’t think that’s inappropriate; bad news is often really important and negative emotions can spur action. But in our current environment it can feel like all news is bad news. And doomscrolling can make us feel… doomy. 

IMG focuses on solutions not because we think it’s the only kind of reporting that matters, but because we think it’s a critical part of a healthy information diet. It’s healthy for people, for communities, and for society. Hope and agency are fundamental to our collective ability to imagine and design a better future. At IMG, we intentionally address that need, and we’re proud to see that hopescrolling is having an impact.

We’re building common ground

1 in 3 of our readers credit our journalism with helping them think differently about a local issue. Think about that for a minute! We’re living in a time seemingly defined by polarization, fully dug-in heels, and an echo chamber algorithmically perfected just for you (and you, and you, and you). 

But IMG publications manage to break through. Readers know we might challenge their perspective, and read us anyway, and they like it.

We do try to cultivate this. We don’t cover issues “from both sides” because, while we value a political perspective, we don’t start from one. At the same time, we don’t ignore political reality when it’s relevant. 

We do dive into complex issues, provide context, highlight practical responses, and explicitly aim to help communities learn from each other. We don’t set out to change minds, but we do mean to help people think differently—to better understand their neighbors, how their community works, and what’s possible in their own backyard.

(Also, we are literally building Common Ground. If you haven’t already, subscribe today!)

A huge thank you to everyone who filled out our survey. Community voices shape our coverage every day, but this kind of feedback shapes us in a different way. It helps us understand IMG’s impact and potential, validating some of our assumptions and challenging others. We appreciate your time, your trust, and your appetite for news that moves communities forward!