po polsku
illustration: DALL-EIn a trust survey of social media platforms conducted in Poland by the Institute for Market and Social Research IBRiS for the Res Futura Analytical Collective and SentiOne, Poles rated which social platforms they trust and which they do not. YouTube received the most positive responses. Nearly one in four respondents expressed trust, including 6 percent who said "definitely." Distrust in the platform was declared by 20 percent, while 42 percent were neutral. Only 3 percent of those surveyed did not know this platform.
On the other end of the scale was TikTok. Nearly one third of respondents said they did not trust it. Only 13 percent expressed trust, with no one selecting "definitely trust". A significant 16 percent had never heard of the app.
Facebook landed close to TikTok. Three out of ten respondents did not trust the platform. 22 percent expressed trust, and 31 percent were neutral. High neutrality levels were also seen with Instagram. As much as 36 percent chose that option. Only 11 percent declared trust, while 20 percent expressed distrust.
Platform X (formerly Twitter) received similar ratings. 20 percent trusted it and 21 percent did not. The rebranding may have impacted recognition. As many as 26 percent of respondents did not know the new name. The least recognized service turned out to be Telegram. 58 percent did not know the app. Only 4 percent declared trust and 11 percent distrust.
| Platform | Trust (%) | Distrust (%) | Neutral (%) | Don`t know (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube | 23 | 20 | 42 | 3 |
| 22 | 31 | 31 | 5 | |
| X (Twitter) | 20 | 21 | 24 | 26 |
| TikTok | 13 | 32 | 28 | 16 |
| 11 | 20 | 36 | 19 | |
| Telegram | 4 | 11 | 15 | 58 |
Based on data from the trust in social platforms study by Res Futura, IBRiS, and SentiOne, several clear conclusions emerge. The findings form a bigger picture. Society is becoming more cautious about social media and real trust goes only to platforms that are neutral, functional, and easy to understand for a broad audience. A deeper understanding comes from comparing with other media studies. Both social and traditional.
Trust is leaving platforms but not people
According to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), as many as 49 percent of Europeans trust public media. In comparison, only 17 percent trust social media. This shows that on a continental scale, platforms like Facebook or TikTok have not earned the status of trusted information sources.
In Poland, these ratios are even more stark. According to the Reuters Digital News Report 2024, only 33 percent of Poles believe most online news is true. That is among the lowest in Europe. Low content credibility translates into distrust toward the channels that distribute it. Mainly social media.
Interestingly, even younger users who actively use TikTok or Instagram say they approach content there with great caution. Manipulation, disinformation, and sponsored posts pretending to be real are widespread. This undermines the credibility of entire platforms regardless of individual experiences.
People more than platforms
An additional insight comes from an analysis of user attitudes toward influencer marketing. Users trust specific people more than entire platforms. As many as 63 percent said they trust influencers who communicate sincerely and personally. This shows that the source of trust today is not the brand but the person.
Social media platforms are no longer seen as neutral communication tools. Users expect authenticity, engagement, and consistency. Not only from the content but also from the creators. That is why YouTube, seen more as a tool than a media outlet, ranks best. Meanwhile, TikTok and Facebook are paying the price for scandals, disinformation, and overreliance on algorithms. It is increasingly clear that trust is not disappearing. It is simply changing its target.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
New articles in section Media industry
Tags, hashtags and links in video descriptions. Youtube SEO after Gemini AI update [ANALYSIS]
BARD
Once, positioning a video on Youtube was simple. It was enough to stuff the description with keywords and wait for results. Those days are not coming back. In 2026, the algorithm is no longer a simple search engine that connects dots. It is the powerful Gemini AI artificial intelligence that understands your video better than you do.
Freelancers 2025 in media and advertising. Useme report
Krzysztof Fiedorek
The modern media and communication market presents entirely new challenges for independent creators. Traditional services are giving way to more complex forms of messaging. The most popular industries in which Polish freelancers operate focus on companies' online presence and visual content.
Video content in Poland. What and how we watch
Paweł Sobczak
Video content is watched remotely, but streaming services are mainly enjoyed in the comfort of home. This is how the consumption of audiovisual content by Poles in 2025 can be summarized. This is the result of an analysis of a study conducted by SW Research and data from the company MEGOGO.
See articles on a similar topic:
Disinformation ranks above terrorism as global threat
KFi
According to "International Opinion on Global Threats" by Pew Research Center, a median of 72% of adults across 25 countries view the spread of false information online as a major threat to their country. That number places disinformation at the very top of perceived global dangers.
"No One Should Know the Truth" [DOCUMENTARY FILM]
BARD
According to the Belarusian Association of Journalists, around 554 journalist detentions occurred in Belarus between August 2020 and July 2023. Criminal charges were brought against 73 media workers, and 33 of them remain in prison to this day.
Fake News and Disinformation in Poland. Scale, Impact and Future
Bartłomiej Dwornik
Where do the sources of disinformation lie, and how large is the scale of this wave? Why are we so susceptible to false information, and what role do traditional media play in this puzzle? Let’s shed some light on these issues and face the question: can the battle against the flood of disinformation still be won?
Zero-click search 2025. The even bigger end of clicking in search engines
Bartłomiej Dwornik
Google is giving up its role as a web signpost. More and more, it wants to be the destination of the whole journey. ChatGPT and Perplexity are hot on its heels, changing the rules of the search game. AI Overviews is a card from the same deck. Only content creators are losing ground in this race.
