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LIVING RESEARCH PROJECT / LRP-206

How Do Adventist Members Consume Information — Trust Levels Across Media Sources?

Substantive evidenceReviewed 7 March 2026Draft
EVIDENCE STRENGTH77/100

A review of the evidence, not a measure of whether a finding is true.

Explore the findings
media-consumptiontrustgenerationalinformation-sourcesecho-chamberssocial-media

Executive Summary

No comprehensive survey has mapped how Seventh-day Adventist members consume information about their church or which sources they trust most. This represents a critical research gap. Drawing on broader religious media research — including the NRB/Barna 2025 study, Gallup trust data, and Pew Research generational analyses — we can construct a provisional framework. Two-thirds of Americans view Christian media as valuable, but 45% of heavy consumers call it "divisive." Trust in media generally sit...

Key findings

The NRB/Barna 2025 study provides the most comprehensive recent data on Christian media trust:

Two-thirds of the general U.S. population view Christian media as valuable and trustworthy.

Among practicing Christians (monthly church attendance, faith very important), affirmation rises to four in five.

However, among heavy consumers of Christian media, 45% judge content as "divisive" and 40% say it makes "Christians look bad.".

Those most familiar with Christian content are the most critical — a paradox of engagement.

Gallup's 2025 data shows:

43% of adults 65+ trust the media.

No more than 28% of any younger age group trusts the media.

Among Democrats, trust rises with age (38% of 18-29 vs. 69% of 65+); among Republicans, trust is uniformly low (6-17%) across all ages.

57% of adults under 50 report news fatigue, compared to 46% of those 50+.

Adventist Worldview

Contextual mission discernment

This LRP supports prayerful, evidence-informed action: discern the field, test responses humbly, and adapt for mission without compromising conviction.

Use this research as a stewardship aid, not as a replacement for Scripture, prayer, pastoral discernment, or local listening.

Editorial posture

Use this research as a stewardship aid for Adventist mission. God grows His church; data helps leaders understand where faithful response, care, and mission attention may be needed.

Adventist confidence
Not recorded
Theological risk
Not recorded
Ideological risk
Not recorded
Biblical / Adventist anchors
Research serves the church's worship, witness, discipleship, care, and stewardship under Scripture.
Methods may learn from public data and social science, but Scripture, Adventist doctrine, and mission set the interpretive boundaries.
Review gate: this LRP should be interpreted by an Adventist editor before it shapes public copy or high-stakes Mission Intelligence actions.

Cautions Before Applying

Use this LRP as a stewardship prompt, then test it against local data, pastoral knowledge, and the mission context.
Check for counter-evidence or local exceptions before turning this into policy.
No confidence rating is on file for this record — read it provisionally until a reviewer grades it.

Applicability: Use when an entity shows strategic response pulse weakness or when this LRP's tags match the local diagnosis.

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