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Independence and a matter of trust

Independence and a matter of trust. David Marder Head of Media Relations ONS, United Kingdom. A sceptical audience. Independence and ethical behaviour must be at the core of any platform to build trust

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Independence and a matter of trust

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  1. Independence and a matter of trust David Marder Head of Media Relations ONS, United Kingdom

  2. A sceptical audience • Independence and ethical behaviour must be at the core of any platform to build trust • It is a simple truth that to be trusted you must show that you are trustworthy and you must also show trust in others • In the UK, however, the level of scepticism has reached such a depth that institutional change in itself will not achieve the desired shift in attitude

  3. Public confidence • A third of people (33 per cent) thought figures were not generally accurate • Nearly six in ten (57 per cent) disagreed that figures were produced without political interference • A similar proportion (58 per cent) disagreed that the government uses figures honestly • Of those that disagreed that figures were accurate nearly half (47 per cent) included a view that figures were manipulated for political purposes Public confidence in official statistics, ONS 2008

  4. The Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007 • Creates a new independent authority accountable direct to the UK Parliament and whose objective is to promote and safeguard: • The production and publication of official statistics that serve the public good; and • The quality, good practice and comprehensiveness of official statistics

  5. Leaders in independence Sir Michael Scholar – Chair of the new UK Statistics Authority Karen Dunnell – National Statistician

  6. Some key points • A new Code of Practice • Independent assessment role • A new look at pre-release access • Data-sharing • Statistical publication hub . . . But how do we deliver ‘the public good’, confidence and trust . . .

  7. Earning trust • Where there is no trust . . . • Rise of influence of single issue groups • Rejection of the official voice • Erosion of civic society Trust in Government (Opinion Leader Research) April 2006

  8. What happened to trust? • We don't trust less, we trust differently • No longer an age of deference • We've moved to an age of reference

  9. Who is trusted? • Authority of institution has been eroded and switched to: • people we know, who know • 'my media' • We choose PEOPLE we can trust and then find the CONTEXT in which we can trust them

  10. Views of ‘opinion-formers’ Opinion-formers say the quality of UK official statistics is up there with the best in the world • The problem of mistrust as they see it: • current political climate of mistrust • politicisation of official statistics • prior access by Ministers • spin = political marketing ("it's my job to create the truth" - Peter Mandelson) Ipsos-MORI - Official Statistics: Perception and Trust (May 2006)

  11. The spiral of distrust • Divergence syndrome • Something expected to be positive turned out to be negative • Something thought be constant turns out to be finite • The disconnect between expectations and experience • Doesn't connect with 'me and my world'

  12. Shoot the messenger The media: • Statistics make easy and powerful stories • ... But • taken out of context • exaggerated • misrepresented The effect: • skews trust • creates misunderstanding

  13. Media – most powerful stakeholders Media v. statistics – the battle zone: • never let the facts get in the way of the story • if it's not interesting - it's not news • no change = no news • Build bridges with the media to create less ambiguous coverage

  14. How can you gain trust? • To earn trust . . . first you have to give trust • mutual respect • accessible information • Adult-to-adult • Behaviours that are trustworthy • consistent • authentic • human • engaging

  15. New kinds of influence • The social influencer: • charismatic • no apparent agenda • not patronising • accessible • appears to know • engaging and likeable • personal and relevant • represents . . . the truth

  16. Standing in the shoes • Stand in the shoes of the audience and ask: • 'What does this mean to me?' • 'Do I trust these people?'

  17. A voice from the past . . . facts are essential to the formation of views . . . prejudice is combatted by reason . . . policies are explained to be understood Sir Kenneth Grubb, Ministry of Information 1941-46

  18. Transparency, accessibility and clarity • Independence is not a magic bullet • Statisticians must not only act independently but be seen to be independent • Probity is not sufficient in itself • Transparency, accessibility and clarity are all equally important • Clearer explanation of the information produced is probably even more useful to users than increasing the range

  19. Searching the depths

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