Global fears about government, business and the rich have turned into grievances, according to Edelman’s 2025 Trust Barometer.
In its latest annual report, the DJE Holdings agency found that six in 10 respondents report moderate to high grievances towards those three institutions and that fear of experiencing discrimination surged to record highs. That sentiment spanned all demographics and political divides, with the largest jump among whites in the US.
Non-governmental organisations, as ethical leaders and unifiers, hold the highest trust among those with high grievance, according to the report.
The online survey, now in its 25th year, was conducted from October 25 to November 16, 2024, with over 33,000 respondents across 28 countries.
The grievances stem from four key factors: Lack of hope for the next generation, the mass-class trust divide, unprecedented lack of faith in institutional leaders and confusion over credible information.
“We are in a new phase. We had a phase of fears, we had a phase of polarisation, now we have a phase of grievance,” Edelman CEO Richard Edelman said. “What's particularly important here is that it's based on a complete lack of economic hope and optimism, confidence. The future has to look brighter in order to quell this grievance.”
In the report’s latest edition, 70% of respondents said government officials, business leaders and journalists deliberately mislead them by saying things they know are false or gross exaggerations, rising significantly year-over-year from 2023 to 2024 and now, 2025.
“This is huge for the PR business because we've got to have companies show empathy and also have much more belief in the information that people see. The essence of the problem is we don't have agreed facts,” Edelman said, citing the lack of trust as a “legacy of COVID.”
“The point for PR folks is we have to continue to tell client CEOs to stand up and speak up on things that are in their swim lanes,” he added. “After last week with Meta’s decision, you're going to have a much lower bar for speaking up on behalf of brands or companies when there's disinformation. Get out earlier with stories that lead as opposed to reactive.”
Edelman also highlighted the importance of leaning into longer-form content such as podcasts over shorter videos like TikToks that don’t persuade, he said.
According to the Barometer’s Trust Index, most countries included in the study with national elections in 2024 failed to improve trust. Five of the largest 10 global economies are among the least trusting nations, including Japan, the least trusting, followed by Germany, the UK, US, and France.
Despite a three-point drop to 76%, “my employer” remains the most trusted institution among participants and is the only institution trusted among low-income respondents. Government and the media were tied for least trusted among those surveyed.
Yet, fears of job loss due to trade conflicts, foreign competitors, offshoring, economic pressure, tech description such as automation and out-of-date skills all increased year-over-year.
Notably, over half of respondents aged 18-34 said they approved of violence, property damage or misinformation as tools for change and 55% said capitalism does more harm than good—a “tipping point” that should signify the “extent to which we’re in a different moment,” Edelman said.
Edelman is confident that the trend toward grievance can be reversed over the next quarter-century, but that can’t be done without action, he said, citing his agency’s work on The Move to -15 for DP World as an example. The firm’s London team was awarded the Titanium Lion for at the 2024 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity for its work on the campaign.
“We can't wait. We can't hope. We can't stick our heads down and expect a storm to pass. Our clients need to be part of the solve here by doing what they do well, but also by allowing us to do what we do, which is speak up early. Speak up often. Listen to objections. Give dignity to the reader, listener,” Edelman said. “You have to act in order to get trust.”
The 2025 Trust Barometer launches globally Tuesday at the annual World Economic Forum in Davos. Edelman said he’ll discuss the results with fellow CEOs at a dinner Monday night ahead of Tuesday’s launch and panel discussion.
Previous editions of the Trust Barometer have covered a wide range of issues. Edelman’s 2024 Trust Barometer addressed the growing rift between society and innovation and businesses' best chance to remedy it. The 2023 version dissected a polarizing world and respondents' view of business as the only global sector that is ethical and competent.
In December, Edelman laid off 5.3% of its workforce, resulting in the elimination of 330 roles. The move was in response to an expected decrease in revenue in 2024 of around 8% in the U.S. and 3% globally.
The restructuring sunsetted DJE sub-brands and conflict shops Edible, Revere, Salutem, Mustache, Edelman Global Advisory and Delta and affected long-time executives.
Edelman CEO Richard Edelman told PRWeek last month that he’s “deeply optimistic” for the future of the agency and predicts a “strong performance in 2025,” despite expected consecutive years of revenue decline. In 2023, the firm reported nearly $1.04 billion in revenue globally.
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