New Survey Shows Americans Trust U.S. Federal Agencies More Than White House, Congress on Energy Issues

Makovsky Survey Reveals Majority Believe U.S. on “Right Path” For
Energy Independence, But Distrust Energy Company Information Sources

WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Americans across the political spectrum believe that U.S. federal
agencies are the most credible source for energy information, more so
than the news media and significantly more trustworthy than the White
House or Congress. This finding was one of the insights from a new
national survey and corresponding report by Makovsky, one of the
nation’s leading integrated communications consultancies.

The report, Trust,
Credibility and America’s Energy Future, offers an instructive look
into what U.S. consumers think about energy issues in the end of a
tumultuous year which saw the Trump Administration take over national
energy policy, the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accords, the
repeal of the Obama Administration’s Clean Power Plan and ongoing energy
issues surrounding hydraulic fracking and the Keystone pipeline.

On the credibility issue, respondents were given a variety of choices,
and U.S. government agencies and TV news channels and/or their websites
were seen as the most credible information sources (22% and 20%,
respectively) while the White House came in at 13% and Congress at 8%.

Millennials gave the highest credibility scores to federal agencies and
TV news channels (33% and 24%, respectively). In fact, Millennials
appear to be more trusting of information sources in general, giving
notably higher credibility scores compared to other generations surveyed.

Despite social media ranking among the top information sources, it was
considered the least credible of the sources listed (7%). High use
combined with low credibility may be driven by the passive nature of
social media—as opposed to consumers actively seeking it out.

When asked if the United States is on the “right path towards energy
independence,” 65% said it was, compared to 43% who disagreed. When
broken down by political affiliation, 80% of Republicans agreed,
compared to 43% of Democrats and 38% of Independents. A majority of
respondents (61%) also agreed that domestic energy sources should be
prioritized over foreign energy solutions.

Opinions are almost evenly split among Americans on whether market
forces or the government should determine the best energy source for
America. Slightly more than half (55%) say market forces should be
responsible, whereas slightly less than half (45%) believe government
should make the decision. Republicans (58%), ages 45-54 (62%), ages
55-64 (66%), incomes of $75k-$100k (62%) and $100k+ (61%) are most
likely to support market forces, whereas Democrats (53%), age 18-34
(54%), incomes less than $35k (53%) lean toward government.

“These new results illustrate that Americans want reliable sources of
information about energy issues, and the uncertainty of the past year
has led them to put the most faith in federal agency policy makers and
the news media,” said Andy Beck, Executive Vice President of Energy,
Manufacturing and Sustainability at Makovsky.

Americans also view energy company communications with skepticism and
distrust. When asked to identify the most informative energy company
communications method, the top response (36%) was “none of the above”
followed by websites (29%), Facebook (15%) and advertisements (7%).

In a continuation of last year’s survey findings, Americans also
continue to considerably overestimate renewable energy’s role in the
U.S.’s overall energy use; base their energy decisions on societal
impacts; have the most trust in the solar industry; and get a majority
of their energy information from television news.

The survey of over 1,000 adults from across the U.S., representing
varied political viewpoints, a wide range of age groups and diverse
income levels, shows that:

Americans continue to overestimate the contribution of renewable
energy in powering the U.S. and underestimate the role of coal, oil and
natural gas now and in the future. In 2017, solar and wind
together made up just 3% of U.S. energy consumption, while survey
respondents put the figure at 21%. Furthermore, respondents predict that
wind and solar will make up 32% of energy consumption in five years;
however, industry experts predict that renewable sources will produce
less than 5% of U.S. energy consumption. Conversely, respondents
perceived fossil fuels to be a much lower percentage of the energy mix
than they are today and projected them to be even less in five years.

Americans actively seek and pay attention to news related to the
energy industry on a wide range of topics. More than half of those
surveyed (60%) report getting information or hearing about energy issues
a few times a month.

27% of Americans consider the solar industry most trustworthy—utilities
rank second (24%) and the natural gas industry is a close third (23%.)
The coal industry ranks last at 2%.

Makovsky’s new energy report is available at www.makovsky.com.

About Makovsky

Founded in 1979, Makovsky (www.makovsky.com)
is one of the nation’s largest and most influential independent
integrated communications firms. The firm attributes its success to its
original vision: that the Power of Specialized Thinking™ is the best way
to build reputation, sales and fair valuation for a client. Based in New
York City, the firm has agency partners with nearly 2,000 professionals
in 100 cities through IPREX (IPREX.com),
the second largest worldwide public relations agency partnership, of
which Makovsky is the founder.

During 2014 and 2015, Makovsky won more than 50 awards for the agency,
its client campaigns and its people. Recently the firm was ranked #7
in The New York Observer “PR Power 50 List” of the most influential
firms in New York City.

Contacts

Makovsky
Andy Beck, 202-802-8293
[email protected]