The widening credibility gap

The widening credibility gap

The term ‘credibility gap’ was first used in the 1960s and 1970s. The phrase was used to describe how the information given by the government was different from what the public believed (Elbert1). The sentence began with the war in Vietnam and Watergate. The people lost trust in the government gradually but not abruptly. The death of more than 3 million Americans and Vietnamese was what made the people lose confidence in almost all government institutions (Burns, Novick1).

The phrase is mostly used by politicians and the press to express that they doubt the information given by the government. Further, there was a commission led by the supreme court of justice. It was supposed to make sure that the Soviet Union was not involved in the Vietnam war. However, the report that was written by the commission made the public to have more questions than answers. The public later learned that the government was acting to hide the dirty tricks played by the government. This led to a decrease in the way the people trusted the government.

The political leaders in America have a history of misleading the general public. For example, George Washington was said to have fathered a child with a neighbor’s wife. From 1754, the information was discredited in around 1880.

In the 20^th century, more misleading information was delivered to the public. This is because there are increased facilities to spread false and misleading information. Examples include televisions, radios, and internet. Donald Trump, the current president of America, has misled the public on some occasions. For instance, he has taken credit for events he has not been involved in. Trump continues widening the ‘credibility gap.’

Works cited

Burns, Ken, and Lynn Novick. “The Presidency Never Recovered After Vietnam.” The Atlantic, 2017, www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2017/10/how-americans-lost-faith-in-the-presidency/537897/. Accessed 2 Apr. 2020.

DAVE, ELBERT. “The Elbert Files: Widening the ‘credibility Gap.'” Business Record, 2017, businessrecord.com/Content/Opinion/Opinion/Article/The-Elbert-Files-Widening-the-credibility-gap-/168/963/80097. Accessed 2 Apr. 2020.

Zeitz, Josh. “How Americans lost faith in government.” The Washington, 30 Jan. 2018, www.washingtonpost.com/news/made-by-history/wp/2018/01/30/how-americans-lost-faith-in-government/. Accessed 2 Apr. 2020.