The 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer: What a Crisis of Trust Teaches Businesses and Professional Advisors

Fusion Legal & Tax · September 17, 2026Practice area6 min readTax Planning & Advisory

Trust is not built by asking someone to “take our word for it.” It grows when people receive clear information, understand what happens next, and see that promises are matched by action.

That lesson sits at the heart of the 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer. Published during the COVID-19 pandemic and accompanying economic crisis, the report described “an epidemic of misinformation and widespread mistrust of societal institutions and leaders around the world.” It examined trust in four institutions: business, government, nongovernmental organizations, and media.

For business owners and people looking for legal or tax help, the report offers more than a historical snapshot. It provides a practical framework for choosing advisors, communicating during uncertainty, and building relationships in which no one has to guess about responsibilities, deadlines, or decisions.

What did the 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer find?

As reported in 2021, Edelman said the pandemic—then associated with “more than 1.9 million lives lost” and “joblessness equivalent to the Great Depression”—had accelerated the erosion of trust worldwide. Those figures describe the conditions reported at that time; they are not current pandemic statistics.

The study documented particularly sharp declines involving the world’s two largest economies. According to Edelman’s 2021 findings on global trust:

• Respondents from the other 26 surveyed markets gave the U.S. government a 40% trust score and the Chinese government a 30% score.
• Trust among U.S. citizens fell another five points following the November 2020 presidential election.
• Trust among Chinese citizens fell 18 points from May 2020.
• Government trust declined eight points globally during the final six months measured.

The information environment was strained as well. Edelman reported that trust in all news sources reached record lows: social media stood at 35%, owned media at 41%, and traditional media at 53%. Traditional media experienced the largest decline—eight points globally.

These numbers should not be read as a current measurement of public opinion. They are findings from a specific report released in 2021. Their lasting value is the pattern they reveal: during uncertainty, people become more careful about who is speaking, what supports the claim, and whether conduct matches the message.

The trust problem did not begin with the pandemic

The previous year’s research had already identified a disconnect between institutional performance and public confidence. The 2020 Edelman Trust Barometer reported that none of the four measured institutions was trusted, despite a strong global economy and near-full employment at that time.

That report framed trust around two distinct qualities:

1. Competence: delivering on promises.
2. Ethical behavior: doing the right thing and working to improve society.

The distinction matters. Expertise without transparency can feel inaccessible. Warm communication without reliable work can feel empty. A trustworthy professional relationship needs both: careful execution and conduct that gives the client a meaningful way to understand, question, and evaluate the work.

What does this mean when you are choosing a lawyer or tax professional?

People often seek professional help at moments when several pressures arrive at once: an IRS letter, a business dispute, an incomplete estate plan, an upcoming marriage, or records that no longer tell a clear financial story. You should not have to surrender control to receive help.

A productive first conversation should make the process more understandable. Consider asking:

• Who will handle my matter? Ask whether your primary contact will be an attorney, tax professional, paralegal, accountant, or another team member.
• What is included in the engagement? The written agreement should identify the scope of work and important exclusions.
• What information do you need from me? A specific document list is more useful than a general request to “send everything.”
• How will fees work? Ask about billing structure, retainers, replenishment requirements, filing fees, and circumstances that may expand the scope.
• What deadlines are already known? Confirm which deadlines apply, who is responsible for tracking them, and what could change the schedule.
• What outcomes are uncertain? A careful advisor should distinguish between facts, professional judgment, available options, and matters controlled by a court, agency, taxing authority, counterparty, or future event.
• How will decisions be documented? Written summaries can reduce confusion when a matter involves several people, multiple entities, or decisions made over time.

No responsible professional can promise a particular legal, tax, or financial result. They can explain the process, identify known risks, communicate assumptions, and help you make informed choices based on the available facts.

What does the report mean for business owners?

Trust is operational. Customers, employees, lenders, investors, and professional advisors experience it through ordinary business systems.

Put important expectations in writing

Clear agreements help people understand pricing, deliverables, payment terms, ownership, confidentiality, renewal provisions, and how either side may end the relationship. A written agreement cannot prevent every disagreement, but it can give everyone a shared reference point.

Separate verified facts from forecasts

Budgets, tax projections, hiring plans, and revenue models depend on assumptions. Label those assumptions. If a projection changes, explain what changed and why. A forecast can support a decision without being presented as a promise.

Explain difficult decisions early

Waiting to communicate may allow uncertainty to fill the gap. When lawful and appropriate, explain what is changing, when it takes effect, whom it affects, and where people can ask questions. If information cannot yet be shared, say that plainly rather than inventing certainty.

Make responsibility visible

Clients and employees should know who owns the next step. Meeting notes can identify the decision, responsible person, required documents, and target date. This simple practice helps protect working relationships from preventable misunderstandings.

Treat records as part of the relationship

Organized contracts, resolutions, tax filings, payroll records, ownership documents, and correspondence make it easier to answer questions consistently. Good records can also help legal and tax advisors understand the full picture before recommending a path forward.

Trust requires more than better messaging

A polished website, a confident presentation, or a friendly meeting may create a positive first impression. Trust becomes durable only when the underlying process supports it.

That principle appears again in later research. The 2024 Edelman Trust Barometer reported concern that innovation was poorly managed and said acceptance was more likely when people believed an innovation could produce a better future. Its recommendations emphasized explaining the science, managing impacts, engaging in dialogue, and helping people feel control over how innovation affects their lives.

Although that report focused on innovation, the practical lesson applies more broadly: people need enough information and agency to participate in decisions that affect them. This is especially important when discussing artificial intelligence, automated accounting systems, data-sharing tools, tax strategies, or new business structures. The tool may be sophisticated, but the explanation should remain clear.

A practical trust checklist

Before beginning an important legal, tax, or business project, look for a process that provides:

• a written scope of work;
• understandable fee terms;
• identified points of contact;
• a list of required documents;
• known deadlines and assigned responsibilities;
• explanations of material assumptions and uncertainties;
• secure methods for exchanging sensitive information;
• written confirmation of major decisions; and
• a process for reviewing the plan as facts or laws change.

For business owners, the same checklist can be turned inward. Ask whether your employees, customers, co-owners, and advisors can readily understand what you expect from them—and what they can expect from you.

Clear guidance can help restore a sense of control

The 2021 Trust Barometer captured a period when institutions, leaders, and information sources were all under intense pressure. Its message remains useful: confidence is not restored by projecting certainty that does not exist. It is strengthened by competent work, ethical conduct, direct explanations, and consistent follow-through.

If a legal or tax issue has left you unsure whom to believe or what to do next, begin by gathering the relevant notices, agreements, filings, correspondence, and financial records. Then seek a professional who is willing to explain both the available options and their limits.

Fusion Legal & Tax helps Colorado clients with state-law planning and business matters and assists clients nationwide with federal tax representation and general business or tax concerns. A consultation can help clarify the facts, identify possible next steps, and determine whether our team is the right fit. Results depend on the circumstances, applicable law, available records, and decisions made by agencies, courts, or other parties.

This article provides general educational information and is not legal or tax advice for any particular person or situation.